How can you help your child with computing?
- Take photos with your child and show them how a picture is taken. What are the different functions? How is a photo stored? How are photos transferred to a different digital device?
- When getting a new TV or games console, enlist the help of your child. Explain to them how this is connected and set up.
- Use apps on your mobile phone such as Notes to show children how to create a list.
- Use apps such as Scratch to make coding fun. Encourage children to play Scratch games created by other users.
- Talk about online safety and monitor your child’s usage. Encourage them to talk about what they see online and to share anything that makes them feel uncomfortable or unsafe.
- When you use your mobile phone or tablet, talk about how these devices use code made up of numbers, words and symbols. Recognise that code is a language that digital devices can understand.
Experience computing with your family
There are many ways to experience computing with your child.
In the local area, children can visit The Think Tank Museum in Birmingham or Coventry Transport Museum in Coventry.
Following your museum visit, children can:
- Have a discussion about the technology they have seen.
- Research an inventor whose technology they find interesting.
- Make a collaborative Scratch game with family members.
- Design their own piece of technology.
Useful Website Links
Home Learning (barefootcomputing.org)
Projects | Computer coding for kids and teens | Raspberry Pi
Resources for 3-11s – UK Safer Internet Centre
Primary computing resources (stem.org.uk)
Home Learning (computingatschool.org.uk)
http://info.thinkfun.com/stem-education/6-unplugged-coding-activities-for-hour-of-code