Can Young
Kids Learn to Code - Podcast
Summary:
This is a
podcast done by Level Up Village and their program Parenting & Education
Chatting Over Coffee. The guest speaker
was Aimee Shuhart who is a media specialist.
The main
questions of the podcast were can children learn to code and is it really the
new literacy as is being touted in the media.
Ms. Shuhart said that coding is programming or giving instructions to a
computer or machine. She believes that
it is great for teaching creative thinking through play and experimentation. She mentioned some brain research that showed
that gaming (and I think using computers to create games) can help with multi-tasking,
problem solving, collaboration, and creative thinking. She wouldn’t go so far as to say it is a new
literacy and that every child should learn to code but she did recommend
it. In her school she does coding with
students at lunch.
During the
podcast they also talked about gaming in general and she recommended games such
as Lego Game Club, Club Penguin, Toon Town, Wizard 101, and Minecraft.
Her tips for
coding with children was for parents and children to learn together and for
parents to show an interest in it.
During the
podcast the speakers referred to Scratch which can be found at , http://scratch.mit.edu/. They also mentioned the idea that coding is
the new literacy which can be seen at code.org and is being promoted by Bill
Gates, Steve Zuckerman, and others.
Curriculum Suggestions:
For teachers
or librarians who are interested in providing a coding club or extracurricular
opportunity this podcast gives some background and ideas about how to do it. Aimee Shuhart talks about some of the programs
and websites that can be used.
Personal Thoughts:
Before
taking LIBR 240 I was asked why I would want to learn to code when so much has
already been done for us. But there have
been a lot of articles and media about students learning to code. Now that I have taken the course I can see
the benefit of kids learning how to code.
I am seriously considering a lunch group or an afterschool club using
Scratch or Codeacademy. It is funny how
Will. I. Am talks about coders as being “rock stars” in the video on
code.org. I guess the question is why
let other people code and make all the money?
Let’s teach our students how to code and be creative problem solvers.
High Interest Annotation: Why should kids learn to code for themselves?
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