我推荐Logo(又名乌龟)来了解基本概念。它提供了一个具有即时图形反馈的良好沙盒，您可以演示循环、变量、函数、条件等等。这个页面提供了一个很好的教程。

在Logo之后，移动到Python或Ruby。我推荐Python，因为它基于ABC，而ABC是为了教授编程而发明的。

在教授编程时，我必须赞同EHaskins关于先简单项目再复杂项目的建议。最好的学习方法是从一个明确的结果和一个可衡量的里程碑开始。它使课程集中，允许学生建立技能，然后在这些技能的基础上继续发展，并给学生一些可以向朋友炫耀的东西。不要低估工作成果的力量。

Theoretically, you can stick with Python, as Python can do almost anything. It's a good vehicle to teach object-oriented programming and (most) algorithms. You can run Python in interactive mode like a command line to get a feel for how it works, or run whole scripts at once. You can run your scripts interpreted on the fly, or compile them into binaries. There are thousands of modules to extend the functionality. You can make a graphical calculator like the one bundled with Windows, or you can make an IRC client, or anything else.

XKCD更好地描述了Python的强大功能:

You can move to C# or Java after that, though they don't offer much that Python doesn't already have. The benefit of these is that they use C-style syntax, which many (dare I say most?) languages use. You don't need to worry about memory management yet, but you can get used to having a bit more freedom and less handholding from the language interpreter. Python enforces whitespace and indenting, which is nice most of the time but not always. C# and Java let you manage your own whitespace while remaining strongly-typed.

From there, the standard is C or C++. The freedom in these languages is almost existential. You are now in charge of your own memory management. There is no garbage collection to help you. This is where you teach the really advanced algorithms (like mergesort and quicksort). This is where you learn why "segmentation fault" is a curse word. This is where you download the source code of the Linux kernel and gaze into the Abyss. Start by writing a circular buffer and a stack for string manipulation. Then work your way up.

There have already been a bunch of great answers, but for an absolute beginner, I would wholeheartedly recommend Hackety Hack. It was created by the unreasonably prolific why_the_lucky_stiff specifically to provide a BASIC/LOGO/Pascal-like environment for new programmers to experiment in. It's essentially a slick Ruby IDE with some great libraries (flash video, IM, web server) and interactive lessons. It makes a good pitch for programming, as it chose lessons that do fun, useful things. "Hello, world" may not impress right off the bat, but creating a custom IM client in 20 minutes can inspire someone to keep learning. Have fun!

这可能看起来很奇怪，但我在以前的工作中通过自动化任务和数据分析开始编写代码。这是通过记录和研究Excel宏生成的代码来完成的。当然，这种方法假设您可以通过VB学习。

从Python中的Turtle图形开始。

我会使用Python标准自带的海龟图形。它是可视化的，简单的，你可以使用这个环境来引入许多编程概念，比如迭代和过程调用，然后再深入语法。考虑下面的python交互会话:

>>> from turtle import *
>>> setup()
>>> title("turtle test")
>>> clear()
>>>
>>> #DRAW A SQUARE
>>> down()        #pen down
>>> forward(50)   #move forward 50 units
>>> right(90)     #turn right 90 degrees
>>> forward(50)
>>> right(90)
>>> forward(50)
>>> right(90)
>>> forward(50)
>>>
>>> #INTRODUCE ITERATION TO SIMPLIFY SQUARE CODE
>>> clear()
>>> for i in range(4):
        forward(50)
        right(90)
>>>
>>> #INTRODUCE PROCEDURES   
>>> def square(length):
        down()
        for i in range(4):
            forward(length)
            right(90)
>>>
>>> #HAVE STUDENTS PREDICT WHAT THIS WILL DRAW
>>> for i in range(50):
        up()
        left(90)
        forward(25)
        square(i)
>>>
>>> #NOW HAVE THE STUDENTS WRITE CODE TO DRAW
>>> #A SQUARE 'TUNNEL' (I.E. CONCENTRIC SQUARES
>>> #GETTING SMALLER AND SMALLER).
>>>
>>> #AFTER THAT, MAKE THE TUNNEL ROTATE BY HAVING
>>> #EACH SUCCESSIVE SQUARE TILTED

在尝试完成最后两个任务时，他们会有很多失败的尝试，但这些失败在视觉上很有趣，他们会很快学会，因为他们试图弄清楚为什么没有画出他们期望的样子。

书籍:面向孩子、父母和祖父母的Java编程(PDF)

我没有使用那本书学习的个人经验，但它看起来很不错，因为它很快就能产生一些可见的东西，而且没有在语法细节上花费太多时间。有人试过用那本书吗?

我认为Python是个好主意。我会给他一些基本的任务让他自己去做，并告诉他，他遇到的任何死胡同都可以通过谷歌来解决。至少对我来说，自己解决问题总比别人告诉我解决方案更好。

一些可能的项目(排名不分先后):

Coin flip simulator. Let the user input a desired number of trials for the coin flipping. Execute it and display the results along with the percentage for heads or tails. Make a temperature converter with a menu that takes user input to choose which kind of conversion the user wants to do. After choosing the conversion and doing it, it should return to the main menu. Here's an example of an extended converter with the same idea: http://pastebin.org/6541 Make a program that takes a numeric input and displays the letter grade it would translate to. It'll end up evaluating the input against if and elif statements to find where it fits. Make a simple quiz that goes through several multiple choice or fill in the blank questions. At the end it will display how the user did. He can pick any questions he wants. Take an input of some (presumably large) number of pennies and convert it into bigger denominations. For example, 149 pennies = 1 dollar, 1 quarter, 2 dimes, and 4 pennies. Create a simple list manager. Be able to add/delete lists and add/delete entries in those lists. Here's an example of a christmas list manager: http://pastebin.org/6543 Create a program that will build and then test whether entered numbers form a magic square (with a 2D array). Here's some sample code, but it should really print out the square at each step in order to show where the user is in terms of buliding the square: http://pastebin.org/6544

我还建议用xTurtle或其他图形模块做一些事情，把事情混合起来，让他不会感到无聊。当然，这是非常多的实践编程，而不是很多人真正使用python的脚本，但我给出的例子几乎直接取自我通过python学习的时候，它对我来说非常有用。好运！