Why Parents Need To Understand Their Kids Love For Technology

The current generation of kids was born in a world where the internet existed - they didn’t have to take computer courses for kids to learn how to use Microsoft Paint. This generation was using iPads when they were just 2 years old. They have already spent hundreds of hours in front of a screen before they reach school.

Hence, quite naturally, the kids have a deeper love for and attachment to technology than most parents do. While the parents grew up playing on the streets and trying to save every penny possible to be able to afford a weekly hour at cyber cafe, the kids have taken technology to be an omnipresent thing in their lives. Result? There are a lot of parents who resent their kids’ unhealthy attachment to everything related to technology and even try to curb it by limiting their screen time.

While it is true that spending unhealthy amounts of time in front of screens can have a disastrous effect in young kids’ health, especially their eyesight, it also remains true that these kids live in a world where it is impossible to refrain from heavy use of technology. What our generation considers special knowledge is just common and basic level of knowledge that every kid in this generation needs to have. Coding for kids, is one of those things. Learning a programming language has become equivalent to what was learning a English or some other foreign language in our day and time.

Even robotics for kids has become an important skill that most kids learn. While this is more common in Tier 1 cities only, even Tier 2&3 cities are getting a taste of advanced technology classes for kids. As parents, we need to stop resenting kids’ love for technology and encourage it as much as possible.

How To Get Your Kids Interested In Coding

Most kids are as curious as they usually get excited about all the different things you’ll show them, but, unfortunately, the excitement would only last for like 5 minutes. And then, they would find the next interesting thing and move on with their lives. Hence, programming, for kids, is something that you genuinely want to get them interested in so that they don’t just have temporary interest and genuinely pick it up as a hobby.

While the right way to get them interested in coding will depend on your child’s age and the city where you reside, it is even possible to take steps at home to get your child into the usual grind. But before delving into HOW you can get your kids interested in coding, let’s understand WHY you need to do that.

Coding is not limited to programming jobs in the big tech companies. That is a very limited understanding of the concept and that myth needs to be shattered.

All industries require programmers to work for them in this digital age, even marketing and advertising agencies. Besides opening job opportunities in various sectors, coding will soon become a skill as basic as reading and writing in the next 5 years. This is especially true for the next generation.

More than anything else, coding classes for kids are designed to maximize their problem-solving skills, imagination, etc. Hence, children will lead a much fuller life if they grow the walls of their mind at a young age through coding.

Now, let’s talk about how you can engage your kids interest in coding.

Keep the lessons of coding fun and interesting through games, puzzles, etc. Find an age-appropriate program that utilizes practical tools to teach the basic concepts of coding. These are best learnt in groups, but you can also try these tools at home.

Rather than directing and micro-managing them, it is advisable to encourage them to experiment as much as possible. Sharing stories about the young entrepreneurs program with your kids is also a good route because most of those kidpreneurs are coders, and hence, it will encourage kids to explore coding in their own way.

Drawing, animation, storytelling, game designing, robotics - coding can include any or all of this. Let your child try each one of them before deciding what is the best route forward for them. If you already know what will appeal the most to your child, you can directly start with that route.

The market is filled with a lot of options for kids. Not every kid will like drawing, and not every kid will like building a robot. Find the area of interest for your child and try to make them join a community of kids which is interested in the same area.

Research proves that kids learn much faster if they try their hands at something new in a small group rather than learning alone. If that’s not feasible for you, you can always use the resources available online. Don’t worry about not being a coder yourself. You can always learn on the way!

Why Your Kids Must Learn How To Code

Coding is often considered an adult skill. One which is so complex and difficult that one must have the necessary degree in order to practice it. It is glorified to no extent and pigeonholed as  something that nerds are great at. In reality, however, coding classes for kids are sprouting up in every corner because it has become a very popular thing for kids.

It is difficult to imagine how to ask kids to build a complicated app or a website. But here’s how we want you to envision programming for kids: think of it as a separate language, one which you need to learn in order to communicate with computers. As with all languages, the sooner you learn a language, the better. And hence, it is a great idea to introduce it to kids at an early age.

Research proves that learning coding teaches kids a lot of important logic skills that come in handy in other areas of their life. Here’s how programming works: you learn the language of the computer, you learn what it understands and interprets based on certain signals and commands, and then, you manipulate them to get the desired results. Learning how and what the computer did, step-by-step, lets you sharpen your logic skills.

Rather than thinking of programming as something that is very limiting, there is merit in thinking of it as a creativity outlet. Just how writing and music allow you to fulfil your creativity, coding gives kids the power to create something that only exists in their minds.

For the tender minds of kids programming language is just one of the millions of new things they are learning. Their minds are flexible and they have a lot of grasping power. Hence, you must encourage your kids to learn how to code.