You may know that logic and coding go together, and people keep saying those skills will help your child with math. But do you understand how those skills translate into better math grades? How do you know if your child is weak in the area of logical thinking and what can you do to help them?
How Coding & Logic are Connected
Logical thinking is putting information in order, creating sequences of actions to arrange information into a cohesive system that will give you predictable results. You input information and can predict what the output will be. This is what coders are tasked with every day.
They have information that needs to be manipulated in a certain way, they create sequences of actions or computations to be performed on the information to get the end result that is desired for the product. Without logic, the code becomes a mess and you end up with outputs you did not intend. Much of what coders do is fixing 'broken code' which means it is not giving the output desired. At the root of 'broken code' is an error in the operations the information was sent through, resulting in an output that was not desired.
What Math Skills Will Improve From Understanding Coding Logic?
Math requires sequential processing just as much as coding. Many math problems must be solved in a specific sequence or you will get an incorrect answer. Word problems especially demand logical thinking because the student must take the information provided and decide not only what math operations will solve the problem, but also what order those operations need to be completed in. Understanding multi-step word problems is a difficult task for students as they must apply their arithmetic knowledge to complex problems. They cannot just plug in the numbers because they first have to create the structure of the problem. Understanding logic will help with multi-step word problems and also with concepts such as order of operations which need to be followed in order to solve more complex and abstract Algebra problems.
What if Your Child Isn't Good at Logic?
Don't worry if your child is not good at logic. Logic is a learned way of thinking, not a pre-existing magic your child is born with. Your child will learn to think logically as they learn both math and coding. Using both tools, coding, and math, to increase their logical thinking skills will help reinforce each other. A common misconception is that your child needs to be great at math to learn how to code, but the truth is coding can help them break through their math learning barriers by teaching them how to think logically in a fun and engaging way. Genie Academy makes coding fun by helping kids code their own games. While they are busy coding a game they will be learning logical thinking. The next time they have an assignment with multi-step word problems, they will find it easier to put the information in the order they need to solve it with success.
