Break it down!
If you got a problem let's break it down!
Got so many problems just break it down!
Got a brand new challenge come on break it down!
Lift your hands up and face the crowd!
A big problem is big, some might say large And if a problem is big you gotta take charge
You might think ‘How we gonna get this done’?
Well just break the big problems into smaller ones
OK, so when we are coding it’s a good idea to think about bigger problems as a bunch
of smaller problems.
Let’s try and use a real life example to give you an idea of how to do this.
Alright, you got a little brother right?
Ya.
I want you to teach him how to bake a cake.
That’s a pretty big challenge, isn’t it?
Ya.
So first, try and break it down into the main steps.
OK.
Well, first you need stuff.
Like what kind of stuff?
Um, the things that go in the cake.
The ingredients?
Yes, the ingredients!
Like the flour, and the eggs...
OK great.
What else do you need?
Well, the things to make it with, like a bowl, and maybe a mixer.
Let’s call them the tools.
So if you have the ingredients and the tools, what do you do?
Well, you have to mix everything like it says...
Like what says?
The recipe!
Right, you need to follow the recipe steps correctly, using the ingredients and the tools.
Then what?
You need to bake the cake!
Yes!
You need to bake the cake in the oven!
And we will need to know the temperature, and the length of time.
Then what?
We take it out of the oven.
Then?
We can decorate the cake!
Yes!
So this is great.
You took a big problem - baking a cake - and broke it down into four main smaller steps:
Ingredients and tools, mix, bake, then decorate!
Now it seems easier to do!
If you got a problem let's break it down!
Got so many problems just break it down!
Got a brand new challenge come on break it down!
Lift your hands up and face the crowd!
So we’ve broken things down, but guess what?
In each of these steps there are even more things that can be broken down!
Let’s look at the first step - ingredients and tools - and think about what other challenges
could come up.
Oh there won’t be any more challenges, you just get all the ingredients at that’s it.
Oh really?
And where do you get the ingredients from?
That’s easy, from the kitchen.
And where in the kitchen?
Ah… from the cupboards… and also the fridge.
And what if you don’t have all the ingredients?
Oh… well you get them from the store!
And do you have money to pay for them?
Well not really.
And can you go by yourself?
No, I’d have to ask my mom and dad.
That’s right, so you see, all of these challenges - or problems - also have their own little
challenges and problems.
When we are coding we need to try and think about, and then solve all of the little challenges
in order to solve the bigger challenges!
A big problem is big, some might say large And if a problem is big you gotta take charge
You might think ‘How we gonna get this done’?
Well just break the big problems into smaller ones
If you got a problem let's break it down!
Got so many problems just break it down!
Got a brand new challenge come on break it down!
Lift your hands up and face the crowd!
If you got a problem let's break it down!
Got so many problems just break it down!
Got a brand new challenge come on break it down!
Lift your hands up and face the crowd!
That was fun. Can you break down what we are learning next?
Next, we are going to learn about staying positive...
that even though the road to learning new things may be long, that truthfully if you just try,
if you just reach down reach down deep inside of you, that you can do-
Hey, what's for lunch?
Ah... macaroni I think?
Yes!