When we think back to the halcyon days of youth, we might think of summers frolicking in the great outdoors, splashing in puddles, and exploring the woods. Free play outdoors is a major way that young kids learn and enjoy themselves.
Today, children spend a significant amount of time indoors and on screens. Sometimes, kids need to reduce their screen time and partake in old-fashioned outdoor play. However, there are also structured programs that teach kids crucial coding skills in a fun way.
Let’s check out why kids love online coding programs in the summer.
1. Program a Video Game
Kids love playing video games, and they’ll love programming them even more. Industry leaders like Real Programming 4 Kids put video games at the centre of their instruction. Children will learn how to design and code a video game they can play with friends and family, showing off their accomplishments and having a lot of fun doing so.
The lessons also embed gamification concepts, harnessing what makes playing games so addictive for learning purposes. Any parent who has ever tried to pull their child away from a video game knows how drawn to them they can be. Imagine leveraging this power to help them learn!
2. Small Sessions
Kids don’t want to get lost in the shuffle. They need ample support and guidance, which is hard to get in large, crowded classrooms. The best online coding programs cap class sizes at four, so there are never more than three other students at a time.
They also have no minimum requirement, so the session runs even if your child is the only pupil. Look for programs that tend to hire younger teachers. When kids learn from a teacher who also grew up playing video games in their youth, the kids will learn skills and absorb their passion.
3. Coding Languages Pros Use
Children want to play and enjoy themselves, but parents want them to gain transferrable skills that will help as they get older. Ideally, kids should learn coding languages that professionals use every day to build the world’s most popular video games, apps, websites, and more.
Look for a program that teaches kids how to use programming languages, like:
- Python
- Java
- JavaScript
- C#
- C++
Kids will have a leg up on their peers when they encounter this material later in school. If their school doesn’t get around to teaching these languages, their competitive edge will be even bigger.
Knowing how to write code in the languages used to build apps like Netflix or video games like Minecraft will help them get an in-demand job one day.
More time spent behind a screen may not be every parent’s first thought about how their child should spend a summer. There are online coding programs that last a few hours and run for a couple of weeks, so your child can have all kinds of fun absorbing STEM skills and still have time for traditional things like playing and exploring in the great outdoors.