Backed by data from reputable sources, these charts provide great insight into where opportunities lie for our children. Learning to code provides your children with the skills needed to capitalize on these opportunities.

Prepare your child for success: If you are looking for your child to learn to code, explore our live, teacher-led coding classes. View Programs.

1. Computing jobs are the #1 source of new wages in the US

There are an estimated 500,000 current job openings in the computing field today. These jobs are in every industry and in every state. It they are projected to grow at twice the rate of all other jobs.

2. The STEM Opportunity is in computer science

Despite the significant focus on STEM, what is missed out is that 71% of all new STEM jobs are in computing. However, only 8% of STEM graduates are in computing. This mismatch creates significant opportunities for children with computing background.

3. Computer science graduates earn 40% more than other college graduates

It is a lucrative field to be working in. The average lifetime earnings of a computer science graduate is 40% more than other college graduates. The gap between demand and supply continues to increase resulting in increases in wages for people with computing skill.

4. Interest in learning to code peaks in middle school

This is important particularly for girls. During middle school, children are more open to learning new skills, tend to believe computing as cool, and the gender stereotypes haven’t set in that hard. 79% of working professionals got their first serious exposure to coding in middle school.

5. Most parents want their child to learn computer science

More and more parents are seeing the broader trend and want their child to learn computer science. Since most schools don’t offer coding classes for kids, parents are enrolling their children in supplemental coding programs to acquire these skills.

6. 204% increase in students taking high-school computer science courses

There was a 204% increase in the # of students taking AP computer science in high-school. As such, we recommend students take a preparatory AP computer science course that teaches the coding parts of the test. Students are starting to recognize the value of a high-school computer science courses. It leads to a future in 130 career areas and 48 college majors.

7. Computer Science is being integrated into every college major

As computing enters every aspect of model life, college education is also starting to reflect that. Some of the recent advances in many fields are being powered by the integration of computing to those fields. Watch this video to see what your child can expect to see when they get into college.

8. Coding helps bring ideas to life

Many of the big companies that we know today are founded by individuals who knew how to code. When your children know how to code, an idea doesn’t die after a conversation. They build a basic version and see how people react to it. When there is a positive response, they can build on it. Airbnb, Instacart, and Dropbox were all built that way. By giving them the skill of coding, you can give wings to your child’s ideas.

9. Many emerging fields are driven by software

The exciting fields that our children will make their careers in over the next 10-20 years are all driven by software. Knowing how to code gives kids an edge to thrive in these jobs of the future.

Prepare your child for success: If you are looking for your child to learn to code, explore our live, teacher-led coding classes. View Programs.

The post 9 Charts Every Parent Must See appeared first on CodeWizardsHQ.

Valentine’s Day is a time to bring smiles to that special loved one. This year, you can set hearts aflutter with a handmade, hand-coded card. You will save the trees and spread the love.

[Download] Printable Scratch Coding Tutorials Get 2 printable Scratch tutorials, Rocket Landing and Flying Space Cat, to code your own games step by step. Download Now

Follow this easy Scratch coding tutorial to build a Valentine’s Day scratcher that reveals a personalized card.

What is Scratch? Scratch is a 100% free block-based programming language and it’s one of our favorites. Developed by the minds at MIT, the Scratch platform lets you drag and drop code blocks to build fun games and apps. Scratch is a great way to introduce younger students to coding and how to think like a programmer. 

Try our Valentine’s Day Card Scratcher. Scratch off a heart to reveal a very special Valentine’s message.

What you need:

1. Scratch account: Create a free Scratch account 

2. Starter files: Download the images we are using in our game. You can also use your own images to customize your application. Download starter files

No coding experience is necessary for this tutorial. Beginner-friendly for ages 8 and up. Give it a try!

Step 1: Create a new project

Let’s start by creating a new project. 

Visit https://scratch.mit.edu/, login to your account, and click on the “Create” button.

Now, we can code your Valentine’s scratcher! 

Hint: You can also remix this project and others to see the code.

Step 2: Upload game board and card images

A new project will open up and you can see the Scratch interface.

In the starter files, we’ve included images for your game board, Valentine’s cards, and candy hearts.

• Start by deleting the Scratch cat sprite that appears in every new project
• Add all of the background images by clicking “Upload Backdrop”
• In the Backdrops tab, select the “valentines_bg” image

These are the 6 different Valentine’s cards that can show after our user scratches a heart.

Hint: Instead of uploading backdrops, you can draw your own backdrops and add special messages here. 

Recommended: Scratch Coding for Kids

X, Y positioning in Scratch

Before we move on, let’s talk about x and y coordinates. 

Scratch uses x, y coordinates to position sprites on the screen. You might have seen these in math class. 

• x coordinate – a number of pixels along the horizontal axis of a display starting from the pixel (pixel 0) in the center of the screen.  
• y coordinate – a number of pixels along the vertical axis of a display starting from the pixel (pixel 0) in the center of the screen. 

We’ll use these (x, y) coordinates to position our hearts and scratchers. 

Step 3: Position hearts and scratcher sprite

In Scratch, your images are called sprites. 

• Click on each candy heart sprite
• Add the “When Green Flag Clicked” block
• Change the x and y properties of each sprite using the “Go To” block
• Repeat these steps for each candy heart, in the different positions listed

• Click on the scratcher heart and place it on top of the first candy heart using “Go Forward 1 Layers” block. 

Hint: You can put any heart in any position. Change the x, y positions of each heart to match your theme and background.

Step 4: Add a wand to scratch with

Our first scratcher is in position! We just need a way to scratch it. You can use or create any sprite as your scratcher, I’m using a magical wand.

• Click “Choose a Sprite”
• Search for and select the wand
• Visit the “Costumes” tab to rotate the wand 45 degrees
• Position the center of the wand in the center of the artboard
• Go back to the code tab

Hint: Draw your own sprite to use as a scratcher. A claw, an arrow, a coin, you choose!

Step 5: Wave your wand

Next, we want the wand to follow our mouse cursor.

We can use a “Forever” block, which acts like a loop to repeat code. Pairing it with the “Go to mouse pointer” and “go to front layer” block means the wand will show up on the top and follow our mouse forever.

• Click on your “Wand” sprite
• Add a “Forever” block
• Inside the “Forever” block use “Go to Front Layer” and “Go to Mouse-Pointer”

When you click the green flag, you should see your wand following your mouse.

Hint: You can also move your wand with your keyboard using an if-then the “Key Pressed” block.

Step 6: Create the scratched heart effect

Ready for scratching! Let’s create the scratcher effect every time our wand touches the silver scratcher. 

Instead of erasing the actual sprite, we will create a series of costumes that look like our heart is being scratched off.

• Click on your “scratcher1” sprite and go to the “Costumes” tab
• Right click to “Duplicate” the costume 
• On the duplicate costume, select the eraser and partially erase the heart
• Again, duplicate this new costume and repeat erasing until the heart is gone
• Rename the final costume “last”
• Reselect the first costume and return to the code tab

Hint: The more costumes you have, the longer it will take to reveal your card.

Step 7: Add scratcher logic

We’re going to reveal our candy hearts by changing costumes. When the candy heart is fully revealed, we will get to see our final Valentine’s card.

