Tinco
Founder and CEO of Mom and Dad Camp
First prize in the first new concept composition competition, Internet person, white-collar mother. From one person to a team, we have focused on cultivating Mom and Dad Camp to this day. Hobbies after having children: Disney, Lego, cruises, picture books, and English education.
Editorial Assistant: Ouyang
As many old friends know, Scarlett has been participating in robot competitions.
Since I founded the Mom and Dad Camp, we have started popularizing programming resources for young children almost since 2014, so she has been playing Lego and App games since kindergarten. She has a natural affinity for programming and a corresponding environment. Currently, she studying.
On the second day after we participated in the KIDS WEAR children's wear launch at Shanghai Fashion Week, she went to compete in the robot competition, but unfortunately failed miserably. She just won the Asian Championship in the summer vacation and had just reached the peak of her life, but suddenly fell to the bottom.
Yesterday we were discussing why the game was lost and where it was lost. And this is the real charm of competition and her valuable growth experience.
Last time I talked about "" in the live broadcast, I talked about how to cultivate science and technology hobbies. Many parents asked me about Lego, programming, robot competitions and learning resources. Today I will talk about it seriously!
Two days ago, I saw that Tencent WeChat held the first Youth Artificial Intelligence and Future Media Global Innovation Challenge! If you take a closer look, the official mini program of the competition also provides a large number of programming video lectures. You can learn for free whether you register for the competition or not.
Registration deadline is October 31st.
Parents who are interested can take advantage of the National Day to let their children study it carefully!
We have summarized the content for you
Competition organizer:
Beijing Normal University, China Welfare Institute Children’s Palace, Tencent WeChat
Entrants:
Primary school group, middle school group (including technical secondary school and vocational high school)
The competition provides:
A grand prize of 10,000 yuan and a certification, the opportunity to talk to top scientists, as well as visits to major manufacturers and letters of recommendation! This series of incentives is of great significance in stimulating children's enthusiasm for learning.
Competition content:
1) Team competition, each team can participate in 1-3 people, and each team has a maximum of 1-2 instructors
2) Submit a practical work plan that can be fully run on the WeChat platform (such as WeChat applet, H5, etc.), and the programming tool is not limited.
3) You need to submit a 3-minute video documentary based on practical operations, project instructions and related pictures to show the creativity of the work, creative ideas and creative practice process
4) If the work combines software and hardware to ultimately realize an innovative application with artificial intelligence attributes, additional points will be awarded.
Parent Camp Tips: The format of this competition is very close to many foreign student programming competitions. The creative display part accounts for a large proportion, not just programming ability, so the test for children is very comprehensive.
How to participate:
Download WeChat developer tools and start your programming journey:
Competition details can be found in the official mini program, and there are also many programming guidance lectures⬇️
Mini program entrance registration
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This competition is actually just one part of Tencent’s youth WeChat Green Seedlings program, and the entire WeChat Green Seedlings program is more like Tencent, as a major manufacturer, giving back to society and contributing to the positive guidance of the next generation.
Open a window for children
Contribute to society
We have previously introduced the global event "Hour of Code", which has been participated in by tens of millions of students in more than 180 countries.
This project has received strong support from major technology companies in the United States. For example, the founders of Google, Microsoft, and other major overseas companies have invested their own money to support the scene. This kind of support truly recognizes the impact and change of programming on the world, and the impact of programming on the world. The huge contribution of technological power, after all, the wealth myth of this wave of rich people was indeed born with the development of the Internet.
In a video calling on children to learn programming, Microsoft founder Bill Gates first came into contact with computers at the age of 13. His first programming work was a backgammon game.
Founder Jack, he said he got his first computer when he was 8 years old
The founder, Zuckerberg, first started learning programming in the 6th grade in the United States, about 11 years old.
Programming has become their weapon to change the world.
In 2012, only 1/4 of schools in the United States had programming classes, so these big guys really believed that——
"Every student in every school should have the opportunity to study computer science"
Therefore, engineers from Google, Microsoft, and even volunteered to help create tutorials. I have mentioned this free website many times in previous articles and live broadcasts.
