Coding for Kids
Table of Contents
The 4 C’s Needed for the 21st Century: Creativity
This month we’re launching a new blog series all about 4 skills kids need to succeed in the 21st century. In this article we’re talking about creativity, the foundation of the 4 C’s (creativity, critical thinking, communication, collaboration).
What is creativity? Is it something people are “born” with, or a skill set that can be developed? According to many experts, creativity is a set of skills that anyone can practice. Steps in the creative process include observation, asking questions, drawing connections, experimenting, and getting others’ perspectives.
Observe
When encountering any creative activity, it’s important that we take note of details that are relevant to the problem we’re trying to solve or task we want to complete. If you’re painting a picture, it’s important to be aware of the colors you have available to you and the effect different brushes have on the canvas.
Ask questions
Raise questions based on that data you’ve gathered. Ask the “reporter questions”: Who, what, where, why, when, how. “What will happen if I combine red paint and blue paint?” Form hypotheses based on what you think will happen.
Experiment
After you’ve asked questions and formulated some ideas of what could happen next, it’s important to try out your ideas. That’s how you’ll discover that red paint and blue paint mixed together makes purple paint.
Draw connections
Look at the data you’ve gathered. What are the relationships between those pieces of information? How are they related to each other? Use your findings to help you come up with even more ideas: “If dark blue and dark red together make a dark purple color, these lighter shades of blue and red will probably make a lighter shade of purple, like a lavender color.”
Get others’ perspectives
Listening to others’ perspectives can help us see our challenge or task from a different perspective. “What colors does my friend mix together? What happens when she mixes those colors?”
The Tynker Difference
Tynker helps kids practice creativity at every step in the process. As they work on a project in Tynker, they need to observe details, such as the names and functions of the code blocks. Without that basic information, they won’t be able to complete their projects. They can ask questions like, “What code blocks do I need to make a character jump?” When they experiment and better understand what the individual code blocks do, they can start to see how combinations of code blocks yield a variety of results. They’ll start to notice patterns and draw connections between different code blocks. The Tynker community is a great place for kids to get others’ perspectives on how to use code to create games, animations, and more.
Ready to help your kid practice creativity with code? With our Black Friday Sale happening now, this is the perfect time to invest in a Tynker subscription! Learn more about Tynker’s 2,000+ interest-driven activities like Crystal Clash, the Barbie You Can Be Anything programming experience, Minecraft modding, and more!