• Click on your “scratcher1” sprite 
• Add a “Forever” loop and inside of it an “If-Then” block
• If the scratcher is touching the wand, wait and change to the next costume

Now, when your wand hovers over the scratcher heart it should begin to disappear. But, it’s not coming back? 

• Add “Switch Costume To” block to show the full heart costume when green flag is clicked.

Hint: Instead of changing the costume when the sprites touch, you could also do it when you click on the heart.

Recommended: How to Make a Game on Scratch

Step 8: Reveal your Valentine’s card

What should happen when we’ve scratched off a heart? We finally get to reveal our sweet Valentine’s message! 

Each scratcher heart should reveal a different card. We will use the “broadcast” block to hide all the blocks and show our card. 

• On our scratcher heart sprite, add another “If-Then” block (inside the first if-then block)
• If the costume name is “last”, wait for 1 second then broadcast a message to hide all sprites
• Then switch the backdrop to the card you want to show (card1)

Your card will show up, but all of your other sprites are still showing up. The other sprites need to receive the “Hide” message and do something with it.  

For each of the other sprites, use the “Hide” block when they receive the message and then stop the script.

Hint: You can easily copy blocks of code from one sprite to another. Just grab the code block and hover over the sprite you want to copy it to.

Step 9: Show the game board when we restart

When we click the green flag, our game restarts. We’ll want to show our game board and hearts again.

• Click on the backdrops and add “When Green Flag clicked” block
• Use the “Switch Backdrop To” block to switch back to your game board image

Hint: You don’t have to stick to just one game board. Add several and switch them when the green flag is clicked.

Step 10: Add more scratcher hearts

You have one scratcher working! 

You can easily duplicate and update scratcher1 to cover the remaining hearts. Each new scratcher heart should reveal a different card. 

• Right-click to “Duplicate” scratcher1
• Change the go to x and y position (0, -15)
• Change the backdrop revealed to card2
• Repeat to cover all candy hearts

Your Valentine’s scratcher is complete!

Put it all together and give it a try. The most important step is to send it to a person you love this Valentine’s Day. 

https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/480067907/

You can “see inside” my project to get a peek inside the full Scratch code.

Free Scratch Tutorials

Recommended: Scratch Games

Download Free Printable Scratch Coding Tutorials PDF

Get the Rocketship Landing game and Flying Space Cat Scratch tutorials in a printable format.

Learn more about Scratch in our Elementary School Coding Program. It’s so much fun and the possibilities to be creative are endless! 

Did you remix this project? Share a picture or link with us on Facebook or Twitter with #NowYouCode to be featured. 

Hoping you have a sweet Valentine’s Day!

The post Scratch Coding for Kids: Halloween Candy Collector Game appeared first on CodeWizardsHQ.

Happy holidays! Tis’ the season to be merry and bright and also the perfect weather for a cup of hot chocolate.

Who doesn’t love all of the twinkling lights and decorations this time of year and, of course, the presents under the tree (especially the surprises!). 

[Download] Printable Scratch Coding Tutorials Get 2 printable Scratch tutorials, Rocket Landing and Flying Space Cat, to code your own games step by step. Download Now

It’s been a little harder to shop for gifts this year, but that gives us the chance to get creative. If you want to learn how to code, there happens to be plenty you can gift without leaving the house. For you, we’ve created a codable Scratch gift that you can personalize and share with someone you care about. 

Code your own Holiday Advent Calendar in Scratch and slowly reveal gifts, goodies, or games to your family and friends.

Our advent calendar counts down until Christmas, but you can make yours for any holiday or special event. It’s a fun way to keep in touch and give a gift that comes from the heart.

Put on your matching pajamas, and let’s get coding!

See Complete Holiday Advent Calendar

What you need:

1. Scratch account: Create a free Scratch account 
2. Starter template: Use this Scratch starter template as the basis of your project. View starter template

No coding experience necessary for this tutorial. Beginner-friendly for ages 8 and up. Give it a try!

Step 1: Remix the starter project

We’ve set up the base files for you. Instead of creating a new project, start by remixing a project.

• Sign in to https://scratch.mit.edu
• Go to the starter scratch project https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/461157556/
• Click “Remix” to create a new version you can edit

Hint: You can personalize your calendar with your own background and sprite images.

Step 2: Add a gift for December 15

Our advent calendar starts on December 15. Let’s first add code to the date that tells our gift sprite what gift to open.

• Select the sprite called “dec-15”.
• From the Events category, drag the “when this sprite clicked” block and place it in the playground area.
• Again from the Events category, drag the “broadcast message” block.
• Click on the drop-down arrow, select New Message, and write open-gift-15.

Hint: Instead of a card, you could show an image, animations, or even start a game when you click on the date.

Step 3: Show the December 15 gift on click

When we click our calendar date, we want to reveal the gift. You’ll see some code added to the gift that hides it when we start our game. Let’s show the gift when we click. 

• Select the gifts sprite, from the Event category, drag the “when i receive” block, and place it in the playground area.
• Change the value in “when i receive” to open-gift-15.
• From the Looks category, drag the “switch costume” block and place it below “when i receive” block.
• Change value in “switch costume” block to gift-15.
• From the same category, drag the “show” block and place it below the “switch costume” block.
• From the Looks category, drag the “go to layer” block and place it below the “when i receive” block.
• Make sure the value in the “go to layer” block is front.

Step 4: Hide the gift after you view it

The gift shows now! To close it, click on the sprite. The gift covers the whole page so anywhere you click will hide the gift.

• In the gifts sprite, drag the “when this sprite clicked” block to the playground area.
• From the Looks category, drag the “hide” block and place it below when this sprite clicked.

Hint: You could also show the gift for a specific amount of time by using the wait block. 

Step 5: Add logic to lock the future gifts 

Currently, we are revealing the gift when we click our calendar. Let’s add an if-else statement to help our code decide if it’s time to reveal the gift yet. If it is too early, we’ll show a message instead of our gift. 

• Select the dec-15 sprite. Move the broadcast sprite away from the “when sprite clicked” block and place it anywhere in the playground area.
• From the Controls category, drag the “if-else” block and place it below the “when sprite clicked” block.
• From the Events category, drag the “broadcast message” block and place it inside the if code block.
• Change the message in the “broadcast block” to a new message “not yet!”
• Drag the previous broadcast open-gift-15 block from the playground area and place it inside the else code block.

Reveal the gift only if the current date is after the reveal date:

• From the Operators category, drag the > block and place it as a condition in the “if-else” block.
• From the Sensing category, drag the “current year” block and place it on the right side of the > block.
• Change the value in “current year” block to date.
• On the left side of the > block, enter the sprite date i.e., 15.

Hint: For each calendar date sprite, you would change the value in the > block.

Step 6: Show an error when you try to open future gifts

• Select the error sprite from the list of sprites.
• From the Events category, drag the “when I receive” block and place it in the playground area.
• Change the value in “when I receive” block to not yet!
• From the Looks category, drag the “show” block and place it below the “when I receive” block.

Hint: Our error message is an image sprite, you can also upload or draw your own message.

Step 7: Hide the error message after 1 second

• Make sure the error sprite is selected.
• From the Controls category, drag the wait 1 second block and place it below the show block.
• From the Looks category, drag the hide block and place it below the wait block.