When Scarlett was in YQ in 2020, because she had been taking online classes, she completed most of the programming mini-games at home. In fact, it was almost like playing games. The children had a lot of fun playing, and they were exposed to programming concepts while playing. and basics, as natural as breathing.
Today's WeChat Green Seedling Project is obviously aiming for this goal.
However, considering China’s national conditions,
A more direct development method was chosen: daily application-level small programs, H5 development
Think about the small programs and H5 your children made by themselves, which are spread on WeChat
Are the kids feeling super accomplished?
This is a positive energy spread for more children to learn science.
The free lectures provided at the same time are also very practical. They are full of temptations for children who have never done programming in WeChat before, such as making a quiz competition mini program and a Mars landing mini program.
Most of these are graphical programming, and children who have learned a little or other graphical programming can understand and get started.
Advanced lecture guidance, including how to make a business card applet
There’s even the most popular thing in the tech world right now – how to make a carbon neutral calculator
I think these courses are very attractive to adults, not to mention children.
Putting what you have learned into practice into practice is a great way to learn.
In the past, many parents had a headache because their children had no place to study.
Then this kind of free competition is a good opportunity for children to practice their skills.
The competition not only offers generous prizes, but also has no registration fee.
Free programming lectures suitable for teenagers are also provided.
Children with zero basic knowledge can directly learn to compete, which is really conscientious!
Let me give you the entrance again. Children who have learned programming must not miss it.
Official mini program entrance
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How to learn programming?
What does it have to do with Lego and robots?
Okay, the above are the benefits for the children who have the opportunity to participate in the competition. Because it is rare, let’s talk about it first. Let’s get into the science time.
Many parents will ask me this question – how to learn programming? What does it have to do with Lego and robots?
In fact, in foreign countries, programming thinking has already begun to be included in kindergarten courses. Generally, unplugged programming is used, which means that no electronic equipment is required at all to understand the basic concepts of programming.
Question: If a little girl wants to get ice cream, how should she go?
Finally, record "every step" of the operation.
In fact, the child completed a piece of code.
Therefore, the so-called "programming" learning is actually letting children learn a kind of "programming thinking", which is——
"How to analyze, dismantle and solve problems step by step"
Next, answer the frequently asked questions from parents.
01
What on earth are Lego doing?
The construction of Lego is also completed step by step, so children will first adapt to the "steps" and "sequences" in programming logic. What to build first and what to build later are the beginning of children's logical thinking.
Lego is a "concrete object." It is difficult for young children to understand abstract thinking and they need to learn and understand from real objects. Therefore, Lego can be the first step for children to understand abstract concepts.
Lego is "open" and any idea can be created, thus giving children endless space for free imagination. Let your children create whatever they want.
For example, when Scarlett first started to build things randomly, she would arrange small animals and build a simple wall.
Lego is not like a puzzle, which is a two-dimensional construction creation, while Lego is a three-dimensional space construction.
Therefore, when children start to freely create Lego structures, they need to think about the arrangement and order of space.
So when you look at 4 years old, Scarlett mainly built flat surfaces freely.
By the time she was 7 years old, her free construction became more story-telling and richer in details. She could tell stories continuously based on her own construction. You can see her "classification" and "story" are improving.
By this time, she could freely build three-dimensional works.
It's completely scene-based, with a storyline and no instructions.
She built this forest with different levels when she was 7 years old. My father and I were very surprised when we saw it. Because whether it is color matching, height configuration, or structural distribution, it is very lively.
These are the real purposes of Lego learning
Lego has never been a simple toy.
It is a professional education system.
When Lego is used to build and accompany a child through the three steps of hands-on construction, free exploration, and independent creation, the prototype of a tech baby is actually already there.
Moreover, because the concrete concepts are more solid, subsequent abstract learning will be easier.
Among the more authoritative technology competitions that Chinese children can currently participate in, Lego's FLL Robot Competition is a world-class competition with huge gold content. The same organization also organizes FRC/FTC competitions. The methods are basically the same, but the competition system is slightly different. It has been around since the beginning of the children’s category and is a competition recognized by many prestigious schools.
