Teaching kids to code? Start by inspiring them to play

It’s creative, unscripted, exploratory play — not computer science — that builds innovative, tech-savvy kids.

The toy store shelves bristle with code robots, code caterpillars, logical turtles and bumblebees who love to take commands. Grab a book called Coding for Kids for Dummies, then download an app or three so your kids can code on the road.

It’s natural to want our children to succeed — computer programming is, after all, the next big thing, and it barely existed as a career option when many of us were born. But in the endless aisles of colorful coding creatures, we’ve lost sight of the real reason children are inspired to learn.

The direct, singular focus on teaching kids to code ignores the reality that software development as a profession tends to be boring, repetitive and easily commoditized. Coding is an honorable trade, but we’ve accidentally adopted the fantasy that learning to code is a surefire path to becoming an innovative, independent thinker.

At best, it’s a path to a stable job, at worst, to the assembly lines of the future. The skills that change lives are those that children develop through creative, exploratory play. When we cultivate play, we open the door for children to become…