howto.wired.com— A father with high aspirations for his kid asks: My kid is 5, about to enter kindergarten. What are some entry points for coding?
Jul 29, 2007View in Crawl 4
Some kids think programming is fun. I did when I was a kid, and in college, I almost made the mistake of making a career out of it. Today, I still love programming whatever I want to program, but it seems the majority of people who disapprove of teaching a kid to program (1) don't know anything about it, or (2) have made it into a job they hate. So maybe the lesson is: if (programming == fun) program; else f**king do something else.
Incorrect. Teaching him programming is not the same as teaching him to learn only one language and to prepare him for a job in that language. No, it teaches him the skills, how to be analytical, logical and structured. This is the same reason people teach kids maths not because they want them to grow up to be mathematicians but it teaches them problem solving ability. The same reason whe school teaches kids history not because they want graduated historians, but kids graduate with researching skills.May be somewhere in your education, you missed the point?
Being able to read at 5 doesn't make you a genius. Anyone can read by age 5 if they're taught. My mother was an elementry school teacher, so I was lucky enough to be able to read before pre-school. Reading isn't that difficult, all it takes is patience from the teacher and a lot of practice with the student.
I don't think it's necessarily bad to expose him to it, but just don't let it be the only thing he's exposed to. And don't force him to do something he's really not interested in.
What's the big huey about "teaching your kids sports?" How is teaching your kids sports any less imposing of your dreams on your kids than teaching them programming?Once again, it's an example of the anti-intellectualism of this culture we live in. Anything geek is bad. Anything jock is good.
be a kid firstprograms are intrinsically about human use.the anti-thesis of this is "use it once and throw it over the shoulder".Einstein was famous not for his quotes but for his discoveries which he constantly referred to the other geniuses he surrounded himself with.When an idea is it just is. Relativity now, just is.Fame and notoriety are artifices of man from an outmoded motivational system of horses with crucifixes painted on their breasts mowing you down with a follow-up of a good cleaver.
walktheplankJul 30, 2007
WOW! THIS GUY'S A GENIUS!
Closed AccountJul 30, 2007
His point is that you made the choice. You didn't have terrible parents who forced your way of life.
hobonetweaverJul 30, 2007
Some kids think programming is fun. I did when I was a kid, and in college, I almost made the mistake of making a career out of it. Today, I still love programming whatever I want to program, but it seems the majority of people who disapprove of teaching a kid to program (1) don't know anything about it, or (2) have made it into a job they hate. So maybe the lesson is: if (programming == fun) program; else f**king do something else.
daftmanAug 1, 2007
VB4? When you were 10? Hmm by my calculation that would make you only early 20s or late teens?
daftmanAug 1, 2007
Not at 5. It's like teaching astro physics to a 10 years old. Learning Haskell requires s**tload of prior-mathematical knowledge.
daftmanAug 1, 2007
Incorrect. Teaching him programming is not the same as teaching him to learn only one language and to prepare him for a job in that language. No, it teaches him the skills, how to be analytical, logical and structured. This is the same reason people teach kids maths not because they want them to grow up to be mathematicians but it teaches them problem solving ability. The same reason whe school teaches kids history not because they want graduated historians, but kids graduate with researching skills.May be somewhere in your education, you missed the point?
cruxopAug 5, 2007
Being able to read at 5 doesn't make you a genius. Anyone can read by age 5 if they're taught. My mother was an elementry school teacher, so I was lucky enough to be able to read before pre-school. Reading isn't that difficult, all it takes is patience from the teacher and a lot of practice with the student.
newbsawbitSep 12, 2007
I don't think it's necessarily bad to expose him to it, but just don't let it be the only thing he's exposed to. And don't force him to do something he's really not interested in.
flajannFeb 2, 2008
What's the big huey about "teaching your kids sports?" How is teaching your kids sports any less imposing of your dreams on your kids than teaching them programming?Once again, it's an example of the anti-intellectualism of this culture we live in. Anything geek is bad. Anything jock is good.
allovayoassAug 2, 2008
be a kid firstprograms are intrinsically about human use.the anti-thesis of this is "use it once and throw it over the shoulder".Einstein was famous not for his quotes but for his discoveries which he constantly referred to the other geniuses he surrounded himself with.When an idea is it just is. Relativity now, just is.Fame and notoriety are artifices of man from an outmoded motivational system of horses with crucifixes painted on their breasts mowing you down with a follow-up of a good cleaver.