When Scarlett was 6 years old, she participated in the World Championships trials of the FLLJr group, but at that time she had been playing by herself at home and had not found a good team, so she was just playing tricks.
02
What exactly is the robot learning?
In fact, LEGO FLL is already a robot competition, but more people regard robots as a transition between LEGO and programming.
Robots, like the bonus items in the competition mentioned at the beginning, are a combination of hardware (physical parts) and software (programs). Therefore, children in the lower grades of primary school will find it easier to understand and become interested in most robots. Can the written program be used by the robot to execute according to its own ideas? The results are clear at a glance.
Various constructions of the robot are combined with lightweight programs to complete the commanded actions. Although there are various types of robots, most of the components are very similar. Which one to study actually mainly depends on what kind of teachers you can find to teach. To be honest, I think China is short of technology teachers for children.
Good teachers are so hard to find!
This is a photo of us participating in the VEX Asian Championships in Qingdao during the summer vacation
You can feel the grandness of the scene
As soon as we entered the scene, the children were really excited.
All robot operations are projected on the big screen, the referee scores on the spot, the players sign, and the big screen scrolls the scores and rankings.
The scene was very exciting
VEX is another world-wide robot competition. It is as important as the FLL mentioned above. I also talked about it during the live broadcast.
I promised to write about my experience in this VEX Asian Championships separately, so don’t rush me.
03
What exactly are you learning about programming?
Okay, after watching the robot competition above, many people would like to ask, after learning robots, do they also need to learn programming?
The answer is – most children learn robots to improve their fun and programming to improve their abilities. Because the end of robot learning is programming, and the end of programming is software application or hardware application.
Therefore, you either want your children to learn programming and write some applications (Apps, websites, small programs, etc.), or you want your children to learn programming and compete in robot competitions.
In previous live broadcasts, parents often asked: Which one is better, C++?
It started playing at a young age. You can actually download the app and play by yourself. Scarlett started playing when she was around 4-5 years old.
It is more suitable for lower grades of primary school. Although it is not graphical programming, it is suitable for the transition to later years. The library is relatively rich and friendly to children.
C++ is of course suitable for children in the upper grades of primary school. It is more widely used and can participate in more competitions, especially in the Xinjiang Olympiad, where only C++ language can be used.
But the difficulty of the two languages is actually about the same. There is no difference between one being easier and the other being difficult. I have discussed this issue with many technical experts. My personal suggestion is that it is better to divide them based on age and goals.
These three are the more mainstream programming languages for children to learn now. As for the others that need to be learned, if no one in the family understands them well, it is recommended to be cautious. After all, children have limited time.
04
What exactly is Xin Osai studying?
Believing in the Olympiad is certainly the goal of a few children.
Algorithms, data structures, and C++ programming are all covered
From the provincial competition, the national competition NOI, to the world competition IOI, it is already very complicated, but it is the cradle of talented young people every year. Needless to say, there are many, you can also search online for yourself.
For example, Li Wanjun, the gold medal winner in the 1994 International Olympic Informatics (Computer) Competition, is today the Director of Development Technical Services for Microsoft Greater China.
To this day, he often returns to the Children's Palace to give lectures to children.
Li Wanjun is also a participant in this WeChat Green Seedling Project.
05
A strong foundation plan, a must-read for kids interested in science and technology
Parents of young children may not understand the strong foundation plan. Let’s search it on Baidu.
In short, if children who are interested in science and technology have made achievements in middle and high school, or even have certain grades, they will definitely learn about the strong foundation plan.
Let me show you the list of pilots! The data is made public every year, and you can check it on each official website.
06
route plan
Regarding the path planning of scientific and technological interests, I mentioned some in the live broadcast before, and I have actually written it in today’s article. If you feel it is not enough, you can continue to live broadcast next time to talk about it specifically, because there are indeed many details.
How old are you? How do you choose your interests? You can watch my video account for live broadcast replays.