Potato Pirates
Get rid of computer screens and supercharge your children's understanding of Computer Science!
Join over 6,000 parents, educators, students and enthusiasts who've mastered the fundamentals of computer science with Potato Pirates.
Get your children to embark on an adventure, harnessing the power of computer science to save everyone's favourite tuber - Potato King!
Computer Science is often regarded as over-complicated and difficult to learn. However, the logic that governs most computer languages, softwares and powers almost everything digital in our lives is in fact rudimentary. The logic can be easily understood by young children. It is the syntax (or grammar) of writing computer code that puts most people off. Coding on computers forces us to grapple with syntax in order to appreciate the underlying the logic.
In a world where children are perpetually glued to screens, it's becoming a challenge for young parents and educators who want to give children a head start into the world of computer science but do not want to encourage more smart device or computer usage.
With this eBook we have removed syntax and screens, replacing an isolated learning experience with social interaction!
There is a huge resurgence for teaching computer science without computers which encourages children to interact with one another as well as their parents and teachers instead of their computer screens. Play to learn, learn to play. This eBook will guide you in taking your children through an exciting adventure, all while picking up very important and fundamental concepts in computer science.
Computers execute commands linearly as the programmer intended. This activity will ensure children adopt sequential logic when "writing" their programmes.
Computer programs contain a series of instructions which are executed when a user runs it. This activity will help players to understand how programmes are executed in real-life.
Many times in computer programming, things don't work the way we planned for them to work. The same will happen during this activity which will make players fix their "programs" in real time.
Players will have to program a path for their partners to follow, essentially "programming" the path on which they will walk.
1. I don't know anything about Computer Programming. Will I still be able to guide my children through this activity?
Absolutely! We've designed this guide to be a step-by-step for anyone regardless of background in programming. The eBook will detail exactly everything required from materials, story, teaching prompts and a debrief on what you just learnt.
2. Does this guide cover everything about computer programming?
No, it does not. It is primarily a beginner's guide to understanding more about the logic of computer programming
3. I've done the activity in this eBook, what's next?
Depending on the age group, we have many free activities available for you to download here. You can even consider getting a deck of the Potato Pirates card game which teaches the fundamentals of computer science here.
4. Is this e-book Free?
Yes, it's completely FREE! All you have to do is enter your name and email and we will email you your copy.
5. Why do I have to fill out the information requested?
We will always keep your personal information safe. We ask for your information in exchange for a valuable resource in order to (a) improve your browsing experience by personalizing the Potato Pirates site to your needs; (b) send information to you that we think may be of interest to you by email or other means; (c) send you marketing communications that we think may be of value to you. You can read about our privacy policy here.