Hint: Add a sound to your error message, using play sound block, as a warning!

Step 8: Add another gift on December 16

• Copy the blocks from the dec-15 sprite to dec-16 sprite by dragging them on top of the dec-16 sprite.
• Select the dec-15 sprite, and you will see the copied blocks in it.
• In the “broadcast open-gift-15” block, change the message to open-gift-16.
• Change the value on the left side of > block to 16.

Step 9: Show the December 16 gift on click

• Open the gifts sprite, right-click on the When I receive block, and click on duplicate.
• We get a copy of the blocks, place it anywhere in the playground area.
• Change the message in When I receive block to open-gift-16.
• Set the value of Change costume block to gift-16.

Step 10: Repeat until complete 

For each date in your advent calendar, repeat steps 2 through 9. 

Your advent calendar is complete!

See Complete Christmas Advent Calendar

You can “see inside” my completed project to get the full Scratch code for this activity. 

Take the time to personalize a calendar for your friends and family and give them a gift created by you. 

We want to see your Christmas advent calendar too! Share your project in our Facebook group or use #NowYouCode to show us your calendar and prizes. 

Download Free Printable Scratch Coding Tutorials PDF

Get the Rocketship Landing game and Flying Space Cat Scratch tutorials in a printable format.

If you want to build more games in Scratch, check out our Elementary School Coding Program. It’s the most fun and effective way to learn Scratch coding and progress to real-world languages like JavaScript and Python.

We wish you all Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year.

The post Scratch Coding for Kids: Holidays Advent Calendar appeared first on CodeWizardsHQ.

This Halloween season, we challeged kid coders at every experience level to build their own Candy Collector game in Scratch. Led by one of our fabulous teachers, we created a video and blog tutorial that teaches kids how to build their very own game at Scratch Coding for Kids: Halloween Candy Collector Game. 

We were so impressed with all the games that were shared! So many kids worked hard on developing this game and adding a few twists to really make it their own. 

Without further ado, let’s present our  top 10 favorite games in no particular order.

TheCodeMaster654 – Spooky Dodge

In this game, you slide left and right to gather the falling candy while trying to avoid the spike. I like the great use of sound effects and also the coding involved not only to always drop the new spike over the location of the block (so don’t stand still!), but also the flashing exclamation point. The change in costumes for the direction of Player is a great detail, too. Nice work!

NiceHacker_OwO – Trick or Treat!

We find a twist on this game where instead of sliding around the screen, we go door to door in a a few neighborhoods with various levels of Halloween spirit. Collect what you can and embrace this very peculiar Halloween! 

_es – Candy Clicker

This game involves a lot of clicking. Instead of a game of speed, dexterity, or strategy, it’s a game of determination. 200 clicks and you win! We see some nice coding in the costume changes every time the candy is clicked. It’s a lot of clicks. Do you have what it takes?

cwhq_matteoa1 – slimers candy hunt

This is game has a lot of fun elements happening. You want to collect 25 candies while avoiding the ghostbuster. If you run out of lives, the screen changes though you can collect a few more candies just for fun! I like how the sprites are moving around adding some extra complications to the game play. The code behind them has a lot going on and we can tell that cwhq_matteoa1 worked hard on this! Great job!

eviemom – Monster Eat Lettuce 

In this game we see a fun twist to the sprites chosen. Frank is included in the Scratch platform and he’s chasing after… lettuce! I love the consistent color palette in those choices. I do wonder how eviemom feels about lettuce, having chosen it for monster food. Frank also flips through his costumes when he eats some lettuce, an additional bit of coding we love to see! Regardless of eviemom’s feelings, Frank seems to be enjoying the lettuce. 

shadow72422 – #code wizards project

This game is an expertly crafted version of our project. The background and sprites have been customized and I love how Ghost appears to be standing on the forest floor as we start the game before he levitates about collecting candies. We’re also using keys to direct Ghost, a bonus step that was shared on the Facebook Group. Fantastic!

Funnyman3010 – Halloween Candy Collection Game

Here we see all the visual elements have been customized! Ghost is from the Scratch collection but the other pieces were brought in. There’s also additional coding seen in the addition of the timer and in the ability to move the Ghost using the arrow keys. Great work here! 

Mariofan1023 – Candy Ghost

In this game, Mariofan1023 added his own sprites and he added a LOT of them. This game has a tricky twist where only a certain pattern of candy corn will get you points. If you collect the wrong pattern, you’ll lose points! This twist certainly adds a challenge! 

We also love the additional coding needed to switch to the game over image where the ghost leans longingly toward a candy corn frozen out of his grasp. 

cwhq_inioluwaa1 – Candy Snatcher

Oh, this game is tricky! The witch is trying to collect fortune cookies but while they might appear identical, the witch may find her score reduced by -2. Can you figure out this one out? Which fortune cookie is a trick and which is a treat?

avirabh – Halloween

This is a fun shooter game where you shoot the candy to collect it. If it drops to the bottom of the screen there’s no worries but if it gets anywhere near the vampire it’s game over. While there’s some quality code in this work, avirabh created an entire webpage for this game and it looks great! Stupendous work! 

Honorable mentions for all the projects we received! You can play and post your score year-round: https://scratch.mit.edu/studios/27808356

We are so proud of all our #NowYouCode #triCODEtreat participants who flexed their creativity and coding skills. We hope you continue to code and if you want to join the most fun and effective coding classes, take a look at our coding program for kids.

There are more #NowYouCode activities coming so be sure to join our Facebook Group to participate in the next one!  

The post Top 10 Scratch Halloween Candy Collector Games appeared first on CodeWizardsHQ.

Halloween is just around the corner and the candy hunt is on! Instead of going door to door, let’s use code to get our candy fix.

Complete this easy Scratch coding tutorial to build your own trick-or-treat candy collector game.

What is Scratch? Scratch is a 100% free block-based programming language that lets you drag and drop code blocks to build fun games and apps. Scratch is a preferred introductory programming platform for younger students and it teaches powerful programming concepts like variables, loops, and conditionals.  

[Download] Printable Scratch Coding Tutorials Get 2 printable Scratch tutorials, Rocket Landing and Flying Space Cat, to code your own games step by step. Download Now

Code this easy Scratch game then compete with your friends and family for the most candy this Halloween. 

Play Halloween Candy Collector 

What you need:

1. Scratch account: Create a free Scratch account 

2. Starter files: Download the images we are using in our game. You can also use your own images to customize your application. Download starter files

No coding experience is necessary for this tutorial. Beginner-friendly for ages 8 and up. Give it a try!

Scratch Coding: Halloween Video Tutorial

Step 1: Create a new Scratch project

Let’s start by creating a new project. 

Visit https://scratch.mit.edu/, login to your account, and click on the “Create” button.

Now, we can code your game! 

Hint: You can also remix this project and others to see the code.

Step 2: Upload background and character images

A new project will open up and you can see the Scratch interface.

In the starter files, we’ve included images for your player, the candy, game over screen, and 5 different spooky settings. 

• Start by deleting the Scratch cat sprite that appears in every new project. 
• Add all of the background images by clicking “Upload Background”. 
• Add all of the character images by clicking “Upload sprite”. 

Hint: You can use any of your own images as sprites to customize your game, select images from Scratch, or even draw your own.

