Coding is an essential part of developing the technologies that we use every day but these skills aren’t just for software developers. Teaching kids to code unlocks so many educational benefits; from helping to develop digital skills and opening future career opportunities to teaching mathematics, computational thinking and problem-solving. Coding also links to different areas of the curriculum, particularly STEM subjects, and teaching through technology can help to engage children in a range of topics.
Here Pavel Malik, Assistant Head & Director of Digital Learning at Radnor House Sevenoaks, discusses the benefit of teaching kids to code from a young age.
When should children start learning to code?
Coding and Robotics may not be the first subjects that come to mind when thinking about the school curriculum, however, in our increasingly digital world, we believe it is important to nurture these skills early.
Reading, writing, and counting are usually considered prerequisites for coding. However, we have created a study programme to teach children IT from Reception, so they learn coding and robotics at the same time as literacy and numeracy. We start Scratch coding in Year 1 and then progress to line code in Year 4 before starting text-based coding with HTML in Year 5 and Python in Year 6. Rather than detracting from other learning, we have seen instances where coding and robotics has actually enhanced learning and engagement across the board.
Careers in coding
Starting young gives children an advantage as they are more confident when presented with new technology and have already developed the core logic and computational thinking skills required to figure out the best ways of using it. In later life, these skills are crucial for business success as so much more of our economy will be driven by technology products and data, therefore these skills will be in high demand. Digitally skilled individuals are able to adapt to new technologies better and will be better positioned to take on leadership and decision-making positions, which are often highly paid.
Encouraging more girls and minority groups into coding
The science and technology industries are currently male dominated, which can feed into established stereotypes for the type of workers it attracts and discourage others from applying. However, with growing technology industries in the UK and worldwide, this sector will be a key employer in the future, offering a wide range of digital career opportunities. Learning coding and robotics from a young age helps children disregard traditional gender stereotypes as they develop skills at the same rate.
For older children, it is important to challenge perceptions by researching and discussing notable figures pursuing digital careers. As part of this, we’re coordinating a series of Women in Tech talks to show students how female representatives are working in a range of roles to shape the world we live in. This will ultimately encourage more women and people from all backgrounds to find fulfilling careers in these burgeoning fields.
Teaching kids to code outside the classroom
While many children are learning coding and robotics at school the approach is inconsistent; these subjects are unfamiliar to a lot of parents. So how can you support engagement and foster enthusiasm at home? Here are our top tips.
Keep it hands on
Minimising screen time is a big concern for many parents but this shouldn’t prevent you from engaging children in coding activities. Especially when teaching young children, we avoid using touchscreen devices to help them practise fine motor skills. There are some fantastic programming and robotics equipment that are more hands on and less tied to screens.
Pre-school and early years children enjoy toys such as Bee-Bot, Fisher-Price’s Code-a-Pillar, which encourage more active play. Ozobot and Sphero offer coding projects suitable for children from the age of 5 through to 18. Although these programmes are frequently used in the classroom, they offer parent resources and YouTube guided lessons, which can be followed at home. Gamers and children that are curious about science and materials will enjoy tactile learning with Makey Makey, whereas children who enjoy playing with creative build toys may engage more with LEGO SPIKE and Lego WeDo.
Choose fun technology projects
Appealing to children’s existing interests is a sure-fire way to engage them in new subjects. Many popular coding resources, including Raspberry Pi, are very versatile and offer a range of different projects from creating artwork and games to sending secret messages. BBC micro:bit has been designed to help children understand how software and hardware work together. This pocket-sized computer encourages children to be hands-on. It comes with a range of simple programming projects that can be completed relatively quickly to demonstrate coding’s practical potential including creating a name badge or a digital thermometer.
Join a club
Find strength in numbers! Sometimes it is easier to foster children’s enthusiasm when they are able to interact with friends and peers and work towards goals together. We run a coding club for children in our Prep School, which follows Astro Pi’s Mission Zero. Participants are able to write code for the International Space Station and interact with the astronauts on board. Our Minecraft club is also very popular. As well as developing creative thinking and planning skills, it helps us to engage students in game-based learning that supports the whole curriculum. In addition to school clubs, a range of community and virtual clubs are available, such as Code Club and Young Engineers. It is definitely worth asking your child’s teacher for recommendations of local and online groups that complement activity in the classroom. It is also
Harness creativity
Coding can be a great tool for imagination. While coding and robotics projects are traditionally perceived to be mechanical and technical, there are so many wider applications that support coding while relating to the arts.
Programmes including Book Creator and iMotion, which creates stop-motion and time-lapse films, encourage children of all ages to use multimedia to tell stories and share facts. iMovie, which enables users to make cinematic style films and create movies with green screens, is invaluable for children who are interested in media and performing arts. Equally helpful for musicians and budding broadcasters, particularly with the growing podcast space, is GarageBand. Older children will also benefit from Adobe Creative Cloud to develop graphic design and video editing skills.
Learn together
One of the biggest barriers adults face is their lack of confidence in this area; after all, it is difficult to explain the unfamiliar in a fun and exciting way. Using games helps children to solve problems and learn about new concepts. There are resources such as CodeCombat, which offers live virtual lessons every week to teach Python and other text-based coding languages. Practising regularly with someone who is also new to the subject can help children see the value of perseverance to learn new skills at any age. It is also an enjoyable way to spend time.
There is also an opportunity to bring in the expertise of older siblings and relatives who have an interest in computing. Anecdotally, we have found that when our Prep School students enter our Secondary School, they are much more advanced at handling technology than new entrants and so help to bring them up to speed. This in turn builds their confidence and cements some of their learning. We also run community projects where A level computing students teach Key Stage 2 students coding. This has benefitted both the older students, who feel valued and are proud to share their expertise, and the younger pupils who are inspired by their mentors and improve their ability to articulate themselves when discussing sophisticated technology.
Final thoughts on teaching kids to code
You may fear that your children already know more about coding than you and believe you are unable to support their learning. Don’t let lack of technology and knowledge prevent you from attempting some really interesting projects, there are so many good tutorials, activities and videos available online which can help you to further their excitement. Ultimately this could spark a real passion and help your child discover an interest that will support them throughout their education and career.
Radnor House Sevenoaks is an outstanding co-educational day school in the Kent countryside. It teaches boys and girls from Nursery through to Sixth Form.
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