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To be able to use a computer is almost equivalent to what it used to be like a literate few years ago. In the last 20 years, the world has changed dramatically, and the reason online kids coding classes are such a rage is because it is now computers that are required to do the simplest of tasks. And so, being able to use computers or to program is as essential as learning a natural language.
It has been a common practice for many centuries that a lot of focus is given that kids learn the language in their initial day of learning. So they have the ability to communicate, and thus language acted as a tool to achieve other essential skills. Nowadays, it is the computer language that is slowly taking its own place of importance. Most kids from an early age start to learn to code, and websites like Cuemath provide the platform for such a lead in computer education.
Most educators agree that kids’ attention is hard to get unless they are interested in the subject being taught. To teach programming or coding to kids, it is very important to introduce the subject in the right way to kids. There is a lot of both depth and variety as far as computer languages are concerned, so care should be taken that kids are introduced to the subject such that they have a good understanding of the basics, and then equally important is that they are motivated to dig deeper on their own.
With the help of games, it becomes much easier to have the interest of kids in the subject. There are two ways to use games so that kids can learn to code. First is by playing computer games and especially those games which are built so that the kids can learn to code. By playing games, kids will know what can be achieved once they are coding, and it gives a very tangible way of feeling the power of coding. The second is to make games using coding.
By developing simple games in the initial stages of learning, kids would be able to have the confidence and the interest to do more. It is an early proof of what little investment in learning coding can give as an output. Kids, once interested in coding, will learn the pleasure of problem-solving soon. By exercising their analytical powers, kids would quickly develop a logical and analytical mind that would help them in various life areas.
Introduction to coding presents the kids an opportunity to learn other areas of life in a much deeper and meaningful way such as to solve real-life problems by translating the solution into a program that computers can understand; it involves a very connected experience wherein one is able to code into a computer the solution to the problem. It makes kids appreciate virtues like patience and perseverance.
To use games as a means to learn to code and thereafter to use coding to make games is a cyclical feedback loop with the kids getting better in both games and coding after each iteration.Many times it requires a lot of cutting edge technology to create games, and thus, using coding to make games is a very challenging and interesting arena. By doing so, kids can start climbing up a ladder which perhaps has the power to change the world in an entertaining way.
This symbiotic relation of games and coding has been acknowledged at many levels. Many of the coding contests and hackathons are bearing this understanding of the connection between games and coding and how each contributes to the development of the other. Kids hence should be presented with the plethora of games available to learn to code and give them the opportunity to find interest in coding.
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