So last week my class and I were introduced to two fun new activities that I found very interesting as their called Hour of Code and Code Academy. Personally I am new to these two sites and while in class I was so blown away to all the work that IT or professional people do to make activities like these. Learning about them was fun for me. For my post I chose to do the code Flappy Game activity which looked pretty simple and that I can create this fun game. That was not the case. What helped me understand the process of making this game was watching our video from class that our instructor recorded of a few steps to understand coding. In the beginning it gave me just a simple block to work with and instructions to follow to build upon the block which I did and it was very different. Below is an example of my coding for levels 4 and 5.

Advancing onto the other levels was not bad until I got to level six and that is where it got a little trickier for me as to figuring out the coding for making the Flappy bird run and passing an obstacle. I tried many times but could not get my coding to get the bird to score a point after making the bird flap either smaller or larger amount. Until I played around with the blocks and managed to make it the coding work.

For my Flappy Bird Game the end result of the my coding on level 10 was so much fun. I was able to change the visuals and the rules to my liking and before you hit the ground the gravity is interesting as I put in low. Especially when you hit an obstacle you lose points or when you pass an obstacle the scenery changed which really liked. This was so much fun creating this little activity.

Over all when completing this fun activity I found that I have learned something new as to how creating games like this take a lot of work and effort to make fun games for children. One key aspect I would say is to review the steps before introducing it to the students so they understand what they are to do and what their end project will look like. My daughter would love this game as it was fun for me when creating it. I liked how it got made you use your thinking skills to figuring out how to make you birdy fly, run, jump obstacles and win points. At first it was easy until I got to level six as I mentioned earlier as it was challenging however, I figured it out because I was playing around with the blocks. I was able to understand more when I found the Hour of Code Flappy Bird Tutorial on YouTube. This was so much fun.

For educators and the classroom introducing this ‘Hour of Code’ game to the students is a great way for them to get to know and learn about the concepts to coding and it not only helps improve their mathematics and writing skills but also gives them valuable skills in life and eventually in the workforce. Coding worksheets will help to reinforce the basic coding concepts learned in the activity above. The worksheets are perfect for the classroom or home. This would be fun for them however, I think that having an visual instruction in from of them and not the computer would be better as it would help them along the way. Visuals when it comes to activities like this especially if it is online is very important to have when learning students about coding.

One of the easiest ways to get a taste of programming basics for kids is with the fun and FREE hour of code activities available online. These hour of code activities are designed to take only an hour and can give kids and parents a chance to understand the importance of learning to code. Why should kids learn coding? There are so many reasons to learn coding. From problem-solving skills, job opportunities, critical thinking, and creativity, there are so many reasons to learn programming.

This would be beneficial and great for grade 4 and up and I would highly recommend to my family and community back home especially the local school. Here are some reasons to why I think students should learn coding;

• Programming helps children learn to problem-solve
• Computer programming gives kids a challenge and helps them develop resilience
• Coding teaches children how to think
• A child expands their creativity when they learn how to code
• Computer programming is the future
• There is a lack of skills in the software industry
• Coding helps children learn how to have fun with math
• Coding is learning while having fun!