Kim Arrington Johnson in Education

Coding for Kids: Free Websites and Apps That Teach Programming

I saw this Mark Zuckerberg poster in our children’s school one day, and thought…these words are so true. The world is changing rapidly, and it is difficult for the curriculum in our schools (and even for us parents) to keep up.

So, here’s a short film to get inspired about our kids learning a superpower that still isn’t robustly taught in schools today. Even if your child may not specifically desire a career in computer science, the future of most careers will be tied to the digital world. So enjoy! The film is from Code.org, starring Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, will.i.am, Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, and others.

Why teach coding for kids?

The need for some things will never change, such as teaching our kids basic life skills and the need for empathy and character development. However, some things have changed, and our children will be greatly advantaged to have an understanding of how to talk to computers.

Coding teaches kids that logical, step by step actions can be used to solve problems. Coding also helps develop a multitude of skills: critical thinking and reasoning, perseverance through trial and error, math skills, and building blocks needed to learn a new language. You don’t have to be a savant to help introduce your child to the basics of coding.

What is Coding?

Coding is the act of writing instructions for a computer to make it do a task. For a computer to work properly, its program or instructions must be written in a language that the computer can understand. There are different computer languages, such as HTML, JavaScript, and Python, and these languages convert instructions written by people into binary code, or the strings of ones and zeroes that tell computers what to do.

Skip cartoons, start coding.

We also know that our children are already attached to screens for large amounts of time each day. Why not have them creating and learning to code rather than passively watching TV shows or playing video games? The hard part is that it takes constant monitoring, at least it does in our household.

Now, let’s get our kids inspired to learn the basics of programming with these free or low-cost websites and apps. We’ll just cover the major programs to keep things simple.

Visual Block Programs

Drag and drop visual block programming platforms are designed to be fun and easy. These are building block platforms for kids until they graduate to more advanced text-based programs.

Code.org

Code.org is a great starting point for introducing parents, teachers, and student to all kinds of resources for coding. Don’t worry about feeling like a novice here (we all have to start somewhere!) Just explore the website and appreciate this amazing non-profit that is trying to encourage all students, including diverse populations, to learn computer science. Hour of Code activities for pre-readers to grades 9+ can can keep your child programming for more than just an hour. Courses are also offered from Code.org and other third parties.

Scratch and Scratch Jr.

Developed by the MIT Media Lab, Scratch (ages 8-16) and Scratch Jr. (ages 5-7) are block-based programming languages for children. With Scratch’s visual programming language and online community, your kids can create their own interactive programs, storylines, games, and animations and share them with others around the world. The Scratch FAQs should answer many questions that you might have and the Scratch video tutorials are also helpful.

Tynker

Tynker is also a programming platform designed to be simple enough for kids to learn quickly. Instead of typing in the source code, kids can visually drag and drop blocks of code to create games and programs. Tynker also incorporates Minecraft, a kid favorite, into its coursework and introduces Python and Java coding to students. Cost-free options with Tynker are limited, but they do offer sales on their individual and family plans (offered quarterly = $20/month, or annually = $10/month, or lifetime membership = $240.)

Text-Based Coding Programs

These programs are for older students and adults who would like to go from non-technicals to coders.

Codeacademy states on their website that “if you know how to read then you can learn to code.” Just tell them what you are interested in learning— development (HTML/CSS, Javascript), programming and computer science (Python, CMD LINE), or data science (Python. SQL)—and they will introduce a curriculum of online tutorials.

Known for their challenging math games and programs, the Kahn Academy non-profit also offers computer programming courses for free.

Code Avengers is a subscription-based coding program that gets pretty good reviews. This award-winning program is designed to teach coding to absolute beginners, which makes it great for kids, and it also progresses to more challenging coursework for more advanced students.