The pace of change in computing is prodigious and coding is directly related to computing.
Coding is the art of telling a computer how to perform complex tasks. Once you know how to code, you can create virtual worlds within the computer where the only limit on what is possible is your imagination.
And putting this power into the hands of your child from the very beginning is something you would definitely want to do.
Below is a list of few apps and resources for you to understand the need of this skill, how can you help your kids develop interest to acquire the same and a little bit more on what you should know.
Check it out!
Coding Apps for kids
1. Move The Turtle
This is a Gamified way to make your kids learn programming procedures. Each new level of achievement increases in difficulty and teaches a new command that directs the turtle to reach a star, make a sound, draw a line, etc. A free play “compose” mode lets students move the turtle however they want.
Compatible With: iOS
2. Daisy the Dinosaur
Daisy targets the youngest coders. The interface is simple. There is only a dinosaur to move and only basic functions to use, but for your younger kids, this is an excellent introduction to programming.
Compatible With: iOS
3.Cargo-Bot
Cargo-Bot is another game that teaches coding skills. On each level, the objective is to move colored crates from one place to another by programming a claw crane to move left or right, and drop or pick up. A good fit for elementary students.
Compatible With: iOS
4. Alice
A downloadable software that teaches computer programming in a 3D environment. Kids can create animation, games or videos to share on the web.
Compatible With: The Universal zip works on Windows, Mac, and Linux platforms
5. Game Star Mechanic
This web platform based game teaches kids, ages 7-14, to design their own video games. Your kids will love completing different self-paced quests while learning to build game levels. The site integrates critical thinking and problem-solving tasks.
Compatible With: Mac, Windows
6. Kodable Pro
Kodable introduces kids to the kind of logic and the concepts needed in computer programming. The free version includes the first lesson, Smeeborg, which introduces kids to the step-by-step instructions involved in programming, then statements, and loops. It also includes a rich parent section with a written teaching curriculum, the ability to unlock levels for kids, ideas for off-screen games to play to develop logic skills, and clear instructions for enabling “guided access” on the iPad, which is a way for parents to ensure kids stay focused on a single task.
Compatible With: iOS, Android
7. Lightbot Jr.
A simplified version of the popular Lightbot coding puzzle. Kids drag and drop basic commands — such as move, hop, light, and turn — into strings of instructions. Each blocky level challenges kids to string together a program that guides Lightbot through the level and to light up specific tiles. A puzzle game with a taste of coding, this title offers a neat way to let future developers sample what programming might be like.
Compatible With: iOS, Android
8. Code Monkey
CodeMonkey provides practice coding with a real programming language to solve a variety of puzzles. The puzzles are accessible and provide the right guidance at the right time. But parents be prepared to expect kids to get stuck, requiring some encouragement and, depending on their age and ability, some help to get past some of the more challenging levels.
Compatible With: Web platform, Played online.
9. The Foos: Educational App
This includes several increasingly challenging drag-and-drop coding puzzles that introduce kids to the logic of programming using visual blocks of code. No instructions are available in-app, but parents can access a full curriculum explaining the concepts on the codespark website.
Compatible With: Windows, iOS, Android
10. Scratch Jr.
This is one amazing app. Simply by dragging and dropping graphic sprites across the screen; little programmers can bring simple and lightly interactive — scenes to life. For example, drag a cartoon cat onto a beach scene, and drag a small icon into the programming window to add a movement command. Then just add a “start when touched” command and snap a repeat element onto the move icon, and a tap on the cat sends the cartoon skittering across the screen.
Compatible With: iOS, Android
Also Read: Codarica: Fun Coding Games to Teach Children as Young as 6 to Code
Kids Coding Club
1. Code Club
A nationwide network of volunteer-led after school coding clubs for children aged 9-11.
2. CoderDojo
CoderDojo is a global movement of free, volunteer-led, community based programming clubs for young people. At a Dojo, young people, between 7 and 17, learn how to code, develop websites, apps, programs, games and explore technology in an informal and creative environment.
