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Chris is master of the Dance Party

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Student stuck with it to get her code correct!

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First grade unplugged

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Making circuits blink

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Gonzalez creating circuits

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Kindergarten

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We have been working on this site in STEAM Lab

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Games for tomorrow's programmers. Block-based programming lessons for beginners. Free from Google.

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We have been working on these projects in STEAM Lab.

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Unplugged- no computer needed Superhero coding

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Unplugged- no computer needed Superhero coding

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https://littlebinsforlittlehands.com/superhero-computer-coding-game-without-a-computer/

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Follow the given code to reveal letters that form a mystery word!
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Hour-of-Code-Coding-Puzzles-Unplugged-2910169

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Free on TPT- printing required. We've done unplugged coding in the STEAM Lab. A fun, holiday version!
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/FREE-Gingerbread-Coding-2903043

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https://www.thefoos.com/webgl/

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https://code.org/starwars

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Great coding website for students. Variety of courses and skill levels.
https://code.org/student/elementary

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https://www.thefoos.com/webgl/

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https://santatracker.google.com/educators.html

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Lesson 1
Lesson 2
Lesson 3

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https://www.primotoys.com/

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Dash and Dot Show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nM3WsevvfM

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Daisy the Dinosaur: https://tinyurl.com/l29aju9

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This app really does teach the basics of computer programming, which is really cool, and it is simple enough for very young kids, BUT...kids have to be able to read well to learn to play it. It would be nice if the app had an option to read the instructions to you, so younger kids could learn it independently. The character, Daisy Dinosaur, seems to be for very young kids, and the instructions are certainly simple enough for them, if only they didn't have to deal with the frustration of using early reading skills to stumble over the words. I think Daisy is a bit too cutesy for older kids, but they would feel more confident in reading the instructions. If parents don't mind reading the instructions though, the commands are easy to read for beginning readers, and kids as young as 5 or 6 could play it once they learn how.

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‎Learn the basics of coding with Daisy the Dinosaur! Built by the creators of Hopscotch. This free, fun app has an easy drag & drop interface that kids of all ages can use to animate Daisy and make her dance on their screen. Kids will intuitively grasp the basics of objects, sequencing, loops and e...

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Join over 150,000 schools in delivering the best Computer Science education for your students. All the curriculum, tools and resources you need to support your students on their path to coding success.

Tynker Curriculum Grant

FREE access to full curriculum for up to 30 students for the school year. Learn more

Built for Educators

With award-winning lesson plans, automatic grading tools and easy student management, getting started is as easy as 1-2-3!

Hands-on Learning

Students learn through videos, puzzles and hands-on coding in our interactive self-guided courses with over 5,500 learning modules.

No experience required!

You don't have to be a coder. Simply assign ready-to-use interactive lessons for students to complete by themselves!

100% Safe and Secure

Student data is secure and owned by your district. Tynker is COPPA, FERPA, and SOPIPA compliant. Please refer to our privacy center to learn more.

Tynker Curriculum Grant

FREE access to full curriculum for up to 30 students for the school year. Learn more

Over 1,600 contact hours of standards-aligned computer science curriculum for grades K-12 with immersive lessons, teaching materials and automatic grading.

Elementary School

A strong foundation with block coding
31 Courses | 990 Hours

Icon and Block Coding

200 STEM & PBL Projects

Pre-reader Experiences

Digital Citizenship

Creative Coding

Game Design

micro:bit & Lego® WeDo

Augmented Reality

Intro to AI

Explore curriculum

Middle School

Real world programming made fun and easy
19 Courses | 1,000 Hours

Block and Text Coding

300 STEM & PBL Projects

Intro to Coding

Web Development

Python

JavaScript

MicroPython

Augmented Reality

Intro to AI

Explore curriculum

High School

Career and college readiness with AP CS and more
12 Courses | 1,200 Hours

Real-World Text Coding

Python

JavaScript and p5.js

Web Dev with HTML/CSS

Art Effects with p5.js

Data Science

AP CS P with Python

AP CS A with Java

AI/ML with MediaPipe

Explore curriculum

Grade-specific and self-paced, Tynker's interactive K-12 coding curriculum lets students learn by creatively applying coding concepts to core subjects. The curriculum includes over 50 programming courses with over 1,600 contact hours.

Over 150,000 schools teach programming using Tynker

Student data is secure and owned by your district. Tynker is COPPA, FERPA, and SOPIPA compliant. Please refer to our terms of use to learn more.