Step 3: Change the size of your characters

In Scratch, your character images are called sprites. Click on each sprite, then change the “Size” property.

• Boo: Size 30
• Candy: Size 10
• Gameover: Size 70

You can also click on your “gameover” image in the preview area and drag to move the image around.

Hint: Make the candy bigger for an easier game or make it really small for a harder game. 

Step 4: Hide the “gameover” sprite

We don’t want our game to be over before we start, so let’s hide our “gameover” sprite. 

In the Scratch interface, you can see the code blocks on the left under the “Code” tab. They are arranged in categories by color. Simply click and drag the block you want into the blank code area. 

Hint: The “When Green Flag Clicked” block helps us start our program. Just click the green flag near the preview screen to run your code.

Step 5: Get your ghost moving

Next, we want our ghost follow our mouse cursor to get it moving. 

We can use a “Forever” block, which acts like a loop to repeat code. Paired with the “Go to mouse pointer” block means the ghost will forever go to the location of the mouse.

Click on your “boo” sprite to add code to it. 

Hint: You can also code your ghost to move when you press up, down, left, and right using motion blocks. Check out bonus step #10 in our KidWizardsHQ group to learn how.

Step 6: Make your candy appear in random spots

Our candy shouldn’t stay in one spot, that’s too easy. Let’s make the candy appear in a random spot each time our ghost touches it. 

Click on your “candy” sprite to add this code to it. 

Hint: You can also add a sound effect when your ghost eats a candy. Check out bonus step #11 in our KidWizardsHQ group to learn how.

Step 7: Add a 30 second time constraint

We have 5 total backgrounds. If we show each background for 6 seconds, we get a game time of 30 seconds. 

You can choose which background you want to appear first but adding a “Switch Backdrop” block under the “When Green Flag is Clicked”.

Click on the background block to add code to it. 

Hint: Add as many backgrounds as you like or change the wait time to get different game levels. 

Step 8: Show “gameover” sprite when time is up

Once we have shown each background for 6 seconds, the game is over. No more candy! 

Since our timer only has code on the background, we need to send a message to the other sprites that hey, the game has ended. 

The other sprites will wait for a message and complete some action when it’s received. We’ll call this message “stop”.

Click on the background block and add on to the block you started in Step 7.

We also want to show our “gameover” sprite once the game ends and stop the rest of the game. 

Click on the “gameover” sprite to add this code to it.

Hint: If you want to hide your “boo” and “candy” sprite at the end of the game, send them the “stop” message then hide the sprite.

Step 9: Add a score

No game is complete without a score to brag about. Our score, since it changes, is assigned to a variable. 

Create a “score” variable by clicking “make a variable” and call it “score”. Make sure the box next to your “score” variable is checked in order to show it in your game.

When you eat a piece of candy, you will want to increase the score by one. 

Click on the “candy” sprite and insert “set” and “change” variable blocks into the code.

Hint: Add another sprite with the same code, but add 5 to the score as a bonus. Or play a trick and add 0.

Your game is complete! 

Take a look at the final product, your candy collector is complete. Play Halloween Candy Collector. 

You can “see inside” our completed candy collector game to get a peek at the full Scratch code.

• BONUS Step #10 move your ghost using up, down, left, and right arrow keys
• BONUS Step #11 add sound effects when you collect candy

Recommended: Scratch Games

Download Free Printable Scratch Coding Tutorials PDF

Get the Rocketship Landing game and Flying Space Cat Scratch tutorials in a printable format.

We want to see your Halloween games! Share your game using #triCODEtreat on social media and show us your spin on this game.

If you want to build more games in Scratch, check out our Elementary School Coding Program. It’s the most fun and effective way to learn Scratch coding and eventually real-world languages like JavaScript and Python.

Happy Halloween!

The post Scratch Coding for Kids: Halloween Candy Collector Game appeared first on CodeWizardsHQ.

Happy holidays to all of our students and friends. Instead of buying a card this year, use our HTML and CSS tutorial for kids and your programming skills to code a personalized holiday card for your friends and family.

It’s not the same boring card everyone else is buying, you can personalize this card with your style or match the recipient’s. This is an easy HTML and CSS tutorial for kids or anyone starting to learn. We’ll be building this simple holiday card that opens when you hover over it.

This tutorial assumes you understand basic HTML and CSS. Let’s get started!

• Step 1: Add a background image to the page
• Step 2: Add an image to the front of the card
• Step 3: Add a message to the cover of your card
• Step 4: Style the message on the cover of your card
• Step 5: Add a message on the back of your card
• Step 6: Style the message on the back of your card
• Step 7: Add your picture or logo to the inside page
• Finished card!

What you need:

1. Text editor

You can use a simple text editor like Notepad, TextEdit, Sublime Text, etc.  You may also use an online text editor like Codepen. Please use the link to set up your account.

2. Base HTML/CSS file.

Download the base folder and open the holiday_card.html file. This folder contains all the images and files you will need to complete your card.

Edit the holiday_card.html file inside of any text editor: for example, Notepad on Windows, TextEdit on Mac, or Sublime Text. You can also use an online text editor like Codepen to edit and run this code. The base files will set up a blank card that opens when you hover over it.

Prepare your child for success: If you are looking for your child to learn to code, explore our live, teacher-led coding classes. View Programs.

Recommended: HTML and CSS for Kids

Step 1: Add a background image to the page

Add a background image property to the <body> element and cover the entire page. By default, the background is repeated.

Add this code:

body {
      background-image: url('bg.jpg');
      background-size: cover;
}

Output:

Hint: To change the background, use a different JPEG or PNG image file in place of ‘bg.png’.

Step 2: Add an image to the front of the card

Add a background image property and a background-size to .front. This adds a nice image to the front of our card.

Add this code:

.front {
      background: url('winter_scene.jpg') 
no-repeat center darkred;
      background-size: cover;
    }

Output:

We also want the same image on the inside front of the card. Instead of creating a separate style for .page, we will add it to the styles for .front.

Add this code:

.front, .page {
      background: url('winter_scene.jpg') 
no-repeat center darkred;
      background-size: cover;
    }

Output:

Hint: To change the cover image, use a different JPEG or PNG image file in place of ‘winter_scene.jpg’.

Step 3: Add a message to the cover of your card

Add a message on the cover using an H1 element inside .front. Include your own holiday message.

Add this code:

<div class="front">
 <h1>Happy Holidays!</h1>
</div>

Output:

Hint: To change the message, replace ‘Happy Holidays’ with a personalized message.

Step 4: Style the message on the cover of your card

Style your <h1> element. We’ve added the Google font “Cookie” in our <head> element. 

Add this code:

h1 {
 font-family: 'Cookie', serif;
 font-size: 40px;
 margin-top: 40px;
 color: white; 
}

Output:

Hint: To change the font, replace ‘Cookie’ in the font-family property. Select from these web safe fonts.

Step 5: Add a message on the back of your card

Inside of .back, add a <div> element with class ‘message’ to hold your headings and paragraph.

Add this code:

<div class="back">
    <div class="message">
    </div>
</div>

Output:

Inside of .message, add a personalized message to your friend or family member with <h5> and <p> elements.

