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Just like human spoken languages, like English or French or Spanish or Russian or Sign, or Chinese, or… all languages have syntax. Syntax is the specific and expected way that punctuation, upper-case, lower-case, symbols, and the order of the words go. Coding languages have very strict syntax rules!
As humans, we can usually figure out what the other person meant even if they get the syntax wrong. Computers? Not so much!
Example: home should go you or go.you should home Improper syntax, punctuation, spacing, and lets not forget upper vs. lower case letters! Sure, it’s bad, but hey, you get it, right? (correct English Syntax would be: You should go home.)
When working with TEXT based computer languages, every letter, case, symbol and type of punctuation is important. An Uppercase A is not the same as a lowercase a. Even ONE semicolon in the wrong place can make your code useless, or make the computer/device do something totally unexpected.
Computer Programming (or Computer Coding) - Words to know
Algorithm A list of steps to finish a task.
Bug An error in a program that prevents the program from running as expected.
Debugging Finding and fixing problems in an algorithm or program.
Command An instruction for the computer. Many commands put together make up algorithms and computer programs.
Conditionals Statements that only run under certain conditions - there is a question - and different code is run depending on the answer.
Loop The action of running some code over and over again.
Repeat A synonym of loop - to execute some code again.
Variable A placeholder for a piece of information that can change.
F.A.I.L. First Attempt In Learning
If you write out your morning algorithm, or the algorithm for an even simpler task, like brushing your teeth or eating cereal, you may notice important computational concepts like:
Repetition (brush bottom left teeth five times),
Sequencing (put cereal in bowl and then put in milk), &
Conditional logic (IF the bowl is empty, THEN stop eating)
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