Benefits of Teaching Children How to Code

In the digital age, learning how to code should be included in every curriculum. In fact, it's the common thread that will bridge cultures regardless of nationality. However, not even 20 million in the whole world—compared to the 3 billion labor force and the 7.2 billion total global population—know how to code.

Among European countries, Finland takes the lead in institutionalizing coding in primary and secondary schools, although England trail blazed the introduction of computer science in schools. So there's no question that kids should learn how to code. The only question left is how early.

Programming for Kids

• Gamestar Mechanic
• Tynker
• Move The Turtle
• Scratch
• Cargo-Bot
• Daisy The Dinosaur
• Hopscotch

Coding Pays Off

Benefits of Teaching Young Kids to Code

• They can better understand the world – Certainly, they are more equipped to understand the digital sphere than the current and previous generation. With understanding, they can better position themselves when they grow up and know where they can carve their own space in this new world.


• They enhance their problem-solving skills – Programming takes a lot of patience, but it also requires some degree of investigational skills when an issue crops up. Kids can develop new ways of thinking outside the box, which is material for their growth.


• They keep the creative juices flowing– Once kids understand that they can actually create a program through coding, they can then let loose their creativity to create an app for themselves. Who knows? They can even make money from it. Consider 13-year-old coder Ethan Duggan for instance, who already has several apps to his name. Duggan is self-taught, which speaks volumes about kids' capabilities.


• Promotes critical thinking – People of the previous generation always complain that millennials lack critical thinking. It's the fault of YouTube and Facebook they say, especially in the era of fake news. However, coding will allow kids to digest and dissect problems into several components until they arrive at a solution.


• IT jobs continue to be in high demand – Although the BLS sees a reduction in programming jobs (a seven percent decline between 2016 and 2026), software developers are in high demand. In fact, by 2026, the industry will expand by 24%, one of the highest growths across various industries. Of course, it doesn't hurt that software development also pays very well (a median of $101,790 per year).


• Coding presents them with choices – While kids don't have to become programmers in the future, coding early will start their love affair with computers. In fact, they don't have to work for any company but can develop apps on their own. Certainly, the prospect of freelancing is scary enough but it could also be lucrative.

1. SoloLearn
2. Programming Hub
3. Mimo: Learn to Code
4. Encode