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Learning
Anyone who considers himself/herself a beginner, or does not know/is learning their first programming language, we strongly suggest you start with Ruby. Those who are more advanced in the computer science industry (has made a project or two on their own, comfortable with at least one programming language) should join our JavaScript team.
It will take Ruby Interns a bit more time to learn their language (and programming in general) than the JavaScript interns. However, it is a small step from Ruby to Rails, and you will find yourself working on the Rails codebase in no time. However, this is not the case for JavaScript interns. So Ruby interns, hang in there!
The book linked below does an amazing job of teaching you the three most essential skills that a beginning programmer needs to know: reading and writing, attention to detail, and spotting differences. Moreover, Ruby is a great programming language for beginners.
Read through the online PDF at your own pace (though we recommend one hour a day). And by read through, we mean do all fifty-two exercises. This seems crazy at first. However, here are some reasons why you should seriously consider doing this:
- Just start slow! Do an exercise or two a day. You will begin to realize that the exercises are not actually that long. If you are a fan of computer science, you will basically lose track of time in this learning experience. Most people finish the PDF in a week and a half.
- This book is not useful only for learning Ruby. It will help you become a good programmer and problem-solver overall, and will propel you in front of your peers in StuyCS.
- You do not have to finish the PDF by the time we get you in development; we understand that different people learn at different rates. We just want to see you put in the effort and grow as problem-solvers.
We recommend using freeCodeCamp to learn JavaScript (later turning into React, Facebook's JS framework). freeCodeCamp has amazing articles and tutorials, and their JavaScript course is one of the best. However, you can take any path you want.
- Make an account at freeCodeCamp.
- Go to Map in the top navigation bar, and find the "Basic JavaScript" course.
- On you go! Just start slow! Do an exercise or two a day. You will begin to realize that the exercises are not actually that long. If you are a fan of computer science, you will basically lose track of time in this learning experience.