Have a growth mindset
Programming is hard.
Like learning a musical instrument or a foreign language, programming takes practice and it takes TIME before you become comfortable with it. Success begins with believing that you can! This is known as having a "growth mindset".
Look at the negative statements below on the dark background. Have a positive mindset instead.
I can't do this.
I am still learning. I will keep trying.
I don't know where to start.
I can identify what has to happen first.
My code doesn't work.
This is a challenge and a chance to learn something new.
This is too hard.
With more practice it will get easier.
I give up.
I will try a different way.
I don't know how.
I can learn how.
I am not good at this.
I can identify something I need to learn more about.
Everyone else is better at it than me.
Someone else could help me.
Being stuck is a good place to be because that is when we learn. Every programmer, even the most experienced get stuck on a problem that they can't solve immediately. The secret is to keep working at it.
- Start by working out what the first thing is that you want to do.
- Look at the list of commands you have learned up to this point.
- Identify which one is most likely to achieve what you want.
- Attempt the command and see if it works.
- Read the error messages carefully, don't just dismiss them. The problem is likely to be near the line identified.
- Keep repeating this until you solve the problem one small step at a time.
- Ask someone to look at your code to see if your approach could be improved.
