Coding Super Power List
Free apps & sites that teach your kids programming.
Coding sites for kids are great because they use “code blocks” to get started. So kids don’t need to use complicated words like in the Matrix just yet—they’re snapping code blocks together like virtual Legos. Baby steps! Then, you start editing the numbers: size, length, repetition… Then, you start writing them on your own. Easy as ABC 😚
Code.org
Great to get started. Made by a nonprofit foundation backed with ambassadors like Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai, with amazing partnerships with Disney. I mean—remember when you were 6 years old and gaga about Disney? Well, at least the princesses today are teaching you to code. “If you can code, you can change the world.”
Tynker
Personally my favorite. Same principle as Code.org using code blocks, but what I like is that they break down the classes by age category so it makes it easier for the grownups to navigate. Also, I love their selection, their visual style, and their attention to design details. Intro courses here are free, but you need to pay for some other categories. Just get all the free stuff first and see!
Iphone & Ipad: Hopscotch
No setup. No typing. No syntax. Just drag blocks and instantly play what you’ve made. You can make your own mini-games, beautiful drawings, space adventures, minecraft remakes… Check it out!
Code Monster
Super simple and immediate way to understand what code does. Code Monster shows 2 boxes: one in which you edit the code, the other in which you see the code happen.
Ipad: Daisy the Dinosaur
Make Daisy the Dinosaur jump, roll and turn as you wish by programming her actions in this simple code block app.
iPad: Light Bot
Lightbot is a programming puzzle where you guide a robot to light up tiles and solve levels using commands. It cultivates a good understanding of procedures, loops, and conditionals. “Educators around the world are choosing to use Lightbot first when introducing their students to programming, coding and Computer Science.” Ages 4–8 / 9 and older.
Scratch
Ages 8 to 16. Scratch is designed by MIT students and gives kids more flexibility to build what they want. Same principle with code blocks that you snap together. It’s also a vibrant online community of programmers who swap ideas and inspiration.
Ipad: Kodable
Kodable is an Award-winning coding curriculum that teaches computer science to elementary students grades K-5 (Ages 4–11).
For older kids…or even grownups 😚
Check out Tech Rocket, Code Avengers, CodeCademy, Stencyl and Khan Academy!
