Computers, Technology

Meet Scratch and How It Can Help Your Kids This Summer Vacation

binary-computer-codeIf there is something that I truly believe is that the human beings never stop learning, this in my experience applies whether you are a kid, a teenager, a young adult, or a veteran. In the specific case of kids, summer vacation is as important for their learning and development as the months they spend at school, and this is because first as I just said, we never stop learning, and second because of the old axiom that says: "if you don't use it you will lose it". Especially kids have huge potential to become whatever they want to be, and on this post I will give you the details about a great learning tool called Scratch that can teach your little ones a skill that now days is responsible for making millions around the world, we will be speaking about computer programming and if you want to help your kid to learn this discipline I invite you to stay here and discover how to do it in a simple, fun, and entertaining way.

Scratch is the perfect tool to keep your kids entertained a few hours a week and help them to learn at the same time during this summer. I was once a kid too and for me it is very important to have fun while learning something, especially during vacation, otherwise the whole experience could be ruined and a wrong idea about summer camps or courses will grow in your kid's mind. This of course is not the case with Scratch and I think that you'll find it very interesting since the very first time you use it.

Scratch is a free piece of computer software developed by the MIT and it essentially allows you to learn the basic principles behind computer programming and unleash your creativity at the same time. This tool is designed to be very user friendly so even toddlers are attracted by it and even they can use it. It is probable that you already know this but it is a good reminder, all of our daily lives depend on technology these days and very few of us know how to read and write code, besides this skill is something that can help you to either change the world or make a lot of money, just think about it, computers are making everything upside down these days because they are everywhere, so it is a great idea to invest time developing this skill.

What is Scratch and why everyone around the world is using it?

Scratch
Scratch

Scratch is a pretty interesting and fun programing environment where people of all ages can learn to read and write code as well as the basic principles of coding; the most important is that you do this while having fun with all the tools and features that Scratch offers. One thing that I love about this software is that it takes advantage of the natural inclination of the human being to learn more every day and combines it with a very powerful interface that allows users to learn from scratch the bread and butter of computer programming.

Here I want to expand on three key aspects of Scratch:

  • Interactive: This tool allows you to interact not only with the software itself but with a lot of people that are using it right now, there is in fact a community where tons of users around the world are sharing not just their designs but their knowledge for free, this of course adds a lot of value to this amazing resource.
  • Inviting: The coding environment that Scratch shows to the user is very friendly to use and attractive, the colors, forms, characters, buttons, and the overall style of the tool make it look like a toy when in reality it is a powerful piece of software.
  • Educative: If there is something that all users highlight about Scratch is that it allows learning a lot about computer programming regardless of your age or previous experience with code. This is the reason why everyone can use this resource to start or hone their computer programming skills. In reality there is not small project using scratch since the software allows you to build anything from simple scripts until games and apps to have more fun with.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywG6lv9mFLI&version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0]

How can I start with Scratch today?

This is very simple to do, just follow the instructions on the video here and start having fun and learning a bunch of interesting things with Scratch right now. This piece of software is free to download and many tutorials can be found online, don't forget to join the community as many talented people willing to help you are around always.

What do you think about Scratch? Do you consider this as a good activity for this summer vacation? What could your kids do tomorrow if they start using scratch today? Let us know your thoughts and leave a comment.

To your kid's success!

This article was created by Jose Lozano, an engineer and a passionate blogger who enjoys sharing how-to-learn tips with other people; he is convinced that everyone can do whatever they want if they have the right tool for doing it. Something else that Jose enjoys is having fun with RC flying toys such as the Blade mCX2 RTF, and he often shares useful articles about these gadgets as an AR Drone review with other hobbyists like him.

If you have any questions, please ask below!