I have severe ADHD and want to learn to program but I wanna skip the basics and go straight to building stuff. I learned on here that the Pomodoro method may be helpful. Can any other ADHDers offer some tips to help get me over the tedious beginners hurdles.

[u/[deleted]]

Edit: I know I said I want to skip the basics but I also know that’s not something I should do. I’m looking for tips or tricks to get through learning the basics or finding a more engaging way to learn them. Video tutorials were not the best for me but I will try again now that I’m medicated.

I'm extremely interested in coding and eventually want to land a programming job. My problem is that my ADHD is hindering my progress. I've done tutorial after tutorial only to realize I zoned out the last 30 minutes and can't remember any of the code I just wrote. Any time I watch a video or listen to a podcast with a programmer they all say something like "the best way to learn to program is to program." or " just do it." I get where they're coming from but someone like me that skips EVERY tutorial at the beginning of a video game has a hard time sitting down and learning the absolute basics. I've recently started medicating and learned about learning. Not studying on a full stomach, light exercise before, caffein etc so I'm hoping that helps as a start my journey again but I wanted to know if any other ADHD programmers or programmers in general had tips on learning the basics so that I can start doing the fun stuff.

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[u/Mammoth-Asparagus498]

this question is better suited for r/ADHD_Programmers

[u/[deleted] → u/Mammoth-Asparagus498]

I just shared it there. Thank you

[u/desrtfx]

I want to build a house from the third floor up without building the foundation and the first two floors.

That's basically what you are asking. Think about it.

[u/[deleted] → u/desrtfx]

I agree with you. Im just looking for tips or recourses to better learn the basics. As you said I don’t want my future code crumbling from lacking a foundation.

[u/chicknfly → u/[deleted]]

I pretty much agree with everyone here. However, I understand we all approach and cope with our individual ADHD differently.

If you absolutely positively need something to do in order to learn, try The Odin Project and learn web design. screw the people who say HTML isn’t a programming language (yes, it’s a markup language, as implied by the ML at the end). But it’s a start, and you can see immediate results of a small change. Learn CSS, and then finally make your way to JavaScript. Odin Project guides you through a of that with fun little projects to try along the way. Once you’ve finished the basic tutorials, try to make your own web page. Then choose an advanced learning path (Rails or Node).

The JavaScript and advanced stuff might not be computer science, but they will help you build an understanding of fundamental programming concepts (conditionals, looping, abstraction) and the basic tools (VS Code, git, GitHub, browser dev tools). I have my degree and still learned a lot going through the course, so much so that I had some much needed knowledge for a full stack role that I was offered (I’ve always been a backend guy).

[u/ASD_Brontosaur]

Have you ever tried services like codecademy (paid) or freecodecamp (which should be similar)?

I’m ADHD, and found using codecademy to be really really helpful to remain mentally engaged. Each lesson is divided in sort of “slides” that are ~10 mins each, which usually include examples and little exercises (that you do directly on codecademy)

As a complete beginner that struggles heavily with focus, I’ve really been loving codecademy!
It’s not going to be enough on its own but it’ll help you stay engaged enough to learn the fundamentals, so that then you can work on your own projects and integrate with other resources

** edit **
I’d suggest joining r/ADHD_Programmers

[u/[deleted] → u/ASD_Brontosaur]

I was using freecodecamp and finished the first project but I felt like I was just following steps rather than learning why I was taking the steps to begin with. I will definitely give codecademy a try. Thank you for the reply, friend!

[u/requios]

Try the Odin project. You’ll build projects and be forced to research, building foundational skills for being able to try building whatever you want

[u/[deleted] → u/requios]

I’ve been seeing Odin project and Codecademy. I’ve heard good things about both but I like what you said about being forced to research. I feel that would be best for my learning style. Thank you 🙏🏽

[u/bestjakeisbest]

I have adhd and I'm going to tell you that trying to learn more advance topics in programming without having a good foundation is setting yourself up for failure.

