CHILDHOOD 2.O!
It’s a head-startup program! Neurotic New York parents are insisting that tots as young as 2 learn the basics of coding — the instructions used to create Web sites, software and apps. They’re snapping up tech-teaching toys and paying hundreds of dollars for computer-programming classes for the pre-K set.
“I want to give my daughters every possible advantage,” says Illona Bobritsky, 39, a Brighton Beach mom who recently purchased a Fisher-Price Code-a-Pillar for her two girls, ages 4 and 6. Children rearrange the segments of the caterpillarshaped toy, which was released in June and retails for $39.99, to send it moving in different directions and cause it to light up and loudly beep and buzz. It’s being heralded as one of the It gifts for Christmas and is ranked No. 2 on the Toys ‘R’ Us Holiday Hot list.
“I bought the toy as soon as I saw a commercial for it,” says Nicole Heinen, 25, a Jersey City, NJ, mom who recently purchased the gizmo and several other similar toys for her 4-year-old son. “It’s all about STEM-basedd skills. That’s where the jobs are. It’s never too early to start.”
Other parents are signingng up their tiny tots for programming classes or hiring private tutors.
Flavia Naslausky, the co-o-owner of Zaniac academic-enrichment chment centers in Connecticut andd on the Upper East Side, has noticediced an explosion of 4-year-olds enrolling nrolling in programming classes, which cost between $299 and $599 for six classes. “It’s fun [for them],” she says. “They’re already comfortable with using an iPad, so with this, it’s a natural progression.”
Expertsp sayy learning g JavaScript alongside ABCs can help toddlers well before the launching their first iPhone app. “Private-school admissions are cutthroat, and to be honest, 3- and 4-year-olds don’t have a ton that makes them stand out from other 3- and 4-year-olds,” says Kat Cohen, Ph.D., founder and CEO of IvyWise, an admis- sions-counseling service on the Upper East Side. “Knowing the fundamentals of coding as a 3year-old could give your kid an extra boost.”
Bobritsky, who works in medical administration, feels not knowing enough about computerers has hurt her career and dodoesn’t want the same for her girgirls. “I would talk with programmers all the time and have no idea what they were saying,” she says. “So if putting parts oof a caterpillar together will hehelp my daughters get ahead, ththen I’m all for it.”
BBut one thing she’s not for is the toytoy’s loud noises, something revieviewers have also complained about. If only there were a volume switch, or an option for her daughters to program it to shut up.
“The music,” she says, “is driving me insane.”