Five easy tech skills your kids can start today

Technology is already a huge part of childhood. But knowing how to play a game, watch YouTube or use an app isn’t the same as understanding how technology works – or having the skills to use it confidently and creatively.

The Government has announced plans to boost technical education for 14-year-olds, but that could mean many children waiting until Year 10 to develop some of the skills they’ll need for an increasingly digital world. With technology changing so quickly, that’s a long time to wait.

The good news is parents don’t have to. And you don’t need to know how to code yourself to help children start building useful skills now.

Here are five simple ways to start, according to Vishnu Kumar Tellakula and Raja Manikanta Diddi, Centre Directors of Code Ninjas in Trafford.

1. Look behind the screen together

Children might know their way around their favourite apps and games but encourage them to think about what’s actually happening behind the screen.

Next time they’re playing a game or using an app, ask: “How do you think the game knows when to make that happen?” or “Why do you think Netflix recommended that show?”

You don’t need to know the answer either. The idea is to get them curious about how the technology they use every day actually works – and help them see that it’s something people have designed and built.

2. Get them creating, not just watching

Children spend plenty of time enjoying things other people have made digitally, so give them opportunities to make something themselves too.

They could create a simple animation or game in Scratch, design their own challenge in a favourite game, edit a funny family video or programme a robot toy to complete a task.

It doesn’t need to be complicated. The important part is helping them realise that technology isn’t just something to use – it’s something they can create with too.

3. Teach them to question AI

AI is already becoming part of children’s lives, so one of the most useful things they can learn is that it doesn’t always get things right.

Make it into a game. Ask an AI tool questions about something your child knows really well – whether that’s Minecraft, Pokémon, football or animals – and see if they can spot anything that doesn’t sound right.

Then ask: “How could we check whether that’s true?”

It’s an easy way to encourage children to think critically about what they see online rather than automatically believing it.

4. Let them get things wrong

Things don’t always work first time – whether a child is writing code, building with LEGO or tackling a tricky puzzle.

When something goes wrong, try not to immediately jump in with the answer. Instead, ask: “What do you think happened?” or “What could you change and try again?”

Learning to try something, spot what went wrong and have another go helps children become more confident problem-solvers – a skill that will be useful regardless of how technology changes.

5. Look beyond the classroom

Schools have a lot to cover and changing a national curriculum understandably takes time. Technology easily outpaces institutional learning.

That’s where extracurricular activities can offer something different. Coding clubs, robotics groups and hands-on STEM activities don’t have to wait for curriculum changes and can introduce new skills and technologies as soon as they become relevant.

At Code Ninjas, for example, activities can evolve alongside technology, giving children the chance to explore coding, robotics and emerging technology through practical projects and games.

That doesn’t mean every child needs to grow up to be a programmer. It’s about developing curiosity, creativity, confidence and problem-solving skills that can grow with them.

After all, none of us knows exactly what technology will look like by the time today’s children reach Year 10. Giving them those foundations now means they’ll be better prepared to understand and make the most of it – whatever the digital world looks like when they get there.

For more information about Code Ninjas, visit http://www.codeninjas.co.uk/trafford-gtm-uk