After browsing and reading a pile of books written on coding and programming, I have come to the conclusion that if you do not have prior knowledge in this field, then it is a good idea to start familiarizing yourself with the topic by reading books written for children. This is because children’s books are usually short (you do not need to set aside a lot of time for reading the book), well-illustrated (pictures help you to understand and memorise new concepts) and easy to follow.
For example, one book that is worth reading, is ‘Hello, Ruby: Adventures in Coding’, written by Finnish programming-literacy advocate Linda Liukas. It is a storybook about coding and computational thinking. The story is not only about the adventures of a girl called Ruby but also includes elements of coding that are presented to children as a narrative. At the end of the book there are tasks that are linked with each chapter of the story, e.g. Exercise 9: Data structures is connected with Chapter 4 Penguins. The tasks extract the topics of computational thinking from the stories and make children work with them in a creative and inspiring way. It is a one of a kind storybook about coding and computational thinking that is written for children but can open computational thinking to adults as well. This book is available in many languages: English, Finnish, Swedish, Dutch, Latvian, Korean, Japanese, Polish, French and now also in Estonian. It is available from several bookstores: e.g. Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Suomalainen Kirjakauppa, Adlibris, Rahva Raamat. See: http://shop.helloruby.com/pages/order-the-book. The storybook is a starting point to Ruby’s adventures that continue as exercises and apps in the helloruby.com web site.
Another children’s book which can help you get acquainted with coding is ‘Coding for Beginners using Scratch’ written by Rosie Dickins, Louie Stowell, Jonathan Melmoth, and illustrated by Shaw Nielsen. This is a 96-page book which introduces young children (aged 7 years and up) to programming in Scratch. The book runs through the basics of what Scratch is and then leads onto a number of more complex projects that allow the development of various aspects of animation and programme building. Although this book is geared primarily toward children, it can also be considered a good starting point for adults who are ‘not technically minded’ or for those who have just started experimenting with coding. It goes through each step clearly and is not bogged down with lengthy explanations – it has short, easily graspable points that end with an explaining animation. Unfortunately, the book is not available for free and the e-book is more expensive than the hardcover printed book, but if you can afford to wait a few days, then it is possible to get the hardcover from Amazon for a quite low price.
If you are not really into picture books and want a more straightforward introduction to Scratch, then the book ‘Learn to program with Scratch. A visual introduction to programming with art, science, math, and games’ written by Majed Marji might be more suitable for you. This is a textbook about the Scratch programming environment that is very useful for a wide age range. The book covers the fundamentals of Scratch, building in difficulty as chapters progress. Basic programming concepts such as the usage of variables, string processing, and lists are discussed in detail, as are the different methods in which said concepts can be demonstrated in Scratch. There are some good sample programs included with each chapter, that are a bit more advanced than the typical introductory Scratch program. Also, explanations are offered on how to transfer skills learned in Scratch to actual programming languages like Python, C++ and Java.
If you are looking for a quick answer to questions like ‘What kind of thinking is computational thinking and what techniques are associated with it?’ then the answers can be found in the book ‘Computational thinking. A guide for teachers’ written by Andrew Csizmadia, Paul Curzon, Mark Dorling, Simon Humphreys, Thomas Ng, Cynthia Selby and John Woollard. This book was written according to the English National Curriculum for Computing, but because it aims to help develop a shared understanding of teaching computational thinking in schools, it is a good material for teachers in other countries as well. This guide introduces the nature of computational thinking and provides a vocabulary that teachers can use to understand, communicate and teach the concepts, approaches and techniques associated with computational thinking. It identifies where computational thinking fits in the computing curriculum and how it might be introduced into the classroom. The book is only 17 pages long and can be considered very light reading for all teachers. It also brings out multiple useful websites and is freely available on the website Computing at School.
If you want to get more practical information about teaching computing, then I advise you to visit the website http://www.quickstartcomputing.org/. There are CPD toolkits for primary teachers and for secondary teachers which are free to use under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
‘QuickStart Computing. A CPD toolkit for primary teachers’ is a set of resources that address the subject knowledge and the subject-specific pedagogy teachers need in order to plan, teach and assess the primary computing curriculum effectively and confidently. There are three sections in this handbook: computing subject knowledge with suggestions for classroom activities, advice for planning, teaching and assessing the computing curriculum, and guidance for running computing training sessions. These sections are supported by a selection of videos and web links to useful information. All the resources are available for download free of charge from http://www.quickstartcomputing.org/.
The other books available for download free of charge
Computational Thinking in K–12 Education. Teacher resources. Second edition. (2011). https://csta.acm.org/Curriculum/sub/CurrFiles/472.11CTTeacherResources_2ed-SP-vF.pdf
Berry, M. (2013). Computing in the national curriculum. A guide for primary teachers.
http://www.computingatschool.org.uk/data/uploads/CASPrimaryComputing.pdf
Evans, D. (2011). Introduction to Computing. Explorations in Language, Logic, and Machines.
http://www.computingbook.org/FullText.pdf
Usborne 1980s computer books (http://www.usborne.com/catalogue/feature-page/computer-and-coding-books.aspx)
Reffin Smith, B. (1982). Introduction to computer programming: basic for beginners. USA: Hayes Books.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bxv0SsvibDMTUXdYTnRaTy1LLVE/view
Watts, L. & Wharton, M. (1983). Usborne introduction to machine code for beginners. London: Usborne Publishing Ltd.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bxv0SsvibDMTcHNXalEtYkVtU00/view
Tatchell, J. & Cutler, N. (1983). Practical things to do with a microcomputer. London: Usborne Publishing Ltd.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bxv0SsvibDMTbTdNd1Z6YnN5NG8/view
Watts, L. & Howarth, L. (1984). Programming tricks & skills. London: Usborne Publishing.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bxv0SsvibDMTbTdNd1Z6YnN5NG8/view
Useful website: Programming Basics. A website for teaching people how to program. http://www.programmingbasics.org/