Tynker offers a variety of free and paid training programs based on your needs. Whether or not you have coding experience, we'll help you earn PD credits and develop the skills you need to support a K-12 coding program at your school.

We created the Blue Ribbon Training Program to help bring computer science to all. Select educators receive exclusive training, tools, and support designed to help them become coding experts. In return, our Blue Ribbon educators commit to making the coding movement a reality across the globe.

How Coding Helps Children Build Resilience and Persistence
View Article

Tynker for Schools: Thank You and Happy New Year!
View Article

How does Tynker Support Learning in Other Areas?

Tynker easily lends itself to supporting all areas of learning. Schools are using Tynker as a way for students to demonstrate their understanding of other subjects such as science and math. Tynker's lessons support and enhance Common Core State Standards.
View Common Core mapping here.

What are Students Creating?

Students are creating all sorts of amazing projects. Check out some of our favorites in our Kid Creations gallery.

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Coding for School: Teach K-12 Students to Code | Tynker | Tynker

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Tynker's free coding courses, lesson plans, easy-to-use tools, comprehensive coding and STEAM curriculum, and educator resources make it easy to implement a CS program for K-12 students.

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This binder was originally developed for business educators. It has been expanded to include coding resources for any teacher, any subject, any grade level.

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As technology dominates our lives, learning basic computer programming isn't just a smart idea, it's an essential skill for grown-ups and children alike.

Learning how to build simple websites and games helps kids refine their design, logic, and problem-solving abilities. It also allows them to express ideas and creativity in unique ways. There are a number of FREE websites that teach children how to play around with code. We've rounded up a dozen of our favorites.

Sign up for our FREE newsletters to get posts like this delivered to your inbox, and find even more educational tech posts for kids in our Geek Guide.

Prices are as of December 2017.

Students celebrate completing their coding challenges. Photo courtesy of Code.org.
Kids learn how to program their own games. Photo courtesy of Code Combat
Code.org
This nonprofit foundation website is a great starting point for coding novices. It shares plenty of useful online resources, apps, and even local schools that teach coding. Be sure to watch the inspirational video on the main page. Updated periodically, the current iteration features some of the biggest names in tech talking about how they got started in coding.

Photo courtesy code.org This article first published in September 2013 but is regularly updated. A group of kids work together to create code. Photo courtesy of Tynker
RELATED: 50 Easy Science Experiments Kids Can Do at Home

Lightbot
Predominantly an app-based program, Lightbot offers a FREE demo online as part of its Hour of Code. Like what you see? Its pair of low-cost programming apps are all-ages friendly. Available for iOs, Android, and Amazon devices for $2.99.

Stencyl
Inspired by Scratch's snapping blocks system, this software allows users to create simple games for iOS, Android, Flash, Windows, Linux, and Mac systems. If your child is serious about it, there are paid pro plans that come with advanced functionality.

RELATED: High-Tech Family Fun: 5 Ways Technology Can Be Family Time

Bonus
Looking to teach your kids code on the go? Coding apps Daisy the Dinosaur, Hopscotch, and Kodable are all FREE for iPad.

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Coding for Kids: Free Websites That Teach Kids Programming

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As technology dominates our lives, learning basic computer programming isn't just a smart idea, it's an essential skill for grown-ups and children alike. Learning how to build simple websites and games helps kids refine their design, logic, and problem-solving abilities. It also allows them to express ideas and creativity in unique ways.

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Find all the resources you need to bring attention to your Hour of Code. Not sure where to begin? Start with our how-to guide for hosting an Hour of Code!

Share these handouts

Show these videos to inspire students

Hang these posters in your school

A new poster set is available featuring Malala, Stephen Curry, Shakira and more! This year, each set will also come with 6 posters and 126 "I did the Hour of Code" stickers. Supplies are limited, so order your posters soon.

Looking for our posters from previous years? Find them here!

Post these on social media

Use the Hour of Code logo to spread the word
Download hi-res versions "Hour of Code" is trademarked. We don't want to prevent its usage, but we want to make sure it fits within a few limits:

1. Any reference to "Hour of Code" should be used in a fashion that doesn't suggest that it's your own brand name, but rather referencing the Hour of Code as a grassroots movement. Good example: "Participate in the Hour of Code™ at ACMECorp.com." Bad example: "Try Hour of Code by ACME Corp."

2. Use a "TM" superscript in the most prominent places you mention "Hour of Code," both on your web site and in app descriptions.

3. Include language on your page (or in the footer), including links to the CSEdWeek and Code.org websites, that says the following:
"The 'Hour of Code™' is a nationwide initiative by Computer Science Education Week [csedweek.org] and Code.org [code.org] to introduce millions of students to one hour of computer science and computer programming."

