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I'm not a coder but I think there are some great problem solving building block skills that early programming teaches kids. I'm less concerned with them actually learning a specific language (because that gets outdated fast). So far at as 5 we are just using some iPad apps. I wish they would do code.org at school though.

My LO is only just turning 3, so we haven't started yet, but I definitely want to teach her. I'm an engineer and code pretty much full-time. I've checked out some toys geared towards learning to "code" and none of the ones for younger kids have really impressed me yet. We try to limit screen time right now but I'll probably check out some apps as she gets older.

@psw27: after they learn maybe they can teach us!

My husband is a programmer, so I'm sure he will! I was an English major so....that will probably be up to him, haha. My high school actually required one computer science class, though it was a science and tech focused school. But maybe by the time my kids are in school it will be the norm?

I'm a web developer and my husband is in IT so he knows a lot of coding as well, but I will probably only deliberately teach my child to code if I don't see it being taught in school to my satisfaction. We may get a couple problem-solving type toys along with the science kits and all, but like @catlady we try to limit screen time.

I've volunteered through work to teach at girl coding camps and nearby elementary schools with scratch (MIT) and code.org. I really like those programs but @T.H.O.U is right. The language itself isn't as important as the problem solving and algorithms. Those are translatable to more than just a computer screen.

Yes, I'm pretty passionate that DD (particularly since she's a girl) needs to have real computer literacy, and in this era that means knowing how to code. Computers run the world, so, it's a good idea to be someone who knows how to control them.

We plan to reach our kiddos to code. DH and I are very tech minded so it's important to us.

I did not realize that this was a thing. I won't go out of my way to because I can barely code, but if she learns at school, that's fine.

I'd say it's not about math at all. It's more like solving a puzzle or riddle. Like how there's a logic and problem solving portion of the LSAT to get into law school - need to think logically and solve problems but not at all about math

Probably the basics. I have heard awesome things about girls who code.

I never gave it a thought, to be honest. It's definitely not a priority for us, and certainly not until she's at least school-aged. We want her in front of screens as little as possible for as long as we can manage. But I'm a lawyer in a very non-tech-related area, and DH is a professional musician, and neither of us has the first clue about coding so we can't teach her. And as long as she's going to take an "extracurricular" class in the near future, it will be music and/or a physical activity like dance. We won't keep her from learning to code when she's older if she says she's interested, but the thought of her sitting in front of a computer screen as a young kid instead of going outside, playing pretend in her little kitchen or with her dollhouse, reading books, etc really rubs me the wrong way.

I don't know anything about it, but my husband is in IT. He's the one who seeks out kids apps/games and things like that, so he will be in charge of it if it isn't taught in school (and I have no idea if it is or not).

I personally do not know how to code, but given what I have experienced, I can not see how it would be harmful to know.

I have to ask how it is integrated into the curriculum at my son's school, I honestly have no idea how it is integrated (they have a computer lab, so my assumption is that they do get some exposure).

Only if they are interested in learning it.

@Mrs. Sketchbook: I think having a background in coding is helpful. In order to get the best product, I think you need to have a really good design, and for that, a good understanding of the technical and functional requirements...knowing how to program can be very helpful in that aspect.

And similarly, when testing, it is helpful to understand why and how certain things trigger actions. Small things, like if a field is dynamic or static, where it pulls data from, is it refreshed intraday or batch...I can go on and on. It makes for better test cases and a better final product.

I have no clue how to code... My DH works in IT though, so maybe he will.

@ShootingStar: I definitely do not work in software but I did a master's in technical writing and worked in an engineering firm for a while I was surprised by how much you can get away with not knowing about the products/software you're selling/writing about. Most of the technical writers I know of work inside a program and don't have to code. The engineers I worked with made the interfaces for audio visual touchscreens and they also used a program to make them. Also at one point they had a part time website person, IT person, and two administrative personnel. By the time I left one person handled the website (they used WordPress or something similar), all internal communications and storage was via sharepoint, and the admins were gone. The same person who managed the sharepoint and the website also handled IT. They didn't need a specific web person, admin person, PR person, IT person. And none of it required coding anymore!

My father works for Microsoft in Southeast Asia and he said with cloud computing they are moving away from a license model to a pay-for-use model. This sort of indicated to me that the software world is starting to flatten.

I took an instructional design classlast semester and we worked with a little coding program but even THAT was a user interface with drag and drop. Back when I first learned to do HTML I would just open notepad and test it online!

I imagine in the future that coding will be important for people who code, but we will be surprised at how much will be accomplishable without it.

But TBH I am a big believer in the idea that work itself is obsolete. So I admit I am biased at the very outset of the conversation. I don't think there will be a salaried, 40 hour workday job for my kids. With 8 billion plus, how could there be?

@Mrs. Sketchbook: I've never met a tech writer who could code. If they could, they'd be a dev instead and make twice as much .

My company does security as a service (SAAS) with the majority of our services available on our web platform, hosted in the cloud. We have both a licensing model and a pay per use, depending which product. And we still employ many developers to create the proprietary software hosted on our platform. And our company hosted website is for sure not a wordpress site. And we're just a medium sized start up, not a huge power player.