Recently I was asked for recommendations for how to help kids (age 8 and 10 years old) to start with computer programming. My first intuition was Lego Mindstorms and Fischertechnik Robotics, but additionally I asked the following question on Twitter:

The response to this tweet was overwhelming so I thought it’s time to write a little blog post.

“Toys for Coding”

Hardware Kits

  • bob3.org - B·O·B·3 is a concept to learn programming. B-O-B-3 is a concept to get young people involved with electronics, technology and programming.
  • calliope-mini - Our mission is to give pupils from year 3 onwards a playful approach to the digital world. Microcontroller with an easy-to-use graphical editor for “writing code”.

Software / Platforms

  • Sonic Pi - Learn to code creatively by composing or performing music in an incredible range of styles from classical & jazz to EDM.
  • Human Resource Machine - Human Resource Machine is a unique puzzle game that tasks the player with writing a program to fulfill certain tasks using a drag-and-drop programming language.

Books

Initiatives

  • Devoxx4KidsDE - teach children to coding, robotics and electronics with fun. Workshops and presentations are freely available on GitHub.
  • code.org - is a non-profit dedicated to expanding access to computer science and increasing participation by women and underrepresented minorities. Provides courses for children starting at the age of 4.
  • codecombat.com - A classroom in-a-box for teaching computer science. CodeCombat is a platform for students to learn computer science while playing through a real game. Our courses have been specifically playtested to excel in the classroom, even for teachers with little to no prior programming experience.
  • scratch - Create stories, games, and animations. Share with others around the world. Scratch is a project of the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab. It is provided free of charge.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to all the responders of my tweet: @KevinDitscheid, @pide2001, @webrocker, @kruemel42, @tomasnorre, @Devoxx4Kids, @sebineubauer, @benjamin, @SabineBendixen, @Cybersmog, @MarcusSchwemer, @CYxChris