4. No use of "Hour of Code" in app names.

Print these stickers to give to your students

(Stickers are 1" diameter, 63 per sheet)

Invite people in your community to your Hour of Code and promote your event through email

Ask your school, employer, or friends to sign up:

Subject line: Join me and over 100 million students for an Hour of Code

Computers are everywhere, changing every industry on the planet. But only 35% of all high schools teach computer science. Good news is, we're on our way to change this! If you've heard about the Hour of Code before, you might know it made history. More than 100 million students have tried an Hour of Code.

With the Hour of Code, computer science has been on homepages of Google, MSN, Yahoo!, and Disney. Over 100 partners have joined together to support this movement. Every Apple Store in the world has hosted an Hour of Code, and leaders like President Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wrote their first lines of code as part of the campaign.

This year, let's make it even bigger. I'm asking you to join the Hour of Code 2018. Please get involved with an Hour of Code event during Computer Science Education Week, December 3-9.

Get the word out. Host an event. Ask a local school to sign up. Or try the Hour of Code yourself-everyone can benefit from learning the basics.

Get started at http://hourofcode.com/us

Volunteer at a school:

Subject line: Can we help you host an Hour of Code?

Between Dec. 3-9, ten percent of students around the world will celebrate Computer Science Education Week by doing an Hour of Code at their school. It's an opportunity for every child to learn how the technology around us works.

[Our organization/My name] would love to help [school name] run an Hour of Code event. We can help teachers host an Hour of Code in their classrooms (we don't even need computers!) or if you would like to host a school assembly, we can arrange for a speaker to talk about how technology works and what it's like to be a software engineer.

The students will create their own apps or games they can show their parents, and we'll also print Hour of Code certificates they can bring home. And, it's fun! With interactive, hands-on activities, students will learn computational thinking skills in an approachable way.

Computers are everywhere, changing every industry on the planet. But only 35% of all high schools teach computer science. The good news is, we're on our way to change this! If you've heard about the Hour of Code before, you might know it made history - more than 100 million students around the world have tried an Hour of Code. Even leaders like President Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wrote their first lines of code as part of the campaign.

You can read more about the event at http://hourofcode.com. Or, let us know if you'd like to schedule some time to talk about how [school name] can participate.

Tell parents about your school's event:

Subject line: Our students are changing the future with an Hour of Code

Dear Parents,

We live in a world surrounded by technology. And we know that whatever field our students choose to go into as adults, their ability to succeed will increasingly depend on understanding how technology works.

But only a tiny fraction of us are learning how technology works. Only 35% of all high schools teach computer science.

That's why our entire school is joining in on the largest learning event in history: The Hour of Code, during Computer Science Education Week (December 3-9). More than 100 million students worldwide have already tried an Hour of Code. Our Hour of Code is making a statement that [SCHOOL NAME] is ready to teach these foundational 21st-century skills. To continue bringing programming activities to your students, we want to make our Hour of Code event huge. I encourage you to volunteer, reach out to local media, share the news on social media channels and consider hosting additional Hour of Code events in the community.

This is a chance to change the future of education in [TOWN/CITY NAME].

See http://hourofcode.com/us for details, and help spread the word.

Invite media to attend your event:

Subject line: Local school joins mission to introduce students to computer science

Computers are everywhere, changing every industry on the planet, but only 35% of all high schools teach computer science. Girls and minorities are severely underrepresented in computer science classes, and in the tech industry. Good news is, we're on our way to change this.

With the Hour of Code, computer science has been on homepages of Google, MSN, Yahoo!, and Disney. Over 100 partners have joined together to support this movement. Every Apple Store in the world has hosted an Hour of Code. Even President Obama wrote his first line of code as part of the campaign.

That's why every one of the [X number] students at [SCHOOL NAME] are joining in on the largest learning event in history: The Hour of Code, during Computer Science Education Week (December 3-9).

I'm writing to invite you to attend our kickoff assembly and to see kids start the activity on [DATE].

The Hour of Code, organized by the nonprofit Code.org and over 100 others, is a global movement that believes the students of today are ready to learn critical skills for 21st-century success. Please join us.

Contact: [YOUR NAME], [TITLE], cell: (212) 555-5555 When: [DATE and TIME of your event] Where: [ADDRESS and DIRECTIONS]

I look forward to being in touch.

