Coding for Kids and Teenagers

8-Bit TRexes Road by gengns

A nice list of resources to introduce your kids (and yourself) to the world of programming. Easy-engaged steps even for those who runned out of motivation a long time ago :)

1 Intro

Programming is like magic, it gives you superpowers to talk with machines and make them do what you want. Just imagine a white sheet of paper where you can write anything and make it come true. Cool, isn’t it?

It doesn’t matter which field your kids / teens like, they can use it everywhere, the limit is their imagination:

• Robotics
• Recycling
• Artificial Intelligence
• Video Games
• Healthcare
• Astronomy
• Climate Change
• Type what your child like here

How do we talk with machines? Well, it is just plain English but because human language it’s not perfect we added some extra logic, mathematical concepts and removed others.

You will not believe how easy it is to learn a Machine (programming) language compared with a Human language. You only have to change a little the perspective of how you see the world.

Even if your kids do not become famous programmers / hackers… programming skills will bring to their everyday life:

• Better organizational skills
• Increase problem solving abilities
• Critical thinking skills
• Patience
• Curiosity

In this article I’m presenting free resources to start with programming for kids and teenagers. My recommendation:

1. Start with some video games that teach coding skills
2. Move to fun teaching apps
3. Subscribe to some Youtube channels about Science
4. Face-to-face classes in your neighborhood
5. Platforms about coding
6. Series about Science, Engineering and Programming

Take your own approaches with the following list for ages 8–18, nobody knows your children better than you.

2 List of Resources

2.1 Games

Break the ice with video games that will level up their skills.

2.1.1 Programming logic skills

Lightbot: Get kids programming in the most fun way by solving puzzles in a video game!

Mekorama: Help a tiny robot stumble home through 50 puzzling mechanical dioramas.

If your children refuse to play, challenge them, ex: if you want to use Tik Tok or play Fortnite today you have to reach level 12 in Mekorama.

2.1.2 Creative thinking skills

Tricky Test 2™: Genius Brain?: Free puzzle game with a series of tricky brain teasers and absurd solutions that you will never ever think of.

Brain It On!: Deceptively challenging physics puzzles.

Samorost 1: Explore the beginnings of the Samorost series in the space gnome’s original bite-sized adventure.

These games are also really fun but to make your teenager switch, you have to always leave them wanting more!

2.2 Fun Teaching Apps

Here we go, our first real code contact!

Scratch: The world’s largest free coding community for kids.

Programming Hero: Here, Programming Just Got Fun!

Mimo: Learn coding in HTML, JavaScript and Python

If your children refuse to use these apps, challenge them again, ex: if you want to use Instagram you need to reach the next level in Programming Hero.

Do not extend their time in front of screens, if they spent 1 hour on Instagram share that time with the options I’m offering.

2.3. Youtube channels about Science

Next videoss will open their curiosity about the world around us and will awaken their desire to study.

Kurzgesagt — In a Nutshell: Videos explaining things with optimistic nihilism.

TED-Ed: Lessons worth sharing.

Between 3 or 2 videos per week, even if they are short. Try always to make them watch at the same hour/day to create a behavioral pattern. We will try to switch from silly Youtube channels to good ones.

2.4 Face-to-face classes in your neighborhood

The ratio one by one is the best for teaching/learning but If she/he can assist an extra class 2 times per week with more children/teenegers that also like programming it would be a wonderful reinforcement and sociabilitation.

It would be desirable for those extra classes to teach programming using:

• Linux
• Robots (Lego cars, mechanical arms)
• Sensors

2.5 Platforms about coding

Things get serious. Only for self-motivated teenegers (starting from 14 yo)

Code Academy: Dedicated platform for beginner coding

MDN — Web technology: How-to content to help you actually use Web technologies to do what you want

I recommend Python and Web Technologies (HTML, CSS and JavaScript) for beginners.

2.6 Series about Science, Engineering and Programming

Keep them motivate. Teenegers only starting from 14 yo.

Mr Robot: A mysterious anarchist who recruits a young computer programmer (Malek) who suffers from an antisocial disorder and connects to people by hacking them.

Steins;Gate: Anime about a group of friends who have managed to customize their microwave into a device that can send text messages to the past.

Rick and Morty: Animated comedy that follows the adventures of mad scientist Rick Sanchez.

Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey. Scientific concepts that have change complete our life, presented clearly, with both skepticism and wonder.

Dark: A missing child sets four families on a frantic hunt for answers. Their search for a culprit unearths a small town’s sins and secrets.

3 Recap

Programming will bring great skills for your kids and teenagers even if they don’t become programmers. Try this fantastic adventure along with them. Starting with logic and games, reinforcing their passion with Youtube Channels and Series, and jumping to the next level creating first class real world apps with the help of free platforms.

Keep in touch

Did you find these approches helpful? What are yours? Leave a comment to let us know!

And if you want to know next time I publish something, you can also follow me on Medium.

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