🎯 What you will learn
- What code and algorithms are
- How sequences, loops and conditions work
- Where to start coding for free
👋 Let’s get started!
Every app and game you love was built with code 💻 — step-by-step instructions that tell a computer what to do. Guess what? You can learn to write code too!
🪜 Step by step
1. 📋 Algorithms
An algorithm is a list of steps, like a recipe. Computers follow them exactly.
2. ➡️ Sequence
Order matters! Putting on socks AFTER shoes doesn’t work. Code runs step by step.
3. 🔁 Loops
A loop repeats steps: “Do 10 jumping jacks” instead of writing “jump” 10 times.
4. 🔀 Conditions
“IF it’s raining, THEN take an umbrella.” Conditions let code make choices.
5. 🐱 Try Scratch
Scratch (scratch.mit.edu) lets you snap code blocks together to make games and stories — free!
📖 Key words
Tap a card to flip it over!
- Code
- Instructions a computer can follow 💻
- Algorithm
- Step-by-step plan to solve a problem 📋
- Loop
- Repeating steps 🔁
- Bug
- A mistake in code 🐛
🎨 Practice activity
🤖 Be the robot! Write an algorithm to make a peanut butter sandwich, then have a grown-up follow it EXACTLY. Find and fix the bugs! 🥪
🖐️ Try it yourself
- Write a 5-step algorithm for brushing your teeth 🪥
- Circle any steps that repeat — that’s a loop! 🔁
- Add an IF step (if the toothpaste is empty…) 🔀
- Visit Scratch with a grown-up and make a sprite move 🐱
Knowledge Check Quiz
- What is an algorithm?
- What does a loop do?
- A mistake in code is called a…