Invite a local politician to your school's event:

Subject line: Join our school as we change the future with an Hour of Code

Dear [Mayor/Governor/Representative/Senator LAST NAME]:

Did you know that computing is the #1 source of wages in the U.S.? There are more than 500,000 computing jobs open nationwide, but last year only 42,969 computer science students graduated into the workforce.

Computer science is foundational for every industry today, yet most schools don't teach it. At [SCHOOL NAME], we are trying to change that.

That's why our entire school is joining in on the largest learning event in history: The Hour of Code, during Computer Science Education Week (December 3-9). More than 100 million students worldwide have already tried an Hour of Code.

I'm writing to invite you to join our Hour of Code event and speak at our kickoff assembly. It'll take place on [DATE, TIME, PLACE], and will make a strong statement that [State or City name] is ready to teach our students critical 21st-century skills. We want to ensure that our students are on the forefront of creating technology of the future-not just consuming it.

Please contact me at [PHONE NUMBER OR EMAIL ADDRESS]. I look forward to your response.

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A new poster set is available featuring Malala, Stephen Curry, Shakira and more! This year, each set will also come with 6 posters and 126 "I did the Hour of Code" stickers. Supplies are limited, so order your posters soon. Looking for our posters from previous years? Find them here!

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CS Unplugged is a collection of free learning activities that teach Computer Science through engaging games and puzzles that use cards, string, crayons and lots of running around.

The activities introduce students to Computational Thinking through concepts such as binary numbers, algorithms and data compression, separated from the distractions and technical details of having to use computers. Importantly, no programming is required to engage with these ideas!

CS Unplugged is suitable for people of all ages, from elementary school to seniors, and from many countries and backgrounds. Unplugged has been used around the world for over twenty years, in classrooms, science centers, homes, and even for holiday events in a park!

The material is available free of charge, and is shared under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA licence, which makes it easy to copy, adapt and share it.

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Free activities for classroom or home # CS Unplugged is a collection of free learning activities that teach Computer Science through engaging games and puzzles that use cards, string, crayons and lots of running around. The activities introduce students to Computational Thinking through concepts such as binary numbers, algorithms and data compression, separated from the distractions and technical details of having to use computers.

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Hour of Code

This year, we're taking Hour of Code to new heights by offering coding opportunities that encompass both artificial intelligence (AI) and non-AI components.

Want to keep learning? Go beyond an hour

Teachers: Host an hour or read the How-To Guide

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Use computer science to explore and learn about AI!

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We've compiled a list of all of our unplugged lessons for you to use in your classroom. Now you can teach the fundamentals of computer science, whether you have computers in your classroom or not!

We refer to lessons in which students are not working on a computer as "unplugged." Students will often work with pencil and paper or physical manipulatives. These are intentionally placed kinesthetic opportunities that help students digest complicated concepts in ways that relate to their own lives.

Unplugged lessons are particularly useful for building and maintaining a collaborative classroom environment, and they are useful touchstone experiences you can refer to when introducing more abstract concepts. Each of these activities can either be used alone or with other computer science lessons on related concepts.

Ages 4+, English only

Course

Lesson Plan

Concept

Video

Loops

Impacts of Computing

Course C

Sequencing

Loops

C.15 - Binary Bracelets
*Supplies: Markers. Optional - 18 black/18 white beads, 1 pipe cleaner per student
Binary is extremely important in the world of computers. The majority of computers today store all sorts of information in binary form. This lesson helps demonstrate how it is possible to take something from real life and translate it into a series of ons and offs.

Binary

Impacts of Computing

Digital Citizenship

Course F

Variables

For Loops

The following lessons are organized by concept and can be found in earlier versions of our CS Fundamentals courses. Additional resources you may want to consult as you plan to use these lessons include:

Digital Citizenship
Crowdsourcing

*Common Sense Education has a full Digital Citizenship Curriculum that includes many unplugged activities.

Functions

Functional Suncatchers
In this lesson, students will make a suncatcher out of string, beads, and a special charm. The students will follow a series of repetitive steps, then be asked to identify certain sets of "skills" that are duplicated several times. Once those skills are defined, they will be called from a main program and the whole beautiful process of creation will be recorded on a single sheet of paper. The final program will be geared toward the entire class, whatever their type of string, beads, and charms. To effectively allow for this, students will need to "abstract out" the details of their specific materials and create vague terms for an individual's supplies. This use of generic placeholders is a wonderful introduction to variables.

Lesson Video
See Lesson in Action
Activity Answer Key Assessment Answer Key

Algorithms

Dice Race
In this lesson, students will relate the concept of algorithms back to real-life activities by playing the Dice Race game. The goal here is to start building the skills to translate real-world situations to online scenarios and vice versa.

