Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Age or Ability Specific Forums 8 year old computer programmer

Hello all!

I'm new here, so if I posted this in the wrong area.. please forgive. ^_^

My Son was diagnosed with Moderate Autism at 33 months of age. I was told not to expect him to talk and never even go to high school, but he talks VERY well and was a breeze to teach to read (picked up on it quickly).

I homeschool both of my children and I'm running into a MAJOR problem with my son...

He can program. I've extended myself to my fullest financial/imaginative capabilities for computer stuff... and I'm just at the point where I just can not give him anymore! We need help!

He is able to program in C, C++, Make Flash programs, he has mastered AutoCad, Visual Basics, Alice (CS teaching program by Rausch?), is starting to program ASP, recently started PHP webpages and HTML.

He enjoys developing blueprints for houses, making his own cursor designs, and making games on flash. He even made me a card game called Sotto.

THIS KID IS BEYOND ME!!!!!!

I am helpless when he asks me questions... my mother told me to look into a nearby University that would take him under a wing and develop this computer brain.

If anyone could direct me on what to do and where to go.. I would MUCH appreciate it!

Cricket

How well would he do in a classroom setting? That would be a possibility, but you'd want him to go to a relatively advanced class. I'd recommend a nearby University. Another possibility would be to do a distance learning class. If he's interested is computers--and this is a very broad field--then there are a few different types of classes that might interest him.

For example, if he's interesting in how things work, he might like more of the Computer Engineering side. An Electronics class might be interesting.

On the software side, he's probably ready to learn more about the theory of development (Object-Oriented programming, etc). Or possibly more on the client/server (including web development) side of things.

On the "fun" side of things, there are a LOT of toolkits out there that allow people to build their own games in pseudo programming languages. This is one of the areas that Rausch was involved with (Alice) but there are others.

I could give you recommendations on things that he might like to learn, but I'm probably not very helpful on where to go I'm afraid. From what I read, really advanced GT kids benefit from a mentor approach. Others on the group can chime in to help you get started there.

Good luck.

JB

Thank you so much! You definitely brought up some points I didn't think about.

Cricket

You might find something here:

http://www.cty.jhu.edu/cde/courses.html

But they're not getting into the OOP theory which is sounds like your son is ready for. But these are the building blocks...

JB

Great!!!!!! ^_^ Thank you! When my mother mentioned college.. for some reason I thought she meant finding someone to work with him. I didn't think about the idea of putting him into a computer course. I think he could do it.. when it comes to computers, his attention span is LOOOOONG!

Cricket

Stanford also has online computer courses: http://epgy.stanford.edu/courses/cs/ If he's beyond these, they might let him take some of their more advanced computer courses.

Heh. What fun!!! I taught myself at age 12. It was right on the cusp of being able to buy your own PCs - Apple II, TRS-80, Vic 20s!!! I got my first programming job when I was 16 working with Fortran. Learning how to program set me free.

Just because he can program, it does not mean he has a good grounding in the fundamentals and knows the language or the subject in great depth. An autodidact will teach themselves what they want to know in order to be able to do what they want to do. This will leave great gaps in his knowledge.


For this reason, I would propose a dual-track. The first track is to get his basic knowledge in SCIENCE up to speed so he can take electronics/microprocessor classes so he can learn how to build his own processing machines and then lay the microcode and compiler on top of them - this is the carrot. He will need to run through some basic college physics to get there. This will require some HS math through calculus. I would talk to an educator on how to get him going. ( The top programmers today work in encryption and signals processing and these require A LOT of math.)

The second track is to widen and deepen his knowledge of programming by taking classes in various programming languages and operating systems.

The Stanford link looks good. I would also check your local community college.

He should also learn LISP. You can buy educational versions of this along with books on it.

He should also take some classes in databases - Oracle and then sqlserver - most community colleges offer classes in them. He might be able to earn a certification in both systems.


As for operating systems - the easiest way is for him to work with Linux. He should know his way around a Linux box - how to install, configure, patch, build, GNU compilers, etc. If you have not set him up with a Linux box, then get a cheap PC for him to play with. He can access howtos online or you can buy some manuals for him.

He can also learn about the Linux kernel. These two books will be a bit of a stretch for him, but if he is as focused as you say, he will devour them.


http://www.amazon.com/Linux-Core-Ke...mp;s=music&qid=1218555951&sr=8-3

http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Linux-Kernel-Third-Daniel/dp/0596005652/ref=pd_bxgy_m_text_b

I got a copy of this when I was 12 and stayed up all night reading it. The Linux book is more accessible for him - but if he loves it, then you can get this for him when he is older.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lions'_Commentary_on_UNIX_6th_Edition,_with_Source_Code

The next thing is to find a linux discussion group or computer users group that meets near you and take him to it. He will meet like minded adults and kids there and he will find resources he can call for help.

The big thing here is that he must not break into other peoples' computer systems. It used to be innocent fun, but now people frown on it. <Sigh.>

Once again, he MUST get a solid grounding in the fundamentals or his knowledge will be asymmetric.

The other thing I want to add is that there are tons of things he can do as well. A lot of things today have embedded systems in them and a call to the manufacturer or poking around on the web can get you access to the embedded system and you can reprogram them. Just giving him the hint that there is a computer in just about everything will send him off on a tangent.

I would also let him take some classes in basic electronics at the CC as well. Soldering something together is great fun!

WOW! Thank you Austin! I have absolutely no clue about the programming world, so your direction is VERY helpful!

Do I have to find a specific community college that will take him as an 8 year old, or do they all take kids, but need specific records? As a homeschooling mom, I do not know what kinds of records will be needed to enroll him. I guess the CC will be able to tell me... I'll contact them tomorrow.

My son almost has his portfolio put together of all of his work, if they need that.

Thanks all!

Cricket

Good luck Cricket, let us know how it goes. I hope they can accomodate him.