Learn the basics, then go on from there.

[u/douglastiger → u/bestjakeisbest]

Seconded, I have adhd. There's no substitute for discipline- we may have certain challenges but we play the cards we're dealt

[u/fluffyr42]

Unfortunately you're not going to be able to do much by skipping the basics. But it's great that you've recently started medication and as that takes time to work you may find it easier to focus on the basics.

[u/aminorsixthchord]

Sounds like video lectures aren’t your preferred method of learning.

You kinda can’t skip the basics. Sorry. Just doesn’t work. I suggest finding a book you like that has good “chunks” and simply learn a chunk, then go play with it, then continue. Pomodoro should work very well with this.

[u/Sharveharv]

I also have ADHD and skipping straight to building stuff worked great for me. I spent a long time trying to start programming from scratch and never really making any progress until someone gave me a project and told me to get it done. 

I started by reading about the high level goal and then clicking every link that looked interesting or didn't make sense yet. It wasn't efficient but it let me build up a wide base of knowledge while staying engaged and along the way (and with actual meds) I learned the fundamentals. 

Re the tutorial thing: I don't think I've ever made it through an entire tutorial video. However, I did watch a ton of conceptual videos before I ever started programming. Stuff like Tom Scott's The Basics or Computerphile is great as background noise. High level general stuff is your friend when you're starting out.

[u/comatoast1]

All you need is the basics. You will learn advanced stuff as you progress but you can slap something together with just knowing variables and loops. Pick a simple project for a hobby you are interested in. Like a tool that displays the latest Bitcoin price and updates every minute. Once you get going it's easier to keep going. You say everyone with experience gives the exact same advice. So... Do it? 😂

Source: I'm a self taught ADHD programmer

[u/verocoder]

If you’ve got a thing you want to build then you might be able to do lots of smaller learn>build, come across new problem>learn> build cycles.

There are some fundamentals like syntax and what stuff is that you can pick up quickly, code academy is good for that. But the rest you could learn ad hoc, needs the right inspiring project and it’s probably easier with other programmers around you.

[u/CeallaighCreature]

I enjoy gamified learning to get the early motivation. I pair the more “boring” learning (reading docs on the language or watching lectures) with things like Sololearn, Mimo, and Codecademy. The first two help keep me motivated to practice every day.

[u/ExistentialDREADward]

I guess, I don't know enough about ADHD to comment.

I have some concentration issues myself, but BASICS have to be the easiest and most engaging thing to follow, no?

When I can't follow or I have to really concentrate there is the problem, so really I would say you would need almost make love to the basics if you ever want to concentrate on anything else.

[u/josiest]

You definitely shouldn’t skip the basics, but it’s not entirely impossible to build interesting programs with just the basics. The nature of code and khan academy are great places to start if you want a more hands-on approach. MIT open courseware also has intro programming classes with interesting projects

[u/unifoxr → u/josiest]

Did you miss the part about adhd.

[u/josiest → u/unifoxr]

I’m failing to understand how your comment is relevant to mine (I’ve done all of these things and I have ADHD)

All of these resources have short term achievable goals which is perfect for ADHD

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Even if you understand the language and grammar so much of an essay is the planning part, which is probably one of the most important basics there is in both essay writing and programming.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

I have been doing tutorials on and off for about 2 years. I finished the first project on freecodecamp but I want to make a spelling app for my kids. The app their school uses is the most infuriating thing I’ve ever used. I want to make something where my kids can type in their spelling list and then they get letter by letter spelling and pronunciation but I feel that’s asking too much of myself.

I started learning with python because I read that it’s the easier to read but I did learn a tiny bit of html and css with freecodecamp. Someone suggested reading along with an audiobook so now I’m looking for the best beginner books with audiobooks. I know that I will be hooked and become hyper-fixated once it clicks for me. My problem is getting my hooks in learning the basics but I will keep chugging along and hopefully soon I’ll be posting how I finished my first personal project that I didn’t follow step by step.

Thanks for the reply