Best practices and examples of teaching kids to code

1. Teaching Kids to Code Lynn Langit – Developer Evangelist – Microsoft http://blogs.msdn.com/SoCalDevGal

2. Top Teaching Tips Know your audience Use relevant examples Don’t talk AT the class Do talk WITH the class Combine discussion, demo and labs

3. Overcoming Myths About Coding

4. What Technologies Do Girls Like?

5. Technologies Phones Pictures – Visual interaction Movies Interactive Characters Worlds that can be created Social networking Robots

6. An Example: DigiGirlz Annual events worldwide Hosted by Microsoft For 12-17 year old girls Learn about tech HOLs Career info Mentoring

7. Techniques for teaching teen Girls 10-10-10 (3 concepts/hr) Action / Movement Collaboration Women, especially younger women, as mentors / teachers Relevant Examples for Girls NEW – international and virtual

8. Teach kids to build what they see

9. Oh, and…Fun is Good! Reminder… Check your hair BEFORE turning on your unified communications (web cam)

10. Some Examples…

11. Small Basic Games+ Programming == Fun

12. Environment Ribbon Intellisense Editor Instant Help

13. Stopping a running program

15. When things go wrong Errors Popup

16. This is how you draw a square

17. Variables

18. Loops

19. Calculate Angle

20. Polygon

21. This is how you draw a spirograph.

22. Colorful

23. Background

24. Learn More… Watch the Small Basic site on DevLabs

25. KODU Visual Game Progamming

26. Visual Programming Is Engaging, Intuitive& Fun Encourages Exploration Needs no manual Needs minimal instructions Introduces formal programming Objects Properties Methods

27. The Controller

28. Playing a game

29. Editing the world To edit, press Back Go to the edit selection Chose what you want to add Instructions will be in top left corner Only objects can be programmed in Kodu. You can change the terrain as well Add water Add hills or valleys Change texture Change color (background and lighting)

30. Editing screen

31. ADDING an object

32. Editing objects Manipulating Objects Change color Clone Add music Position Add activities (i.e. program)

33. Programming – when/do

34. Programming Actions available Move Kick Score Points Add Music Eat Switch Swear More…

35. Advanced settings Rate of kicking acceleration, Lighting, Volume, Breeze speed…

36. Saving your game

37. How to find out more Microsoft Research Site - here

38. Get Microsoft Software for FREE For high school and college students - DreamSpark For startup businesses - BizSpark For everyone / Express editions – VS and SQL - here