Should my kids learn JavaScript?

Absolutely, JavaScript makes for a great beginner language. You'll be able to start on day one and start writing some pretty amazing stuff.

We've decided to cover JavaScript because it is one of the most popular programming languages available. With good reason. There is a ton of it out there! Let's break it all down and show you why you should be learning it, and even why you should learn it from the start.

What makes JavaScript so good?

JavaScript is a language that is very easy to learn, and it's used to develop a huge amount of web-based applications. JavaScript is an interpreted language. What does that mean?

It means that you can get started using only your browser with no steps in between. Take a look at this example:

var age = 10;
while (age > 0) {
    console.log(age);
    age--;
}

That's JavaScript code. It's done within the context of the web browser.

When should my kids start learning programming?

For kids, there is no better time than right now! Way to get started before the whole world is doing it.

JavaScript is great because it's a language that you don't need to be expert at in order to feel like you're doing something cool. In fact, it will help your kids to learn other programming languages better. As they start to understand the syntax and the various parts of the language, they will learn it faster and faster.

Make sure and start them off in the very early years, so they can get some experience before all of the other kids.

The basic syntax can be learned between the ages of 4 and 10. You can even teach them the programming command line and tools. Make sure and point them to some books to read, as well as local computer clubs, to get them started.

Heck, you can even let them watch a JavaScript presentation. It's pretty simple.

What can my kids make with JavaScript?

They can make websites. This is where you start your kids off with writing some JavaScript.

It's not a bad idea to let your kids make something cool for the first time they write JavaScript. Let them know what they are doing. Give them some experience so they are at ease with the experience before trying to jump right into complex projects.

If you want, you can also show them how to make a website using their own name. All you need to do is start them off with some templates. You can find them online.

Your kids should also start off with making a website that runs on the server itself. Teach them how to do that by using the command line. It's pretty easy to get a site up and running.

Finally, you can have them make simple games using JavaScript. This is usually great for simple games, or for when they are trying to learn how to make anything spectacular. They can work on a concept with a game, and get them to work on a concept with a website.

Where can I learn more JavaScript?

There are a lot of online resources out there for JavaScript, it's a popular language after all. But to get started it might help your kids stay focused by supporting them with a printed book on JavaScript.