Activities To Teach Kids Coding—No Experience Needed!
- BrainPOP
- May 1, 2024
- 2 min read
As our world becomes more digital, helping kids build computer science skills and understand computer programming is essential. These BrainPOP learning resources made by educators are a great place to start—even if you don’t consider yourself an expert!
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Computer Programming For Kids
We depend on computer programming for so many things, but what is it exactly? Learning to code, even at the earliest grades, develops important life skills, from problem-solving and creative thinking to resilience, self-efficacy, and even language development. Follow these steps to introduce programming to your kids at home.
Step 1: Watch an Educational Movie About Coding
As a family, watch movies that teach kids about coding and understand how computer programming shapes our daily activities.
For Grades K-3:
Annie and Moby learn that a computer program is a list of steps used by a computer to complete a task—kind of like a recipe!
For Grades 3-8:
In this BrainPOP movie, Tim and Moby explain how computer programming is just like giving instructions.
Step 2: Spark a Family Conversation About Coding
Discuss what you learned from the movie in order to deepen and extend your child's understanding of the topic. Use these prompts to spark conversation!
For Grades K-3:
Why did Moby eat the whole cake at first? How did Annie fix the code?
Go on a hunt in your home for things that use computer programming. Make a list! Share stories of how things worked before computer programming was around.
For Grades 3-8:
Why does Moby keep doing things wrong? What does Tim need to do to correct Moby?
Why is computer programming an important skill to learn? How might it be a part of your future?
Bonus—Access Creative Coding Projects with BrainPOP Homeschool
Every BrainPOP Homeschool topic includes coding projects designed to help kids build coding skills while they learn subjects across the curriculum. Start your BrainPOP Homeschool free trial to try these creative coding activities!
For Grades K-3:
Annie and Moby learn that a computer program is a list of steps used by a computer to complete a task—kind of like a recipe!
For Grades 3-8:
Using videos, graphics, and text, create a meme highlighting that anyone can be a computer programmer.
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