Beyond the Hour of Code: Free coding websites to help your child learn to code

When your child has finished the Hour of Code and wants to learn more, check out these free coding websites that can help take your kid’s computer programming learning to the next level.

Code Studio

Code Studio’s 20-hour programming courses

Code.org follows through on its initiative of making programming fun and easy for kids to learn with the Code Studio coding courses.  Students can use characters from the Disney megahit “Frozen” to draw lines and snowflakes or try their hand at writing their own Flappy Bird game. Code Studio also offers free 20-hour courses focusing on computer fundamentals. Lesson plans and instructional guides are available for download to help facilitate teaching. Signing up for an account allows students to save and track their progress.

Scratch

Scratch 2.0 programming interface

Scratch is a visual programming language and online learning community where students can create games, stories and animations with others around the world.  Students who have been exposed to Code.org will find it easy to transition to Scratch because it utilizes a similar coding-by-blocks graphical interface.  Beginners get the help they need from a step-by-step guide built into the program, video tutorials, and a downloadable Getting Started guide. No Internet connection? No problem. Students can download and install an offline Scratch editor on a Windows, Mac or some versions of Linux, so they can work on projects even while they’re off the ‘net.

Code Academy

Introduction to PHP on Code Academy

When your child is ready to move from visual blocks-based programming to actual code writing, Code Academy is an excellent place to start. Code Academy is an an online learning platform that offers free interactive tutorials on HTML & CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, PHP, Python, and Ruby, as well as popular APIs like YouTube, SoundCloud, Twitter, Evernote, GitHub and lots more. With the help of step-by-step instructions built into the platform, students learn the fundamentals, write few lines of code, and execute their code in real-time.  Students get feedback and badges for completing exercises.  Based on posts I’ve read on homeschooling forums, Code Academy is highly recommended for  learning the Python programming language.  I mention this because Python is considered the best programming language to learn first due to ease of use and simplicity of its syntax.

Alice

Alice 2.0 Interface. (image licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Designed to be a student’s first exposure to object-oriented programming, Alice is a software lets users create stories, games, and animations using a 3D programming environment.  Using a drag-and-drop interface, users can choose an object from Alice’s gallery and drop it into the virtual world. Users can add properties, methods and functions to an object by dragging and dropping graphical tiles that correspond to specific programming statements.  The ability to control objects in a 3D environment works as a huge motivator for children to learn. Alice can be installed on Windows, Mac and some versions of Linux.

Intro to JavaScript by Khan Academy

Introduction to JavaScript by Khan Academy

Khan Academy, savior to the mathematically challenged, has something for programming-phobes: an interactive introductory tutorial on JavaScript.  Instructional videos teach basic concepts and guide students through challenges and projects to practice each skill. By the end of the course, students are expected to be able to create simple drawings and animations.  JavaScript is a relatively easy introduction to object-oriented programming, and tts simplicity and versatility make it a good programming language to learn first.

The free coding websites featured on this post are just a few of the many free coding sites available. I have focused only on these free coding websites based on users’ experiences posted on homeschooling blogs and forums.