[oclug] Programming for Kids (9-10 years old)

[Andy Civil]

On 2010-11-22 1:06 PM, Dave Sampson wrote:
> Hey Folks,
>
> looking for some recommendations for an xmass gift for a 9 year old. A
> book to introduce young folks to the fun, wonders and challenges of
> programming.
>

I can't help with a book or a present recommendation for a remote child, but as 
the dad of a 9-yo I thought I'd just share my plan, for the sake of discussion.

1. My daughter started with <http://www.alice.org/> - the storytelling version. 
It's nice for keeping interest, and it's object-oriented, but a 'program' ends 
up rather 'linear' having just one path from start to end. It seems to be a 
great place to start though, with the concept of writing something yourself and 
seeing a result.

2. <http://scratch.mit.edu/> is the next step, with the introduction of proper 
programming constructs. You're really making an application here, rather than a 
sequence.

3. My plan was to move on to real live Java when she was ready, eclipse and all. 
However, I'm sure Python would do just as well.

I'd be interested if other members of the list have found other neat educational 
tools. Her own computer happens to have Vista on it, but she has easy access to 
my Linux computer.

-- 
Andy