You don’t need a college degree to learn to code. You can start teaching your kids to code while they're still young, and they’ll be able to get freelance jobs in the same industry even before they're done with high school!

In this article, we’ll look at some of the ways you can teach kids to code, while making it fun for them too. Whether you’re a teacher or a parent, you’ve come to the right place because we cover everything you need to know, along with tips, tricks, and actionable steps. Let’s dive right in.

1. Begin with the Basics

Before you get into the nitty-gritties of coding, you need to understand that overwhelming kids is not a great idea if you really want them to enjoy learning. The best way is to make it as easy and simple as possible and show them that it’s not really something complex and hard to grasp. In today’s world, there’s no limit to the number of online resources you can find for coding, so find something simple (that you can understand, too) and begin from there.

Once they’ve covered the basics, you can then move on to the next step, but make sure you’re not rushing them or overloading their brains with too much information, all at once. All children learn at different paces, so be sure to give them adequate time and good resources before you proceed with more complex details and definitions.

2. Ease Them Into It

Coding can be fairly hard to grasp even for adults, so you can imagine how hard it can be for kids, especially if you expect them to understand the concepts behind coding right away! Instead of starting with the concepts, begin by easing them into it by taking baby steps.

For example, if your kid is very young, you can begin by introducing them to coding toys. If they’re slightly older, it’s best to use the teaching methods that work best for each child. For example, some of them are visual learners, so letting them absorb the content through videos on YouTube and other study apps can help them get a good footing.

Some others might prefer listening to audio classes, in which case, you can invest in good audio classes or books that deal with the basics of coding. Apart from belonging to these two sets to which a majority of children fit into, your kid might also be able to absorb whatever they read. If this is the case, then your job is so much easier because there is lots of written content on the Web that describes the basics of coding for kids. Either way, it’s best to understand the different teaching methods which suit each child and move accordingly.

3. Use Coding Games

One way in which you can teach your kids programming is through coding games that are suitable for their age and level of coding knowledge. Although there are difficult games that are meant for people who are at a more advanced level of learning, you can still find online games like Python for kids which are specifically designed to help young learners understand the concepts of coding better. Not only will this make learning less monotonous and more fun, but it will also help active learners visualize what they’re learning and grasp the concepts better.

4. Get a Tutor

After you’ve done the groundwork and taught your kids the basics of coding, you’ll naturally have to move on to the more complex aspects of it. This may seem tedious to teach on your own, especially if you don’t have the time or the mindset to learn it yourself first. One great way to solve this problem is by hiring an online tutor who can teach your kids all the harder parts of coding, without you having to spend hours sifting through the right material online and on YouTube. In fact, with the pandemic still lingering on, there are numerous sites online where you’ll find great tutors at affordable prices.

For example, sites like Preply allow you to have a demo class with a tutor before you make the first payment and confirm how many classes you want to have per week. So, instead of making your kids learn everything on their own, you can hire a tutor who’ll be able to do the job quickly and effectively.

5. Invest in a Computer

If your kid was learning to play a piano, you’d invest in one to ensure that he or she is able to get all the practice they need at home, even if they were going to music classes every day, wouldn’t you? The same applies to coding.

The learning curve can be a little hard and intimidating during the initial process, and the only way to overcome it is by constant practice, and more practice! Just by learning and practicing everything they learned in a cycle, your kid will be able to grasp tougher concepts as the time goes by.

So, the best thing to do is to invest in a computer where he or she can practice whenever they’ve got free time from other school and learning activities, other than giving them time to practice only when your personal computer isn’t in use.

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Summary

It doesn’t matter if your kid is just being introduced into the world of coding, with the right resources and enough motivation from you, they’ll be able to become pros (for their age) in no time! Here’s a gist of all the steps you need to take to make sure you’re doing your part in helping them learn to code:

• Begin with the basics of coding. You can use fun resources on the internet that’ll help you get the job done with ease.

• Use toys to teach young children.

• Find out the teaching methodology that works best for them.

• Invest in good coding games.

• Hire a tutor once they’ve learned the basics of coding.

• Invest in a computer on which they can practice.

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