[GeeTwo]

To learn programming, you can write any sort of code you want - and that's what I suggest - writing something that you want to write. Desire to stick with it and make it work because you want a specific functionality is a far better motivator than "learning" for the vast majority of people.

Robotics is a bit different than most programming people do today due to the level of feedback required. I suggest that you get or build a robot of some type, with a drive system, some sort of manipulator, and some sensors. Programming it to do complex tasks at a single button (or better yet, going to full autonomous) will improve your skill at programming robots more than coding a video game, editor, or a business or math application. Even if you have to do this in a different language, the patterns and skills you learn will carry over to other languages.