How can you program constantly? You run out of ideas, and you still aren't ready to embark on a big project. There has to be some way to get better at programming every day.
And there is.
Program your Algebra homework. Or, if you're out of Algebra, program the lesson's on Khan Academy.
"What?", you ask. "How does programming my Algebra homework help me at all?". "What does it even mean to 'Program your Algebra homework'?".
Well, it's simple. Algebra follows rules. Repetitive rules. And what are computers best at (If you don't know the answer to this question in less than a second, go read some more beginner books.)? Repetition. Procedural programming is focused on repetition. The idea that you can do the same code many times forms the base of Computer Science.
So, to get better, and learn far more about programming (Especially design), program your Algebra homework.
What do I mean? Put what you're learning to solve, or do, or simplify into a program. You'll quickly find yourself with a large library of Algebra programs.
Want an example?
The quadratic formula (and discriminates). Why did I choose this as an example? Because it's very easy, making it a great example. All you need to solve quadratic equations is to plug in a, b, and c (From standard form:)
into the quadratic formula:
Do this every night, and you'll be a better programmer in no time.
(To see the example, download the file below. The code is in C++, however it should be easy to understand for programmers of all languages as it only uses basic conditional / loop statements, variables, and functions.)
Uhm, I'm not sure.
Let's elaborate.
In algebra, people have set the rules. Coherent rules.
In programming, you need to write those rules.
In my experience, it does not really feel like algebra.