What Is A Child Theme In WordPress?

If you are building a website on WordPress, you’ve probably heard of “Child Theme.” What is a WordPress Child Theme, and does your website need it?

According to the WordPress Codex, a child theme inherits the function and style of the main theme — also known as a parent. The use of a child theme is recommended if you want to modify a theme without altering its design and code.

With a child theme, web developers and designers can open their doors to the opportunity of building some designs. But, in the end, they will still get the functionality they enjoy from the parent theme.

Uses Of A Child Theme

Child themes allow creativity and individuality in terms of design while still leaving the core files untouched. As a result, the parent theme will not be updated and possibly bring errors to its functions.

You would appreciate a child theme if you want to:

• Use custom CSS and JavaScript
• Add or edit PHP functions in the functions.php file

Ways To Create A Child Theme

1. If you want to make a child theme, you should create a folder in the themes directory.
2. Create a style.css file and place it inside the folder.
3. Then, inside the folder, specify the parent theme by adding a template line into the comment code where you can find the theme name.
4. Since this style sheet is noted after the parent style sheet, this note will override the parent theme styles noted in the earlier style.css file.
5. Finally, activate the theme to apply the modifications.

Using a child theme for your WordPress website is a quick and efficient way to customize it. Plus, it’s a good way to speed up development and add uniqueness and individuality to your website. Learn more by reading this guide on how to build a WordPress website.