Coding is an essential learning skill in this digital era.
Speaking as both a primary school teacher and a parent, I think it's important for children to have an understanding of and be able to work with the technology around them in many forms. When kids learn coding at an early age, it's strengthening a whole bunch of skills they don't even realise they possess.
Their creativity, problem solving, critical thinking, curiosity and maths skills.
With my teacher's hat on, I'm excited to see that the fundamentals of coding are logic, structure, sequence and algorithmic thinking – which helps enable kids to produce creative outcomes, like websites, animations and even apps (incredibly).
Coding also promotes kids to become creators.
It is so important for kids to have a hand (in the classroom and once they're grown and out into the world and workforce) in shaping the technology that they're interacting with. This is as opposed to being a passive consumer of it.
Arguably the best part of anything that's good for kids (!) is that they're absorbing and mastering new skills by coding, all without them even realising it – because it’s so fun.
I teach prep and grade 1 in remote Western Australia. In my time teaching such a young age group, I see how tech changes dramatically and calls for kids to quickly adapt and learn new skills to keep up with it.
The future ahead for my students, and my own kids alike, is going to become more tech-heavy. And coding is where I can see it bridging the gap in developing their skills to help prepare them for it.
From both teaching on the weekdays, to playing mum in the time between, I'm always on the lookout for fun and easy ways to incorporate technology into lessons for all my littles.
And this is why I jumped at the opportunity to sign my daughter up for her first online coding class with BYJU’S FutureSchool.
Of course the teacher in me gets really pumped when different areas of learning are intertwined, and kids have the opportunity to learn many things in one lesson.
BYJU’S online coding class gave my 6-year-old daughter that opportunity in her first free one-on-one lesson, and she was beyond delighted about it before, during and after it.
It was awesome to see activity underpinned with learning boosting her excitement, confidence and creativity all at once. I think I see her first after-school hobby here.
Here are 5 key things my daughter learnt from her coding classes:
1. Learning directions
As part of coding, students need to be able to give directions using very specific language and commands which a computer can understand.
In this program they used the language North, South, East and West which my year 1 daughter, had not previously learned.
Her BYJU'S coding teacher taught her these commands and by the end of the lesson she was confidently using these terms and understood each direction as she was coding.
2. Practising reading
One of the coding games in her class involved reading a word and then spelling it by coding the bee.
The teacher in me was delighted to see an activity like this! Love to see reading incorporated in as many fun ways as possible for our kids and students to solidify and practise this knowledge in such visual, interactive ways.
My daughter also needed to read simple commands on the screen and words on the keyboard. Where she had questions or any troubles reading any of the words or commands, her coding teacher was there to help her, and it was such a positive experience for her to persevere with that one-on-one support.
3. Have fun with maths
I think maths can be a subject many kids grow to loathe, especially out of primary school. My daughter, being only 6 years old, had fun with the maths components of the activities – and they were presented to her in ways that were colourful and visually engaging (which made her really enthusiastic).
There was a lot of counting, problem-solving and movement involved in the lesson; counting the squares to move in different directions and using left and right to explain directions. She loved it.
4. How to use a computer
My daughter has some experience in using an iPad in her short 6 years, but not really a computer.
I was impressed with the clear directions that the BYJU'S FutureSchool teacher gave her at each step, and how well my daughter responded and could navigate her way around the computer (especially while learning a brand new hobby like coding).
The class was beautifully tailored to her age and stage (BYJU'S classes can suit any child from 6 to 18 years), so with the added layer of my daughter being new to computers, it struck a great balance to engage and challenge her, without it feeling overwhelming or out of reach.
She was practising keyboard skills by locating and clicking on the different buttons, navigating tabs and then back to the classroom tab and sharing the screen with the teacher.
5. Importantly: the art of coding itself
The BYJU'S FutureSchool teacher gave clear and easy to understand directions and walked my daughter through every step so that she had success in the lesson and using the programs.
My daughter came away from her classes with the basics of coding, and was absolutely thrilled.
My daughter was really excited to be using the computer to learn and thought it was very special that she had a teacher to teach her one-on-one. She really liked learning this way and was more motivated.
The platform was easy to navigate and connect and communicate with the BYJU'S teacher. We loved the format of the lesson:
- Introduction to the topic.
- Demonstrations, examples and explanations of what to do.
- Hands-on experiences while playing games and coding.
- Reflection at the end on what she had learnt.
I love how BYJU'S FutureSchool can help parents who may not be confident to teach their kids coding, by teaching them coding in an easy and fun way. This also assists in their own child's development in creativity, problem solving, critical thinking and curiosity.
How exciting is it to think that kids can design and create an app, rather than just being a consumer using apps! Giving kids the opportunity to learn unique skills involved in the creation and building process.
This is especially helpful when students aren’t being taught coding at school. There isn’t always a technology or computer specialist to teach coding at school.
Some teachers may not have the confidence or knowledge to teach coding, as it's such a quickly evolving skill, which makes BYJU'S FutureSchool the go-to alternative as they're experts in the field.
Their online coding and maths classes are taught by experienced teachers for kids right up until 18 years old, with the classes shaped to each kids' grade level. Another great thing is that BYJU’S offer the first trial class for free!
It's fantastic that it caters to such a broad spectrum of ages and abilities. I've told some of my students' parents and my parent friends about it as a suggestion for a weekend or after-school hobby, just as it's been so excellent for my daughter.
I can't recommend it enough: it's helped my daughter release her inner creativity and curiosity by learning coding skills, and we've already booked for more classes throughout next term!
Do you have a child aged between 6 and 18 that would love to learn to code? Give your kids a fun activity to unleash their creativity. Book your free class with BYJU'S FutureSchool and get your tech-savvy kids prepared for the future.
Feature Image: Supplied.