Add this code:

<div class="message">
   <h5>Dear Friends,</h5>
   <p>'Tis the season of giving and
 gratitude. Thank you for your continued 
support. We wish you and your family a
 joyous and happy holiday season. </p>
   <h5>CodeWizardsHQ Team</h5>
</div>

Output:

Hint: To change the message, replace the content inside your H5 and p elements.

Step 6: Style the message on the back of your card

Add the following styles to .message and text elements.

Add this code:

.message {
  margin-top: 30px;
  color: #900909;
}

h5 {
  font-family: 'Cookie', serif;
}

p {
   font-size: 10px;
}

Output:

Hint: You can change the color of the font by changing the color name or hex property of .message (List of colors)

Step 7: Add your picture or logo to the inside page

Add an <img> element inside of .page

Add this code:

<div class="page">
   <img src="cwhq_logo.png">
</div>

Output:

Style your <img> element by decreasing the size and flipping it.

Add this code:

img{
   margin-top: 60px;
   width: 90px;
   transform: scaleX(-1);
}

Output:

Hint: You can change the image by linking a different JPG or PNG file in the src attribute of the element.

Your card is complete!

Check out the finished product.

Download the completed HTML and CSS code and open the i_holiday_card.html for the final card project.

Customize this code to create your own holiday card! It’s that easy. Now you can dazzle your friends and family with your coding skills and a thoughtful card too. 

Did you code your own card? Share a picture or link and use #CodeWizardsHQ or tag us to be featured on social media.

Learn more about building games and websites in our live HTML coding classes for kids.

Ready to level up your child’s learning experience? See our coding programs for kids ages 8-18:

• Elementary School Coding Program
• Middle School Coding Program
• High School Coding Program

The post HTML and CSS Tutorial for Kids: Holiday Card appeared first on CodeWizardsHQ.

Kids who want to learn coding have more options than ever to get started. Whatever type of programming they’re interested in, there is an abundance of coding books for kids, apps, games, and websites to get them up and running quickly. Adding fun to the task is always the best way to make magic happen and these Halloween coding activities for kids and teens do just that! 

Your child can learn to build video games, create animations, develop mobile apps, and launch websites. Whether your child is starting his journey or well on her way to becoming a developer, these 3 fun Halloween coding activities for kids and teens are sure to please.

We hope you enjoy them and have a BOOTastic Halloween!!!! 

Do you have a fun Halloween coding activity? Don’t be shy! Email us to add it to our list.

Free Halloween Coding Activities – STEM / STEAM

Whether you’re looking for Halloween coding activities for second grade, third grade, sixth grade, or high school, Heather Monthie recommends sites you may want to use! This is a great resource that has specific coding activities divided by grades, K-8 & 9-12. Visit the blog post here.

Recommended: Free & Paid Coding Websites for Kids

Halloween Apps and Websites for Kids – Fun, Educational, Free

Great collection of educational Halloween apps and sites that are FREE! Steam Powered Family if run by Shelley. This post is divided into activities on tablets and computers and goes beyond coding introducing other fun Halloween inspired games! 

Recommended: Coding Games for Kids

Halloween Coding Unplugged

Do you have $3.00 to spare? Visit this Halloween Coding Unplugged 

Get kids coding with these unplugged coding programs with a Halloween theme! This block style coding resource is a great introduction to coding without computers. Students will learn critical thinking and problem-solving skills!

The post 3 Fun Halloween Coding Activities for Kids and Teens appeared first on CodeWizardsHQ.

Coding has become an important and relevant skill for kids today. Whether you want to help your child become a computer programmer or simply expand their computer science knowledge, you probably know there any many benefits to coding for kids. While the benefits are exciting, learning how to actually code may seem like more of a chore to kids than a great opportunity. 

Prepare your child for success: If you are looking for your child to learn to code, explore our live, teacher-led coding classes. View Programs.

That’s where coding games come in. In our coding classes for kids, our philosophy is to help kids learn to code in a fun way. Kids play and build games in every class which keeps them engaged and learning.

To get your child excited about coding, we’ve put together a list of the best coding games for kids. These games teach programming skills and make it fun too. They’re organized by grade and age level, so your child is sure to find the perfect game for them.

Best Coding Games for Kids in Preschool

1. Code Karts

Platforms: iOS, Android

Pricing: Free

Ages: 4+

Best Because: Code Karts introduces coding concepts to young children through the use of logical puzzles in the form of a fun racetrack. With over 70 different levels and two different game modes, kids will have no shortage of entertainment or variety when it comes to this app.

The objective of this coding game is to use directional bricks to get their race car to the finish line, providing a stimulating coding environment.

Code Karts also comes in more than 20 different languages, bringing the fun to a wide audience, and young children will easily learn the fundamentals of code as well as directions and logic.

2. CodeMonkey Jr.

Platforms: Browser

Pricing: Free trial ($7/month)

Ages: 4-8

Best Because: CodeMonkey Jr. is a block-based coding game for kids in Pre-K and Kindergarten. Drag and drop coding is perfect for kids at this age to learn the basics of programming. In this game, they’ll join a monkey on a mission to collect bananas in a world of fun colors and characters. Kids can start with no experience, they don’t even need to know their ABC’s. The challenges progress as they learn about logic, loops, sequencing, algorithms, and more!

3. Code & Go Robot Mouse Activity Set

Platforms: Board game

Pricing: $98.95

Ages: 4+

Best Because: Code & Go Robot Mouse Activity Set is a screen-free way to teach foundational coding skills to even the youngest of programmers. It includes double-sided coding cards, a Programmable Robot Mouse, cheese wedge, and a special Activity Guide that allows kids to create endless maze paths for their mouse.

Once their specific maze is created, kids set up the coding cards to instruct their mouse where to go. The mouse can even light up, make sounds, and features two different speeds, keeping the game interactive and engaging.

Recommended: Ultimate Guide to JavaScript Game Development

4. Bee-Bot

Platforms: iOS

Pricing: $74.95

Ages: 3+

Best Because: The Bee Bot app was designed specifically to help young children grow their programming skills and sequencing abilities through the use of a fun and interactive game. Based on the lovable floor robot, the app features 12 different levels which progressively get harder as the user advances. Each level is timed and gives exciting rewards, providing incentives for even the youngest of coders.

Kids can also enhance their directional language as Bee Bot moves forwards, backwards, left, and right. Set in a relaxing garden setting, this will be the perfect game for young ones ages four and up.

5. Cubetto

Platforms: Wooden robot

Pricing: $227.64

Ages: 3-9

Best Because: In a world full of technology and screens, finding a game that is free of these yet still teaches your child the basics of coding may seem like an impossible task. That’s where Cubetto stands apart. Cubetto is a friendly wooden robot that teaches children the basics of computer programming through a real-world, tangible object.

Through adventure and hands-on play, Cubetto allows kids to manipulate and touch its blocks in order to tell the robot where to go. It can also be used with special books and maps, providing a positive and all-encompassing experience without the need for an app or device.

6. Osmo Coding Jam

Platforms: iOS + board game

Pricing: $49.60

Ages: 5-12

Best Because: There is no shortage of research that proves music is beneficial for a child’s development. Combine that with the advantages of programming and you are sure to have a unique and positive game on your hands.

