Coding for Kids, a Basic Skill for the 21st Century

Computers are part of the fabric of every aspect of our life today. Computers are made to work by coding, and coding is the language of the technology in our environment. It is no longer something that we opted in to learn in computer class. Instead, today coding is the basic literacy skill of the 21st century – it is the language that makes everything around us actually work – cars, homes, education, banking, farms, shopping, travel and more. So, it should come as no surprise, that our kids will have to figure out how to navigate through this new world. Coding is a language that our children need, to understand and speak to the technology around them. It lets them experiment, test and iterate - fosters creativity and helps them learn problem-solving skills. The issue, however, is where and how do we start? As a parent, it might be daunting to figure out what the right way is to teach your kids this skill. There are so many choices, different languages, different classes, and opinions. You might have also tried it and seen your kids repeat the same material with little forward progress, even after multiple coding classes. In this episode, we talk to David Dodge about the importance and the approaches we can take to help our kids learn coding. David Dodge is the CEO of CodaKid, a company with a mission to each kids how to code, write apps and games. Prior to his current job, David was a veteran game designer and software architect who is credited on over 30 games for the Sony PlayStation, SEGA, and the PC. In his free time, David enjoys chasing his three-year-old daughter Dylan around, playing guitar, traveling, and cooking with his wife Lauren. Visit https://wishslate.com/podcasts for Episode Transcript & Links to Resources