Break it Down is a fun and funky song about breaking down problems into smaller pieces! Breaking down programming problems is a huge part of learning how to code. In this video, we use the example of baking a cake to show how to think about a big challenge as a series of smaller challenges.
Lyrics
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 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 & tools
Mix
Bake
Then decorate!
Now it seems a little 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 one 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!