If you want to keep up with technological trends, should you cultivate your children's programming skills from an early age? -AI4kids

The rapid development of science and technology has changed our way of life. Programming technology has become the current social trend, and programming language will definitely be the core competitiveness now and in the future! Many countries like the United States and the United Kingdom have grasped the technological trends and started to cultivate children and teenagers to learn programming. Taiwan has also followed suit and included programming languages ​​as a compulsory course for junior high and high schools in 2020 and included it in the 108 curriculum. Many parents are worried about whether they will expose their children to programming languages ​​too early and worry that it will increase academic pressure. Next, everyone will understand that even if you don’t want to become an engineer in the future, learning programming languages ​​can bring many different advantages and cultivate characteristics!

If my child doesn't want to be an engineer, why should he learn programming?

Develop computational logic and problem-solving abilities

Programming language is different from general knowledge learning, and it focuses more on logical thinking and problem-solving skills during the implementation process. Learn to understand and deconstruct problems through the generation of problems, and ultimately find solutions to them. In the process of solving problems, children can develop the ability to think independently and the ability to communicate with others, and finally get a complete solution. This way of learning is different from the traditional way of education. In the past, the teaching method was one-way and memorization-based, which easily led to children not being able to think and solve problems on their own. However, through the learning of procedural language, children can use computational thinking to make more logical judgments and solve problems!

"Programming" 108 course has been officially included

This policy can further confirm the trend of "programming". During the schooling process, children can learn basic scientific and technological concepts and skills, and make good use of their knowledge to engage in creative, design, critical, logical, and computational thinking, so as to understand the future development of the science and technology industry and professions in advance, thereby inspiring their interest in scientific and technological research and development, etc.

. Reference: National Institute of Education - eNewsletter

Core Competencies for Current and Future Careers

In this digital technology age, both life and the development of the international community are closely related to programming technology. From mobile phones, apps, cars, transportation, business operations, blockchain, the previously popular NFTs to the increasingly mature artificial intelligence, robots, etc., all require the use of programming technology. Many companies are also constantly transforming, using programming technology to achieve automation (unmanned factories), enhance customer interaction (24-hour chatbots), simplify processes with system technology, etc., accelerating and simplifying labor costs through procedural technology, etc. Therefore, programming languages ​​have become the language of the world, and the demand for programmers is increasing. Even talents from different professions will get extra points as long as they understand basic programming concepts!

Can a child learn programming if his English is not good?

The threshold for English proficiency for beginner programmers is not high. The key is to not be averse to reading English. No matter whether the programming language you learn is C++, Python, Javascript, PHP, etc., all programming languages ​​are composed of combinations of English letters. If you are worried that your child will be averse, there are many different programming games that can allow beginner children to cultivate an interest in programming and learn the basic concepts of programming during the game. Therefore, if you want to learn programming from scratch, you do not need a high level of English proficiency. However, if you want to become a professional engineer, you can develop your English skills well, which will make learning programming languages ​​smoother!

Why would English be a great help if you want to become a senior engineer?

After cultivating a programming foundation for a long time, you will always want to take a step further and move towards becoming a senior engineer. At this time, English proficiency will be a plus and a necessary condition! The following advantages will help you understand why English can be a great help!

You can directly read the official original documents

When you have learned to a certain level, you will need to obtain first-hand official information. At this time, you can directly read the official original materials to understand the latest developments. Although some documents have Chinese versions, many technical terms are rarely translated into Chinese, which can easily lead to misunderstandings. Therefore, reading the original text directly is the best way to fully understand the official news.

Ability to obtain the latest technical knowledge

Many new technologies are originally published in English. If you want to learn about the latest technologies and other related information, you will need the ability to read and understand English!

Participate in overseas community discussions - StackOverflow, Github

Websites and community forums such as StackOverflow and Github are must-visit programming sanctuaries for engineers every day. Many engineers from all over the world discuss the problems they encounter on them and help each other solve them. In the process, they can also gain a lot of inspiration and learn more about the intricacies of programming and different solutions. If you have good English communication and expression skills, you can ask questions in the forum and communicate with engineers from different countries!

Do I need to have good math skills to learn programming?

A study published in the scientific journal Scientific Reports found that language ability, memory and reasoning skills play a greater role in learning programming languages ​​than numerical processing ability. Therefore, writing programs does not require complex mathematical skills. The key point is whether you have the ability to break down the problem logically. As long as you cultivate good programming logic and computational thinking, learning will be easier!

From this we can see that the threshold for English and math skills for novices to learn programming is not high. The key is to "get started" and slowly develop programming logic in the process and accumulate your own programming skills!