Osmo Coding Jam is an engaging board game that connects to an iOS app and allows kids to create their own music with hands-on coding blocks. By being able to physically change the coding blocks on the board game, even the youngest coders are learning how to sequence and problem-solve. Through the use of music, kids can also develop rhythm, melody, and harmony.

Recommended: Python for Kids

Best Coding Games for Kids in Kindergarten

7. CodeSpark Academy

Platforms: iOS/Android/ Kindle Fire/ Windows

Pricing: Free Trial, $15/mo

Ages: 5-9

Best Because: CodeSpark Academy is an award-winning app that has introduced the concepts of coding to over 20 million children in more than 200 different countries. Using a “no words” interface, this app teaches all of the fundamentals of computer programming for kids through puzzles, games, printables, and even projects, bringing the fun from the screen to life.

With personalized daily activities based on your child’s progress, engaging curriculum developed by research from MIT, Princeton, and Carnegie Mellon, and new subscription app content every month, your child will have a hard time putting this one down.

8. Kodable

Platforms: Browser, iOS

Pricing: Free Trial ($24.99/mo)

Ages: 4-10

Best Because: Kodable is an online resource utilized by parents and educators all over the globe. The lessons combine both on-screen and off-screen components. Kodable breaks down computer science topics into basic concepts that kids can use for life including JavaScript and robotics.

Through interactive games, your child can foster a love of learning, and through carefully crafted standards, you can ensure their fun will help them be prepared for higher educational concepts. It also connects with an app that has custom-built games. 

9. Cork the Volcano

Platforms: PC, Mac, iOS, Android, Steam 

Pricing: $8.99

Ages: 6-10

Best Because: Cork the Volcano teaches kids to code through programming puzzlets. Set up sequences of actions for the characters to reach the Puzzlet Piece, collect raindrops along the way for bonuses, and avoid dangers from the island along the way through this programming puzzle platformer. Kids can practice computational and algorithmic thinking with each challenge. They’ll learn to come up with logical steps and strategies to win the game.

10. Robot Turtles

Platforms: Board game

Pricing: $43.48

Ages: 4+

Best Because: Robot Turtles is a STEM board game for preschoolers. While providing a fun and engaging hands-on game for them to play, your kids will feel in control and get to learn all of the basic concepts of programming at the same time. Through simple commands that are used to program the Robot Turtle, your little one will learn what it means to write code, debug, and use basic functions. As they play, they unlock new challenges, giving the game new life and growing with them. It’s a time for the whole family to be silly and play together, spending meaningful time away from the screen.

11. ScratchJr Coding Cards: Creative Coding Activities

Platforms: Card Game

Pricing: $24.99

Ages: 5-9

Best Because: ScratchJr Coding cards are an easy and fun way to introduce young kids to programming concepts and the Scratch language. It gives step-by-step instructions on how to use the programming blocks. They can create their own games, stories, and animations as they work through each card in ScratchJr. This collection of coding activity cards is perfect for working one-on-one with your child or sharing among small groups.

12. ScratchJr.

Platforms: iOS/Android/Kindle Fire/ Chromebook

Pricing: Free

Ages: 5-7

Best Because: Scratch, Jr. teaches young children important new skills as they begin to program their own interactive games and stories. This novice version of Scratch allows younger children to snap together programming blocks in order to make their characters move, jump, sing, and dance.This app was designed by leading experts to better fit younger children’s cognitive, personal, social, and emotional development, so you can feel confident it is appropriate for your little one.

13. CoderBunnyz

Platforms: Board game

Pricing: $29.78

Ages: 4+

Best Because: Designed and created by a 9-year-old, CoderBunnyz is a unique board game that teaches a range of coding topics. It’s a highly interactive way to introduce coding, with 13 levels of kinesthetic learning that grows with your child and their skill levels.

The game involves programming robot bunny game tokens with code cards. The goal is to eat the carrot and reach the destination before others do! CoderBunnyz covers a variety of basic and advanced programming concepts, including sequencing, looping, functions, branches, debugging, and inheritance.

14. Dash Robot

Platforms: Robot and app

Pricing: $179.99

Ages: 6+

Best Because: Dash Robot is a real robot that is charged and ready to play with right out of the box. Through the use of a connected app, your child is able to help Dash perform new behaviors, like dancing and singing, as well as move and navigate around objects. What makes Dash stand out from other games is that there are multiple apps available that align with various age groups, learning levels, and play styles. You can tailor the program to your specific child’s needs, giving them fun that is made for them.

15. Move the Turtle

Platforms: iOS

Pricing: $3.99

Ages: 5+

Best Because: Move The Turtle is an educational app for the iPhone and iPad that teaches children the basics of creating computer programs through the use of a friendly Turtle.

By completing tasks, your child will learn how to plan complex activities made of simple elements, how to reuse previously completed work, and how to use graphics and sound within programming. Your child will also become familiar with the concepts of loops, procedures, variables, and conditional instructions while playing an engaging and interactive game.

Recommended: How to Make a Game on Scratch

Best Coding Games for Kids in Elementary School

16. Algorithm City

Platforms: Android

Pricing: Free

Ages: All ages

Best Because: Algorithm city teaches the basics of programming and algorithms. It has a fun, simple interface that young students can easily navigate. Using symbols, kids code functions that guide their character. Kkids learn command sequencing, functions and loops, by guiding the character by collecting golds and solving levels.

17. Tynker

Platforms: iOS/Android/Chromebook

Pricing: Free Trial ($12/mo)

Ages: 5+

Best Because: Winner of a large variety of awards, including Parents’ Choice Gold Award for coding games for kids, Tynker is an interactive game that makes programming accessible and fun for kids, regardless of their prior experience with the content. Using intuitive visual blocks to create games, kids have the ability to also write interactive stories, modify Minecraft, program drones, and explore other STEM topics.

Tynker also can be played offline without internet connectivity, and with your permission, your child could share their creations with the Tynker community and explore projects made by other kids, as well.

18. BitsBox

Platforms: Subscription box

Pricing: $16.95 per month

Ages: 6-12

Best Because: BitsBox stands apart from the other games on the list as it is a monthly subscription box that includes unique materials on different computer science topics. Each month, your child receives a box that contains various coding projects, ranging from simple to advanced. With the materials, they type the given code into the connected app and then revise it to make it their own.

The apps and materials change each month, so there is always something new and exciting. BitsBox runs on any computer, phone, or tablet with a web browser.

19. Scratch

Platforms: Browser, Windows, Mac, Android

Pricing: Free

Ages: 8-16

Best Because: Designed by educators at MIT, Scratch is based on a programming language and an online community where children can learn the basics of coding as well as move on to more advanced topics and concepts.

Through the use of interactive games, stories, and animations, children are able to not only enhance their skills for programming, but they are also increasing their creativity, reasoning skills, and learning how to successfully collaborate on projects- all essential skills for 21st-century workers.

Recommended: Scratch Games for Kids

20. Botley the Coding Robot Activity Set

Platforms: Robot

Pricing: $50.56

Ages: 5-8

Best Because: Brought to you from educational leader Learning Resources, Botley is an interactive robot that introduces coding to young kids in a friendly, easy, and fun way. Without requiring a computer or tablet, children are able to program Botley for up to 80 steps, including more advanced programming commands like looping.