Computational Thinking

Computational Thinking with Monsters
With nothing but paper and markers, students will learn the four steps of computational thinking. After a brief introduction, students should be split into groups where they will have to create directions for other students to draw a specific monster (from a catalog of pre-selected monsters). The entire task must be decomposed, then teams will analyze all monsters in the catalog for patterns, abstract similar details from the monsters, then use that information to create an algorithm (directions) for another team to draw a certain monster. Teams will then switch algorithms with another group and draw the monster based on what that algorithm indicates. Is the drawing what the original team intended?

Persistence

Building a Foundation
New and unsolved problems are often pretty hard. If we want to have any chance of making something creative, useful, and clever, then we need to be willing to attack hard problems even if it means failing a few times before we succeed. In this lesson, students will be building a structure with common materials. The structure will be tested on its ability to hold a textbook for more than ten seconds. Most students will not get this right the first time, but it's important they push through and keep trying.

Abstraction

Mad Glibs
Abstraction is one of the most important skills for a computer scientist to understand. It simplifies problems and prevents unnecessary repetition. A good coder uses abstraction just about every time she creates a program. This activity will have your students analyze stories for differences so that they can abstract them away. Those abstracted stories become templates for fun and crazy new ones.

Variables ​

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We've compiled a list of all of our unplugged lessons for you to use in your classroom. Now you can teach the fundamentals of computer science, whether you have computers in your classroom or not! We refer to lessons in which students are not working on a computer as "unplugged."

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This fall around the globe, hundreds of classrooms will participate in the Hour of Code, a celebration of all things computer science and programming. Traditionally held in December during Computer Science Education Week, the hour can be adopted any time of year that works for your classroom. The best part? It doesn't matter if you're a coding newbie or an expert in order to bring it all to life. Here are some of our favorite Hour of Code activities for students and teachers at all levels.

Hour of Code activities for coding beginners ...

1. Get started with a little inspiration.

2. Brush up on your professional development.

Coding, no matter what hour, day, or season, should be a safe space for imagination and innovation-and that includes a teacher's comfort level! Get the basics down and ground yourself with a free online learning platform to enhance your own skills, stay up to date on the latest technology, and do it on your own time.

[contextly_sidebar]

3. Make fun and games the focus.

Hour of Code has an official site with a ton of beginner-level tutorials. That's not only great for students new to the coding world, but it's a relief for teachers just stepping their foot in the door. Will you fix a robot's brain? Find the buried treasure or maybe design a Google logo? Have your class vote on a few ahead of the hour and plan to use the winner!

4. Short on screens? Team up or go unplugged.

It's smart to plan your technology needs for the hour; however, if you're short on screens, do pair programming so students work in teams. Work as a class on a projected screen, using on- or offline coding challenges. No screens? No problem! Unplugged coding lessons are a great alternative. Consider binary-number games (the basis of all coding language), sorting efficiency, how computers and robots work through writing programming (who gets to be the robot first?!), and more with physical movement games.

Hour of Code activities for intermediate coders ...

5. Mix it up with cross-curricular ideas.

You've played with a robot or two and had your students explore some coding basics. Go to the next level and explore coding concepts in art, music, geography, social studies, languages, and more.

6. Try the Hour of Code activity challenges.

The Hour of Code offers activities and games that go beyond 30-60 minutes for students who are familiar with basic coding and computer science principles. Try coding in Python or Java, or doing some next-level design thinking with digital art. Choose "comfortable" in your activity searching to get started.

Hour of Code activities for coding experts ...

7. Think beyond the hour. Lead a robotics team!

Take your teaching prowess and students' love for coding and robotics on a great journey with a robotics club or team! It's easier than you think to organize and maintain. These fearless teachers told us about their journey with the Wonder League Robotics Competition.

8. Be leaders in the coding and robotics movement for your community!

You and your students' wonderful experience with coding and robotics is full of leadership potential. Make that contagious and pass on the STEAM passion! Hosting an Hour of Code is an awesome start. Enlist local groups, like scout troops, churches, veteran groups, after-school clubs, and more. Check out Hour of Code's resources to spread the word, including videos, posters, social shares, and more.
The Hour of Code™ is a nationwide initiative by Computer Science Education Week and Code.org to introduce millions of students to one hour of computer science and computer programming.

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Bring the Hour of Code™ to Your Classroom-Even if You're a Newbie

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Bring the Hour of Code to your classroom with ideas for teachers to teach coding, learn robotics, and participate in the event and teach coding all year.