If you want to learn programming, which programming language game do you recommend starting with?

There are many programming games for children with zero basics to choose from, so that children can first establish computational thinking and learn programming. Below are three selected programming games. Each programming game allows children to learn to write programs in the game, allowing children to study at home.

Scratch - Block-based game learning

Scratch is a visual block-based programming game. Children with no programming experience can start learning programming right away. Combining grammar blocks in the game is programming, and the game also fully supports Traditional Chinese. This intuitive and easy game design allows children of different ages to quickly get started. In the Scratch game, children can establish basic programming logic by combining blocks, so that they can master programming logic faster when learning programming languages ​​in the future!

Micro bit－Block-based game learning

Micro bit is a microcomputer game that allows children to write programs on the computer in two ways. The first is to use the MakeCode editor to stack program blocks to write programs. The functions on the blocks can be displayed in Chinese, allowing children to use program codes more intuitively. It is suitable for children who are just starting out and are not familiar with programming languages. The second is the Python editor, which allows children with a programming foundation to write programs directly using the keyboard. Programs written in both ways can be run in the program preview on the computer or on an external Micro bit microcomputer. This kind of game allows children to actually learn programming and use a microcomputer to operate it, so that programming is no longer just a program code on the screen, but can actually run on the microcomputer! Micro bit is not only a microcomputer, but also has external connection pins that can connect to different external components or sensors, such as motors, LEDs, etc. There are many different ways to play with Micro bit that allow children to unleash their creativity and create programs of their own design!

CodeCombat - Level-based game-style hands-on programming

CodeCombat is different from the previous two programming games. It is a programming game that combines "game" and "education". Children can learn programming language and cultivate programming concepts in stages while completing the game. In the process , they need to write programs to control the action instructions of the hero character. This programming game fully embodies the meaning of combining education with entertainment. Every time a child passes a level, his confidence is increased and his interest in programming language is stimulated. He will become familiar with how to use programming language without realizing it. When you see this, you must be thinking, this should only be suitable for children with a programming foundation? No! Don’t worry about your children not being able to write programming code. There will be level teaching prompts in the levels to cultivate your children’s understanding of programming languages, so that they can seamlessly learn more advanced programming languages ​​in the future! In addition to the in-game educational tips, CodeCombat also has a set of programming learning maps and teaching materials that meet the US CSTA certification standards. These can be used in conjunction with CodeCombat online courses to allow children to master the game faster and receive a more complete programming education. As long as you complete the course which takes about two years, you can reach the entry level of American universities, which will allow your children’s programming ability to win at the starting point!

CodeCombat also holds a global programming competition called CodeQuest , where programmers from all over the world can exchange ideas with each other. The competition is divided into elementary school group (grades 1 to 6) and middle school group (grades 7 to 12 - junior high school and high school). Participating in global competitions can broaden children's international horizons and make them more passionate about the fun of programming!

. Official online free trial . Sign up for a free course trial

. Further reading: How to choose the most popular programming games nowadays? Understand the differences between CodeCombat, Minecraft, and Scratch at once and find the most suitable learning method!

Recommended Children's Programming Courses - Elementary/Junior High School

CodeCombat Programming Game Course (Chinese, English)

Class types: one-on-one, group class, one-on-one full English

Number of classes: Different classes have different number of classes. Click the button below to get more information.

The class is taught by CodeCombat's official certified instructors, and weekly courses allow children to learn the basics of programming in a more systematic way. You can actually write programs in every class, and you can also play CodeCombat programming games on your own after class to practice writing programming languages!

Learn about the programming game course →

Recommended Children's Programming Camps (Summer Camps/Winter Vacation Camps) - Elementary School/Junior High School

CodeCombat Winter Vacation Online Intensive Course

Every winter vacation, AI4kids will hold an online programming camp, allowing children to quickly become Python programming heroes from scratch in a five-day short-term intensive training camp, so that the winter vacation will not be wasted!

CodeCombat Winter Vacation Online Intensive Course →

Summarize

From the article, we can understand that with the development of the times, programming has become an indispensable part of life, and programming skills will play an indispensable role in the present and future workplace. Therefore, learning programming from an early age can not only cultivate programming skills, but also cultivate children's problem-solving ability. In terms of learning, whether it is programming games, online courses or participating in camps, it can enrich children’s learning process! Let’s cultivate our children’s programming competitiveness from an early age!

Want to try out the CodeCombat programming game course? Sign up for a free programming trial class

Want to learn more? Click the button for more information!