With advanced features and steps as well, Botley can grow with your child, becoming more challenging as it goes. Botley also includes black line follow mode where users can draw a line with any type of marker and he will follow along the path.

21. Code Master

Platforms: Board Game

Pricing: $22.08

Ages: 8+

Best Because: Code Master is a programming logic game that teaches kids the basics of coding- all without a computer! In the game, the player gets an Avatar that they have to navigate around the board.

The goal of the game is to help the Avatar travel around the exotic world in search of power Crystals, leading them to collect them all and land at the Portal. Code Master features 60 different levels, so the fun is never the same! It teaches programming basics as well as planning, sequential reasoning, and problem-solving skills.

22. CodeMonkey

Platforms: Browser

Pricing: Free Trial ($7/mo )

Ages: 5-14

Best Because: Originally designed as a classroom resource for teachers, CodeMonkey has expanded beyond the school walls and is available for anyone looking to learn coding skills.

Although you may be using it at home, CodeMonkey provides various insights for you that will help you monitor your child’s progress as well as assess their learning, even if you are completely unfamiliar with computer science. Another benefit? Learning how to code not only teaches children about IT, but it also nurtures logic, critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving skills needed to be successful now and in the future.

23. CODE: On The Brink

Platforms: Board game

Pricing: $16.99

Ages: 8+

Best Because: On the Brink is part of a series of games that were designed to help kids build all of the skills necessary to be successful coders and understand even more advanced programming concepts down the line. Without the use of a screen, kids will be able to guide their robot along a path from start to finish, programming “procedures” which help it move along colored paths.

There are 40 different challenges that kids will come across, and their goal is to find the correct sequence of moves for each colored path. The board game teaches a variety of skills, including sequencing, problem-solving, and planning.

24. Goldieblox: Adventures in Coding

Platforms: iOS

Pricing: Free

Ages: 4+

Best Because: Recognized with The Toy Industry Association’s Toy of the Year and Apple’s iOS App of the Year awards, Goldieblox is shaking up the industry and challenging gender stereotypes with the world’s first girl engineer character. In this game, Goldie and her friend Ruby are trying to deliver cupcakes, but they need help getting directions for where to go.

Kids will have a blast programming the characters throughout town, and will learn all the basics of coding in the process. This game is inspiring for girls and shows them they truly can be anything they dream.

25. PlayShifu Tacto Coding Kit

Platform: Android, iOS, Amazon Fire

Price: $49.99

Ages: 4-10

Best Because: The TacoTo coding kit for young learners does more than direction-based coding. It teaches fundamental concepts of coding – inputs-output, loops, sequencing, decomposition, and branching. The kit comes with a silicone attachment and figurines that combine tactile play with programming in the app. As kids move their characters, they follow along on screen. There are over 200 levels of games, stories, and adventures that kids can try.

26. Osmo Coding

Platforms: iOS, Fire tablet + game system

Pricing: $49.60

Ages: 5-10

Best Because: Winner of both the Parent’s Choice Gold Award and the Oppenheim Best Toy Platinum Award, Osmo Coding is a hands-on game that connects the screen to real-life coding blocks. Through the use of the interactive gaming system, children can put their iPad in the Osmo base which senses what is placed in front of it.

They then use the coding blocks to map out commands, bringing the playful characters in the app on a fun adventure. Teaching logic and problem-solving skills as well as programming, Osmo Coding is an easy and engaging way to learn the basics.

27. LEGO Mindstorms

Platforms: iOS, Android

Pricing: Free

Ages: 7+

Best Because: Brought to you by the entertainment and toy giant, LEGO Mindstorms: Fix the Factory is an addictive puzzle game full of unexpected obstacles and unique challenges, pushing kids to expand their logical thinking skills, spatial intelligence, and their robot commanding skills.

Faced with the task of helping a robot make its way through a factory, your child will learn all of the basics of how programming works while trying to beat the clock. There are also incentives for completing the mission with the highest score, making it an exciting game more than an educational tool.

Best Coding Games for Kids in Middle School

28. Minecraft

Platforms: PC, Android, iOS, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Wii, PlayStation, Wii, Amazon Fire, Oculus

Pricing: $6.99 (Android & iOS), $29.99 (PC and Mac)

Ages: 10+

Best Because: Minecraft is one of the most popular programming games for kids out there, with currently over 100 million registered users. At its core, Minecraft is a game about placing blocks to make objects and going on adventures. But in reality, it is so much more than that.

Although the game’s visuals may look dated to us adults, children are drawn to its simple looks and unique graphics.

The beauty of Minecraft is that it truly gives children the freedom to create and explore almost limitlessly, while also giving them missions and goals, inspiring their problem-solving, creativity, and logical thinking at the same time.

29. Swift Playgrounds

Platforms: iOS

Pricing: Free

Ages: 11+

Best Because: Swift Playgrounds is an innovative game for the iPad that helps children learn and experiment with code through interactive puzzles. Based on the powerful programming language created by Apple and used by most professionals to create mobile applications, Swift Playgrounds provides a platform for experimentation and creativity while teaching the basic definitions, terms, functions, and directions of coding.

Players can use their own photos, images, sounds, and files within the program to make it uniquely theirs, while new coding challenges are regularly released to keep it evolving and changing.

30. Hopscotch

Platforms: iOS

Pricing: Free

Ages: 9-15

Best Because: With over 10 million downloads and more than 26 million games created and counting, Hopscotch is a platform for kids to explore projects and learn how to code and make their own games. Users also have the ability to access other people’s projects and play, tweak, or remix it, providing inspiration and collaboration through Hopscotch’s fully moderated community.

The app also has detailed video tutorials that teach them how to make popular games, increasing in difficulty as they become a better programmer.

31. Code Car

Platforms: Mac, Windows

Pricing: $48.99

Ages: 8-12

Best Because: Shaped like a car, Code Car is actually a computer that allows kids to program and control it. Whether it be turning on the headlights and taillights, or sounding the siren and brakes, all functions of the car can be programmed to perform in a certain way.

There is even a speaker in the middle of the car that can be coded to play horn sounds, car alarms, or ice cream truck songs. As these tasks are added to the Code Car, kids will be learning the real, typed coding language C++. The kit connects to a simple coding editor which works on Mac, Windows, or Chromebook.

32. Mimo

Platforms: Android, iOS

Pricing: Free

Ages: 11+

Best Because: Mimo is a convenient platform that provides bite-sized coding lessons, projects, and challenges in an engaging and interesting way. With Mimo, your child can learn to code, build websites, automate tasks, make apps, and more.

With daily goals, streaks, and achievement badges, kids will feel like they are playing a game more than taking an educational lesson. Mimo also features continuous extensions and updates, giving it a fresh face as your child progresses.

33. Lightbot

Platforms: iOS, Android, Kindle Fire

Pricing: $2.99 (iOS/Android)

Ages: All ages

Best Because: Featured by Apple in over 100 countries and winner of multiple awards, Lightbot is an exciting game that gets kids hooked on coding within minutes.

Categorized as a programming puzzle game, Lightbot requires the user to guide a robot to light up tiles and solve different levels using commands, all while cultivating a real understanding of basic programming concepts like procedures, loops, and conditionals. With 50 levels and 20 challenge stars to collect, kids will have a blast competing and learning in this game.

