Coding is a relatively new venture around the Nerddom, but one that is readily accepted with excitement! When I received free access to Python for Beginners: Learn Coding at Home from Homeschool Code Academy I knew it would be a hit.
What is Python for Beginners?
Python for Beginners: Learn Coding at Home was written by a second-generation homeschool parent who earned his Computer Science degree from Texas Tech University. There are a total of 158 lessons available and more than 10 hours of video content making it a full course that can be used as a high school credit if desired.
The course is self-paced so that students can complete the lessons how they're most comfortable. Once a lesson has been completed, it can be reviewed as many times as needed. All lessons are prerequisite to the next, so you're forced to go through each step in order without skipping ahead.
The lessons are simple and engaging while also being very thorough. It's obvious that the program was written by someone who understands the importance of breaking such a technical topic down into simple steps that allow the child to be successful.
An added plus is that parents do not need any knowledge of coding for their child to take the course!
Here is a list of what is covered in the course.
What's Required for the Course?
The course is recommended for students in grades 5 and up due to the minimum required skills of
- Addition
- Subtraction
- Multiplication
- Division
- Decimal Notation
- Place Value
- Fractions
- Simple Geometric Formulas (area of simple shapes)
- Degrees of a circle, diameter, and radius
- Basic Typing Skills
- Knowledge of how to open and save files
A program free downloadable program called Thonny is required to complete the course. Because of this, the course must be completed on a computer (PC or Mac) or a laptop. Chromebooks and tablets will not work unless you'd like to use them to watch the videos while working in Thonny on another computer or laptop.
How Does it Work?
To complete the course, students watch a video and follow along with the teacher in Thonny. Afterward, there is a PDF download that can be viewed or printed. The PDFs have coding challenges for the students to complete on their own.
The teaching video can be referred to while completing the challenge.
Finally, the student watches the teacher complete the challenge to see if they've completed it correctly.
The first few lessons do an excellent job of covering the basics of computers, hardware, and software. This information provides the groundwork for students to understand how coding works together with components.
There is so much in the course that teaches kids not only how to code, but how to apply what they've learned in various real-world applications and situations.
Our Thoughts
Python for Beginners: Learn Coding at Home is a wonderful self-paced program that teaches coding in a way that is easy for absolute beginners to comprehend and apply. My daughter, who has some experience with coding already, learned a great deal from the course.
The course is well organized and easy to navigate. There's never a question about where you are, where you should be, and what you still have to complete. Everything is very well put together.
Homeschool Code Academy offers a free trial that includes 15 video lessons.
If you choose to register for the course, you have two payment options:
- $15 per month
- $119 for 10 months
Don't Just Take My Word For It
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