Dear Kids:
First of all, why learn how to program? Why learn programs such as Scratch?
- It is critical that you have at least some exposure to programming — as having some basic understanding of what programming is like will be very helpful for you. Coding is becoming like air and water for your futures. That is, it’s like the modern day version of reading, writing, and doing basic math.
You will also be able to:
- Build games that you can use to play with your friends! 🙂
- Create/code your own website and code others’ websites to help them out.
- Design immersive, story-driven experiences.
- Write software for churches, other individuals, non-profits.
- Get jobs anywhere in the world – and be highly-marketable/employable.
- Make a solid contribution to the world via the development of software and new applications.
- Have some basic understanding of programming so that when you have jobs later on, you will at least know what programmers do.
To get started, see:
- http://www.yoyogames.com/game_showcases and/or http://www.yoyogames.com/gamemaker/studio/free
- http://marshallbrain.com/kids-programming.htm
- http://scratch.mit.edu/projects/104408/
- http://learnscratch.org/resources/why-learn-scratch
- http://info.scratch.mit.edu/Scratch_Tours
- http://www.teach-ict.com/programming/scratch/scratch_home.htm
- http://www.code.org/khan-academy
- http://vageekmom.com/ParentReference/2012/04/scratch-tutorial/
Thanks,
Dad
P.S. Take your time and have some fun with it; and don’t get discouraged if things don’t come easily or automatically for you. Thinking like a programmer requires a different way of thinking; so it may take some time to develop or appreciate.