34. CodeMancer

Platforms: Windows, Mac, Android, iPad, and Kindle

Pricing: Free

Ages: 6-12

Best Because: CodeMancer uses a fantasy theme to teach the magic of coding. Kids code their way through a world of sorcerers and their minions. While learning about loops, functions, algorithms, and debugging, kids solve ancient puzzles and explore the world of magic! Kids will never experience syntax errors and they don’t have to read to play. This game has over 50 levels to keep the learning going.

35. Code Combat

Platforms: Browser

Pricing: Free

Ages: 9+

Best Because: Built for high school students, CodeCombat is a platform for students to learn computer science and programming skills while playing through a stimulating and real game. It’s an excellent coding game for kids and parents alike who have little to no coding experience, providing a medium that rewards productive struggle which results in successful learning.

Proven as a gaming challenge that encourages interaction, discovery, and trial-and-error, teens are sure to have hours of fun while figuring this one out.

36. Cargo-Bot

Platforms: iPad

Pricing: Free

Ages: 9-11

Best Because: This puzzle app requires teens to “be logical.” The game features a programmable robot and 36 puzzles. Teens must program the robot to move crates within each puzzle, with the puzzles ranging from easy to difficult. By playing the game, teens learn how to approach problems in order to solve them quickly and efficiently.

Recommended: Python Games Development for Kids

Best Coding Games for Teens (High School & Up)

37. CodeWars

Platform: Browser

Pricing: Free

Ages: 14+

Best Because: CodeWars uses the idea of small coding exercises called “kata”. Each kata is crafted by the community to help you strengthen different coding skills. Kids can master a current language of choice, or learn any of the 55+ programming languages supported.You can earn ranks and honors to level up and be seen on the leaderboards. It’s a great way to see new coding perspectives, learn new language, and challenge your peers.

38. Check Io

Platforms: Browser

Pricing: Free

Ages: 14+

Best Because: CheckiO games for beginners and advanced programmers where you can improve your coding skills by solving engaging challenges and fun task using Python and TypeScript. This game is played in the browser and organically integrates coding and learning as you complete missions. You can learn from other developers by seeing clear solutions to the same problem. This game does require solid reading and typing skills, so I recommend it for older students.

39. CodinGame

Platforms: Browser

Pricing: Free

Ages: 14+

Best Because: CodinGame is a great place to practice, but doesn’t provide any tutorial to learn the basics of programming from scratch. You can play with friends or compete internally. Practice and learn coding by solving fun challenges in 25+ languages addressing all the hot programming topics. CodinGame also has recruiters to help users find a job and practice programming interviews. This is great for older students who are interested in an internship or career in coding.

40. Codea

Platforms: iOS

Pricing: $14.99

Ages: 14+

Best Because: Codea is a code editor that allows you to create games and engaging simulations, turning your thoughts into interactive creations. Designed to teach coding for teens and older students, Codea is a visual code editor that actually lets one touch the code to alter or edit it.

Built on the Lua programming language, kids can type their code, press play to watch it run, then interact with it to see what happens, including changing the colors, adding images, and adjusting the sounds. Codea also allows sharing code across the community, so they can see other kids’ projects and explore or get inspired by them.

41. Hack ‘n’ Slash

Platforms: iOS

Pricing: $13.37

Ages: 14+

Best Because: This fun coding game combines programming and puzzles, all set within an engaging story. A wizard, presumably evil, has ordered everyone to stay in the village. Teens act as the villagers in the game, looking for ways to escape and overcome the wizard by reprogramming objects, changing story variables and creature behaviors, and rewriting the game’s code.

42. SpaceChem

Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, Steam

Pricing: $9.99

Ages: 14+

Best Because: In this game, students act as a reactor engineer for SpaceChem, “the leading chemical synthesizer for frontier colonies.” This coding game employs puzzles and programming with an exciting story. The challenges vary, from constructing functional laboratories to meeting production quotas—all while surviving encounters with the “things” that haunt the SpaceChem facility.

Recommended: Coding for Kids, Free Resources

Kids Can Start Programming Games at Any Age

No matter what age your child or student is, coding is a skill that will benefit kids for the rest of their lives. Kids can even build and code their own games in our 12-week online coding classes. We teach coding for elementary school (grades 3-5), middle (grades 6-8), and high school (grades 9-12) students and no experience is necessary. In the summer, take an accelerated version of our classes in 3-week summer coding classes. Kids learn to code fun games and projects in every class using real-world languages like Python, JavaScript, and more!

By introducing and practicing coding concepts through entertaining games, kids will view learning as a treat instead of homework. With our list of top coding games for kids, your young engineer is on his or her way to a lifetime of learning.

The post 39 Best Coding Games For Kids 2024 appeared first on CodeWizardsHQ.

When a child finishes middle school and gets ready to go to high school, parents’ perspectives shift in very predictable ways.

That shift in perspective results in regret about one thing. Something they wish they had done while their child was still in middle school. You don’t want to have the same regret.

Up until middle school, you were focused on your child’s overall growth. As long as they were staying out of trouble, learning, growing and enjoying themselves, you were good.

But when they enter high school, you start thinking about things differently. You view and evaluate everything with their future in mind.

• Will their interest and skills translate into something valuable for a good career?
• Do they have unique skills and experiences to make them look good in college applications?
• Do they have exposure to emerging skills to excel in their chosen field of study in college?

Viewed from that lens, many parents realize something: Many of the activities their child spent time while in middle school didn’t translate into concrete and impressive things they can highlight in a college application.

That realization drives parents to look for opportunities for their child to acquire skills that satisfy a very different set of considerations.

Skills that will make them standout in college applications.

Skills that will give them in edge in college and career.

Skills that are sought after in the future workforce.

More and more parents are zeroing in on the most sought after skill of the future: Coding.

But, why?

As technology enters every aspect of modern life, they see how it is changing every field. From biology to entertainment to agriculture to art. There is no field untouched by technology.

Working in any field now requires an understanding of code. GE recently announced that every new employee must know how to code, regardless of their job. Even those who join as accountants.

Some of the most valuable companies emerging today are all driven by software – Uber, Airbnb, Facebook, Snapchat, WhatsApp, Slack, Instacart. If their child has an idea and wants to bring it to life, like the founders of these companies did, they need to know how to code.

From a practical level, getting a job in any field is much easier with a coding skill set. Computing jobs are the #1 source of new wages in the United States. There are 500,000 open, unfilled computing jobs. They are in every state and in every industry. And, they are growing at twice the rate of other jobs.

Parents explore a bit and understand that learning to code is neither quick nor easy. It is like learning a new language or an instrument. They need to take formal classes. They need to spend time practising it so the skills will stick. Both requires time.

With high school course load, trying to take on learning to code is going to be a challenge for their child. That’s when they realize this…

Their child should have learned to code while in middle school.

They had missed the boat. And they regret it.

If your child is still in middle school, seriously consider a coding program for them. Before those middle school years disappear, see if you can encourage them to acquire this skill.

CodeWizardsHQ’s mission is to prepare your child for college and career success by teaching them the skill of coding. Find out more about our program and see if it is right for your child.

The post What Parents of Graduating Middle School Students Regret? appeared first on CodeWizardsHQ.