ScratchJr Coding Cards

ScratchJr is a free, introductory computer programming language that runs on iPads, Android tablets, Amazon tablets, and Chromebooks. Derived from Scratch, the wildly popular programming language used by millions of kids worldwide, ScratchJr helps even younger children (5 to 7 years old) create their own playful animations, interactive stories, and dynamic games.

The ScratchJr Coding Cards encourage kids to think creatively and systematically while developing computational thinking skills. Kids will learn powerful ideas about computer science by using ScratchJr programming blocks to make characters move, jump, dance, sing, and more. As they work through the deck, they will become creative thinkers and problem solvers.

Written by the ScratchJr co-creator, Prof. Marina Umaschi Bers, and Dr. Amanda Sullivan, the exercises in ScratchJr Coding Cards will encourage kids to develop coding skills as well as foundational concepts for literacy, math, planning, and problem-solving, all while having fun. The cards are created using the pedagogical approach developed by Prof. Bers to teach coding in a playful way to young children.

Author Bio

Dr. Marina Umaschi Bers is the co-creator of the widely popular programming language, ScratchJr. She is a professor in the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development and adjunct professor in the Computer Science Department at Tufts University. She also heads the Developmental Technologies (DevTech) Research group where she studies innovative ways to promote positive childhood development through new learning technologies. Additionally, she created KIBO, a robotics platform for children 4 to 7 which allows young learners to learn programming and engineering skills without screens or keyboards. Dr. Bers is also the director of the graduate Early Childhood Technology certificate program at Tufts University. More her approach that conceives coding as a literacy of the 21st century, can be found in her book Coding as a Playground: Programming and Computational Thinking in the Early Childhood Classroom.

Dr. Amanda Sullivan is a post doctoral associate in the Developmental Technologies (DevTech) research group and associate director of the graduate Early Childhood Technology certificate program at Tufts University. Her research focuses on gender issues and technology.