If you treat it like alegbra, the average school kid will know about as much programming as they know algebra 1 year after graduating (i.e. nothing). They can

If you treat it like alegbra, the average school kid will know about as much programming as they know algebra 1 year after graduating (i.e. nothing). They can learn all the basics of programming by making a game of their choice (with some guidance to make sure they're not over-scoping it).