Young childrens can begin to learn the principles of coding, without even touching a computer. Coding game provide opportunity for childrens, to learn the basic principles behind coding, and to develop the logical thinking sequences, that are helpful once they begin to learn to code on a computer.
Coding teaches kids that finding a solution, to a problem often involves a logical sequence of steps or actions. It helps to develop problem solving skills, such as perseverance, trial and error, and understanding of cause and effect, analytical thinking, and reasoning skills, as well as math and language skills. It also challenges children to think creatively, and to pursue innovative ideas and solutions.
At the end of the day, kids think "coding is fun and I love that" it really works their brains!
Nowadays there are many free websites, where kids can learn how to code. The list below highlights ten of the best free sites, offering online coding games for kids.
1. Grasshopper.
This app available in ios and android, created by Google, teaches JavaScript through mini-games, and offers two courses: one for brand new coders, and another for more advanced coders. For beginners, the app will take you through a set of slides, explaining the basics of coding followed by a short quiz, to review and improve understanding.
It rewards participants with awards and certificates, for completing each course.
2. Scratch (Recommended for Ages 8 to 16)
Scratch is the platform we can use for our elementary school coding program, so we obviously love it. It’s a free block coding website for kids, developed by the MIT Media Lab.
In addition, Scratch has a large online community, where children can program and share interactive media such as stories, games, and animation with people from all over the world. The Scratch platform is designed especially for kids ages 8 to 16. We use Scratch in our coding curriculum, because it’s the perfect way for younger kids, to develop their problem-solving, communication, and reasoning skills. It doesn’t teach any real coding language, but it’s a stepping stone to computer programming and coding languages.
3. Scratchjr (Recommended for Ages 5 to 7)
Scratch Jr is an introductory programming language, that enables young children (ages 5-7), to create their own interactive stories and games.
They learn how to create and express themselves with the computer, not just to interact with it. In the process, children learn to solve problems and design projects, and they develop sequencing skills, that are foundational for later academic success. They also use math and language, in a meaningful and motivating context, supporting the development of, early-childhood numeracy and literacy. With ScratchJr, children aren't just learning to code, they are coding to learn.
4. Code.org (Recommended for Ages 4 to 15)
Code.org is now one of the most popular site, that offers free coding for kids. Known for its comprehensive search engine, through which you can find relevant local courses across the globe. These are suitable for children of all ages, and include game-like interactive lessons, and even exclusive videos brought to you by "Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg".
Apart from making it easy for kids, to get a grip on the basics, this site also has a lot of content, that’s perfectly suited for students, who are interested in acquiring, more advanced computer science and programming skills.
If your kid is interested in learning coding, Code.org has a great series of courses, that teach 6-year-old the basics of computer science. Each course is made up of a number of puzzles, videos, and activities. At the end of each course, your kid will be able to build games and interactive stories. The site even has resources dedicated to, helping youngsters learn how to program using robots (e.g. LEGO Mindstorm).
5. Tynker. (Recommended for Ages 5 to 17)
With thousands of learning modules, Tynker allows kids to start at the most appropriate level for their experience and age. From voice instructions, and drag-and-drop coding, to real-world programming with languages such as, JavaScript and Python.
Tynker can be an aid to anyone seeking to start their coding journey. The website is free to use, but there is also a subscription, if your kid wants to take their expertise to the next level.
6. App Inventor (Recommended for Ages 12+)
App Inventor is a visual, blocks language for building Android Apps. Their coding website for kids features, video tutorials and courses in a box.
Originally created by Google, App Inventor makes it possible to program Android apps, just by moving objects around the screen. This approach is similar to block-based programming. The course begins with setting up App Inventor, and moves through building progressively more complex Android apps. Students learn how to build mobile apps, and share them using App Inventor. It’s educational, easy, and fun.
MIT now hosts App Inventor online, so, lucky for us, it available for free. The tutorials have been refined for use by teachers, and gathered into a Course-in-a-Box that includes, video and text-based lessons. Instead of keeping your kids off the phone, App Inventor will help kids go inside the phone.
7. Khan Academy (Recommended for Ages 10+)
Khan Academy is an extremely popular education website and app, that allows users to learn almost anything for free. It has a giant library of more than 3000 educational videos, that cover topics from math, biology, chemistry, physics, finance and history, to computer science and engineering.
The website promotes hands-on knowledge on JavaScript, HTML/CSS and SQL with a great number of lessons and exercises. The videos are usually short and to the point. They are generally helpful and full of practical tips, that will get students from point A to point B.
To use Khan Academy, you don’t even need an account. Academy is available to everyone in the world, with a decent Internet connection.
8. Blockly (Recommended for Ages 8+)
Another great and free resource that will give access, to fun coding games for kids is the website Blockly. As can probably be assumed, the website approaches programming lessons, by teaching it through a series of puzzles and blocks.
Blockly is made up of a series of games, geared towards teaching programming. These educational games are mostly designed for kids, without prior experience in the world of computer programming.
The goal is for kids to solve fun and tricky puzzles, through a drag-and-drop function in order to create a story to solve a problem.
By the end of the games, students will be prepared and ready, to use conventional text-based languages in future coding endeavors.
9. LightBot (Recommended for Ages 4 to 9+)
Using fun and visually engaging puzzles, kids can get a chance to practice sequencing, conditionals, recursive loops, and more. By issuing commands to navigate a robot through various stages, and solving challenges, kids can learn to code in a kid-friendly environment.
It’s played by millions of kids worldwide, and is even used in many classrooms by teachers, who have discovered it, so it’s definitely worth checking out and becoming a part of the community!
10. GameBlox (Recommended for Ages 13+)
A great (and free) resource for older students that is still block-based, like Scratch is GameBlox, a site geared towards creating computer games.
Ultimately, GameBlox is a game editor that gives, anyone the opportunity to make games. It is free and doesn’t require a download, it allows you to make games that you can play, both on the site and on your mobile device.
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