Parents work hard to ensure their children are ready for the future by enrolling them in courses that teach them the skills they’ll need and fulfilling extracurriculars that fill in the gaps in their formal learning. Even parents who don’t know much about computers understand that learning to code will always be an in-demand skill.
But learning essential computer skills doesn’t have to be boring! Here are the features to look for in online programming courses for kids.
Build a Video Game
Children need the motivation to learn, and telling them that future employers will value the ability to code probably isn’t enough to light their fire. The best schools that teach computer programming for kids in Toronto and beyond frame the sessions around creating a video game, driving children to learn.
Kids love playing video games and learning to code, and designing one becomes, in a way, its type of game. As children learn how to design and code their video games, they won’t even realize they’re absorbing the skills that jobs will require in the years to come.
Coding Languages Professionals Use Daily
Some computer schools teach kids programs like Scratch that aren’t a coding language but a drag-and-drop imitation designed to convey a sense of what programming is like. While such an approach can be helpful for young kids in a big group of students, it’s much better to learn the actual coding languages used to build websites, apps, and games that millions of people use every day.
Here’s a list of a few languages that are great for kids to learn:
- Python
- Java
- JavaScript
- C#
- C++
It may be hard to believe that young children can begin to learn the same languages used to build things like Netflix, Angry Birds, Gmail, and countless others, but they can!
Small Classes
Learning a new concept can be difficult if the environment is disorderly. That’s why the best coding programs have a maximum of four students per teacher, so the sessions don’t suffer from classroom management issues.
Children shouldn’t have to compete with their classmates for their teacher’s attention, especially not in online sessions from home.
Young Teachers
Finally, kids need to be excited by their teacher. It’s hard for teachers who didn’t play video games in their youth to relate to students learning to code them today. Since this is a relatively recent technology, teachers need to be young to have experienced it.
Video games are more than just a fun diversion for many kids; they look back years later and realize that certain games define a specific time or phase in their life. Teachers who also have this first-hand experience make excellent mentors and teachers.
Building up the skills of tomorrow today doesn’t have to be boring, and in the right environment, it’s downright fun. Look for a coding program with all of the above qualities, and your child will have a wonderful time learning computers skills.