Dr. Thrun recognized the power of technology to deliver his course content to over 160,000 students who signed up for his online artificial intelligence course at Stanford University. Dissatisfied with traditional lecture techniques at most higher education institutions, Dr. Thrun started Udacity. Learn more about Udacity or enroll in an upcoming course. Homeschoolers, the Introduction [...]
Archive for the ‘Computer Programming’ Category
Ex-Stanford Professor Starts His Own Low-Cost Online University
Posted by ginac on January 24th, 2012
CodeAcademy- Anyone Can Learn Computer Programming
Posted by ginac on January 14th, 2012
CodeAcademy is a new, free, online learning platform specifically for learning computer programming. It is so easy to get started with CodeAcademy, you might not realize that you’re learning as you begin using the site. The best asset CodeAcademy possesses is its ease of use. I challenge you to sit your 9 year-old down in [...]
Posted in Computer Programming, Online Tools 
Tags: codeAcademy, Computer Programming, Javascript, Online Learning, web programming 
Comments OffQuantum Camp Teaches Advanced Calculus and Physics to Homeschoolers
Posted by ginac on November 4th, 2011
An ambitious summer camp and tech school for homeschoolers in Mountain View, California, is fast becoming a full-fledged mainstream school. At Quantum Camp, youngsters dive into advanced physics, math, and technology. The founders, of course, are physics and math experts. Ryan Nurmela taught entry-level physics as a lecturer at California State University, San Francisco and [...]
Stanford University Offering Three Free Engineering Courses
Posted by ginac on September 2nd, 2011
Stanford University is going beyond open courseware by offering open registration to anyone interested in taking, one, two, or all three of its free engineering courses this fall. Those who register can take quizzes, do homework, and ask questions of each other. Learn more
Posted in Computer Programming, Crowdsource, Learning Methods Tags: Computer Science, Engineering, google, Online Learning, Open Courseware, Open Learning, Stanford University Comments OffGoogle Breadcrumb
Posted by ginac on June 13th, 2011
Google Breadcrumb is an interesting Google Labs application designed specifically for mobile devices. The best things about Google Breadcrumb is that it is free, easy, and a powerful tool for kids. Check out our article on GeekMom to get the inside scoop on Google Breadcrumb.
Posted in Computer Programming, Eclectic Homeschooling, Online Tools Tags: Breadcrumb, google, Google Labs, mobile, programming, wireless Comments OffMoonBots 2.0: A Google Lunar X PRIZE LEGO® MINDSTORMS® Challenge
Posted by ginac on May 18th, 2011
What a cool summer challenge! Google has partnered with FIRST robotics and Wired magazine to create an X Prize challenge especially for kids. Teams of young people ages nine through seventeen can register for this cool challenge. Teams of between three to six people, including one adult mentor, design a Lego Mindstorms robot to explore the moon. [...]
Posted in Computer Programming, Contests, Electronics, LEGOs, Science, technology Tags: FIRST Robotics Competition, GeekMom, google, LEGO, LEGO Mindstorm, LEGO Mindstorm NXT, Moon, Robotics, Wired (magazine), X Prize Foundation, Youth Comments OffHowtoons: Geeky Comics Show Kids How to Make Stuff from Household Items
Posted by ginac on February 26th, 2011
Howtoons is a comic-based website full of rich comic strips containing ingenious instructions on how to make things using basic science and engineering principles. Aimed at 8 to 12-year olds, Howtoons uses rich, colorful animation and a fun story to engage children’s natural interest in humor, comic strips, and having fun. Our youngster gravitated to the marshmallow [...]
Posted in Activities, Art, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Programming, Eclectic Homeschooling, Ecology, Environmental Conservation, Interdisciplinary, Make, Music, Physics, Science Tags: Arts, comic, Comic strip, Howtoons, Online 2 Comments »Kids Learning Blender: Super3Boy’s Online Tutorials
Posted by ginac on October 2nd, 2010
We love to watch the Pixar movie shorts that usually precede a Pixar movie. Well, with Blender, a free, open source 3D animation tool, kids can learn to create their own 3D animated short films. Although Blender definitely isn’t kiddie software, Super3boy’s online tutorials really help. Our young homeschooler isn’t the least bit intimidated by [...]
Posted in Art, Computer Programming, Games, technology Tags: 3D, Blender, Blender Foundation, Open source, Rendering and Modelling, YouTube 1 Comment »GeekDad Book Projects are Really Fun!
Posted by ginac on September 20th, 2010
We just completed our first project from our new GeekDad book (Thanks MAKE! Magazine), and we can’t wait to start on the next one! We chose the Make Your Own Cartoons project because we already had everything we needed to get started. Our young homeschooler loved animating his favorite riddle, and chose LEGO knights as [...]
Posted in Computer Programming, Electronics, Games, Just for Fun, LEGOs, Make, technology Tags: Children, Comic strip, GeekDad, Ken Denmead, LEGO, Wired News, Wired.com Comments OffXLogo: Free Computer Programming Tool for Little Kids
Posted by ginac on May 31st, 2008
XLogo is a very simple drawing program that lets young kids easily learn the concepts of computer programming. XLogo uses a subset of the LOGO programming language and only uses about 42 commands. Kids write simple programs to draw on the screen using commands like newturtle, showturtle and hideturtle. Yes, turtles are what you ‘control’ [...]
Posted in Computer Programming, Eclectic Homeschooling Tags: Computer Programming, homeschool, XLogo 6 Comments »
