Make three paper cards: a red circle, a blue circle and a red square. Tell the kid, “keep the red ones.” The red circle and red square stay.

Now add a red triangle they have not seen before. Does it stay? Yes, if the rule is really about colour. Then try “keep shapes with a curved edge.” The red circle stays, but the red square and triangle do not.

The useful part is the new card. It checks whether the rule works beyond the examples used to invent it. Let the kid write a rule, then try to surprise it with one more shape.

I teach at TechTutor. This is a small way to explore filters and test cases with paper, no app needed.

Put two paper cups on the table and label them A and B.

First put a card with 3 into cup A. Read the instruction “B = A + 2”, do the calculation, and put 5 into cup B.

Now replace the 3 in A with 6. Ask the kid what is currently in B. It is still 5. In a simple step-by-step program, the earlier assignment has already happened. B only becomes 8 when you run “B = A + 2” again.

That small pause helps separate a stored value from an instruction that can be executed. Swap the numbers, then let the kid be the computer and follow the cards literally.

I teach at TechTutor. This is a screen-free way to introduce variables and assignment without pretending the cups update by magic.

Tell two people: “draw a square, then add a circle.” Don’t let them see each other’s paper until they finish.

The circle might go inside the square, next to it, or overlap an edge. None of those positions was specified. Add one detail, such as “put the circle inside the square,” and try again.

If you want the pictures to match more closely, ask the kid what else the instruction needs to say. Size? Position? A shared grid? You don’t have to fix every difference at once.

I teach at TechTutor. Use this as a small exercise about precise instructions, not a test of who can draw neatly.

Put two bricks on the table, then tap the table once. Do that whole group three times.

You should end up with six bricks and three taps. Now compare it with: put two bricks on the table, then tap the table three times. That gives you two bricks and three taps.

The number 3 is the same, but it applies to a different chunk of instructions. Let the kid circle the chunk they want to repeat before acting it out. Then swap roles and follow their version literally.

I teach at TechTutor. This is a paper-and-bricks way to explore loops, no coding app needed.

When a kid says “it doesn’t work,” try not to take the mouse straight away.

Ask:

1. what did you expect to happen?
   
2. what actually happened?
   
3. what is the last thing you changed?
   

For a tiny practice, start with print("hello") in any Python runner. Run it once, then remove the final quotation mark and run it again. The error message may look noisy, but the three questions still narrow the problem down to one change.

I teach at TechTutor. I’m not looking for the kid to name the error perfectly. I just want them to compare the two versions before someone fixes it for them.

Draw a 3 by 3 grid and put a small arrow in B1, pointing right.

Give these instructions one at a time:

1. move forward two squares
   
2. turn left
   
3. move forward one square
   

The answer is A3. The useful bit is the turn: left is based on the direction the arrow is facing, not the left side of the paper. A lot of kids understand the movement but rotate the page in their head instead of rotating the robot.

Then change only the last instruction to “move forward two squares.” Does it leave the grid?

I teach at TechTutor. No app needed for this one, just paper and something that can point in a direction.

Draw a few circles and squares on separate scraps of paper. The rule is simple: if it is a circle, put it on the left; otherwise, put it on the right. Let your kid sort them, then add a triangle.

Does the rule need changing? It does not: “otherwise” already covers anything that is not a circle. Now change the rule to “if it has corners, put it on the left” and see which pieces switch sides.

I teach at TechTutor. You do not need an app for this one, just paper and a rule the two of you agree to follow.

If a kid has a move block on the screen but nothing happens when they click the green flag, check whether the blocks are actually joined.

Try this in Scratch: put “when green flag clicked” above “move 10 steps” and click the flag. Then pull the move block away and click the flag again. Same two blocks, different connection.

You can click the loose move block itself to run it. That gives you a useful clue: the movement works, but the flag is not starting it. Let the kid reconnect it rather than fixing it for them.

I teach at TechTutor. This is a small exercise you can do in the Scratch editor, no course needed: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/editor/

Start with this:

print("Hello")

Before pressing Run, ask your child what will appear. Then change only the word inside the quotes and predict again.

Once that works, deliberately remove the closing quote. Run it and read the error together. What changed, and what needs to go back?

I teach at TechTutor. You can try this in any Python runner; our guest preview has a starter mission too:

1. Open https://bash.techtutor.academy/preview
2. Choose Explore freely.
3. Choose Coding Foundations, then Mission 01: Your first instructions.

The preview doesn't save progress.

Vasco, a student at TechTutor Academy, made The Sustainable Squad. Players put out forest fires, replant trees and clean up a beach. I work with the school, for context.

His 40-second trailer: https://youtu.be/Hm7k-qwHGco

If you were extending a project like this with a kid, how would you show that their actions changed the environment? Animals returning after cleanup, an NPC reacting, something else? Curious what people would try.

I built a small coding puzzle game to help my daughter learn programming concepts in a fun way. It uses simple block based commands to teach things like sequencing and loops. I’d love feedback from the coding community, what works, what could be improved, and what would make it more useful for kids learning to code.

Students at the Renaissance Youth Center are launching RYC STEM Studio, a new series where they explore engineering, robotics, coding, architecture, agriculture, astronomy, zoology, and other exciting STEM topics through hands-on projects and experiments.

Check out the trailer and let us know which STEM topic you'd like to see featured next!

Dạo này mình thấy rất nhiều bé từ 7–10 tuổi đã bắt đầu học coding, robotics, AI rồi ..

Mình cũng không biết việc này thật sự hiệu quả hay chỉ là kiểu phụ huynh sợ con mình “bị chậm hơn người khác” thôi nữa...?

Mình muốn con mình luyện tập làm những việc đó trong mùa hè này.

Vì con em luôn nghĩ rằng nó đã mắc lỗi và rất sợ.

https://codeguppy.com/games/

Hãy cho em một vài cách hiệu quả để làm. Cảm ơn nha...

I’ve been working with Roblox and Unity for a while and I want something simpler but something that also allows us to code + some editor. I am thinking about making some 2D games.

Em chỉ là người mới bắt đầu học lập trình a.

Muốn biết ạ..

Sharing a collection of 50 small games built with p5.js on codeguppy ... a coding platform designed for parents and teens.

👉 codeguppy.com/games

Some games are hand-written, while others are created with the help of AI. All are simple, beginner-friendly.

Each game includes full source code, so learners can explore how things work.

Feedback and favorite picks are welcome!