CyndiLJ Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 I have a son who has expressed an interest in learning to code. I know there are many sites out there, most of them free, but knowing nothing at all about them I wondered if you all could offer your suggestions for the best ones to check out. We want clear instruction, not just random stuff. If your child (or you) has used a site they found particularly helpful, would you mind sharing it with me? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 I was given the link to Hour of Code earlier and have gone through some lessons with my son. He's enjoyed them. http://csedweek.org/learn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 What age? I think Scratch from MIT is a good starter for younger kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThatHomeschoolDad Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 Are we talking HTML? Java? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 Try codeacademy. com it teaches diff languages for free. Go to coursera .com and type in "CS 101" for a free class from a Stanford prof - my dd 13 is doing it and loving it. It's made to be 6 weeks, but you can go at your own pace. Jr high/highschool. Really great! Khan academy has a computer science course for free - dd just started it. Lots of lessons. Both my dds loved Tynker. it's 50 bucks per person - but a great starting point. Mid-upper elementary/jr high. 15 lessons and the opportunity to build fun apps. For her birthday, I just bought Mod 1 from homeschool buyers co-op. 135 dollars. but it lets her create things she can then slip into her Minecraft game. She's gonna freak out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neige Posted December 19, 2013 Share Posted December 19, 2013 I'll second codecademy.com! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyndiLJ Posted December 22, 2013 Author Share Posted December 22, 2013 Thanks all! He is 14, taking AutoCAD and loving it. He is a bright kid, who has some disabilities that will most likely require him to do a desk job, so i am glad he is inclined this way. I'll check out these options! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Word Nerd Posted December 22, 2013 Share Posted December 22, 2013 Try Khan Academy's Hour of Code. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corraleno Posted December 22, 2013 Share Posted December 22, 2013 Another vote for code academy — plus I just wanted to wish you and your beautiful family the happiest of Christmases, Cyndi. I visit your blog from time to time and you and your kids inspire me so much! You are an amazing mom and teacher. I hope you all have a truly wonderful Christmas and New Year! :grouphug: Jackie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celticmom Posted December 22, 2013 Share Posted December 22, 2013 :lurk5: Dd9 is currently working through the code.org stuff but She will probably finish that pretty soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trilliums Posted December 22, 2013 Share Posted December 22, 2013 Go to coursera .com and type in "CS 101" for a free class from a Stanford prof - my dd 13 is doing it and loving it. It's made to be 6 weeks, but you can go at your own pace. Jr high/highschool. Really great! This was a great intro course for my boys. They went on to AP Comp Sci (at the public high school) afterwards. Here is an online AP Comp Sci class (Java based). AFAIK it is free, but we haven't actually used it. https://users-mooc.amplify.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted December 22, 2013 Share Posted December 22, 2013 Code what? If you can be more specific, someone here, possibly me, might be able to give you better suggestions. Learn how to code "C"? Learn how to write HTML? PHP? What is the objective? IMHO, it would be great, if the person is interested, to begin learning something like the Linux Operating System, and/or C++. Linux has a long learning curve and after awhile, it makes more sense. :-) I remember when I was thinking about learning how to work with HTML (I use Microsoft FrontPage 2000 for our web sites, which is very long in the tooth), there was a web site with a lot of great courses. Free courses I think. I am going to Google "Free HTML Course" and see if I can come up with the URL for you. Here it is: http://www.w3schools.com/ Note: I believe their courses are free, but you need to verify that. If that's not free, or not what you are looking for, let us know... ETA: Someone who knows Linux and/or C++ can earn $$$. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald Stoker Posted December 22, 2013 Share Posted December 22, 2013 ...plus I just wanted to wish you and your beautiful family the happiest of Christmases, Cyndi. I visit your blog from time to time and you and your kids inspire me so much! You are an amazing mom and teacher. I hope you all have a truly wonderful Christmas and New Year! :grouphug: Jackie Seconding this...I love your blog, Cyndi! Your family sounds so sweet--all the best to all of you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyndiLJ Posted December 23, 2013 Author Share Posted December 23, 2013 Another vote for code academy — plus I just wanted to wish you and your beautiful family the happiest of Christmases, Cyndi. I visit your blog from time to time and you and your kids inspire me so much! You are an amazing mom and teacher. I hope you all have a truly wonderful Christmas and New Year! :grouphug: Jackie Jackie, What a sweet thing to post. Thank you for your kinds words, and your suggestion about Code Academy! I thought it was just Matt who wanted to code, but everyone seems to want to try it out, so we might have a couple of evenings a week where w all try it out! Merry Christmas to you as well :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyndiLJ Posted December 23, 2013 Author Share Posted December 23, 2013 Seconding this...I love your blog, Cyndi! Your family sounds so sweet--all the best to all of you. And I obviously didn't scroll down low enough to say thanks a second time! Had no idea I had any blog readers here :-) Warms my cotton pickin' little heart! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merylvdm Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 Just one thing about Codeacademy - I wouldn't suggest learning Python through it - they are still on the old version of Python (Python 2.7) while the latest is 3.3 and there are quite a few differences in syntax. I don't have experience with the rest of the languages they cover, but I wouldn't use them to learn Python Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merylvdm Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 Duplicate of above post ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetMissMagnolia Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 I was looking at homeschoolprogramming.com,but now seeing the codeacademy I'm not sure....LOL my son is 11 and is wanting to learn to code also.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merylvdm Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 For those of you who have used codeacademy - I am interested to know if by the end your children could write whole programs by themselves. I tried it out - but as I already knew how to program I couldn't tell how easy it would be to "go it alone" afterwards. The method of teaching is quite different and I have been intrigued to know if it would work. I also tried a Coursera course and felt that that one started at an odd place without laying any foundation (this is not an issue with codeacademy). I have been teaching live programming classes and am just now transitioning to online ones and trying to work out what works and what doesn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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