Code Adventures: Coding Puzzles For Kids

Upon opening the application, the user is greeted with the developer’s splash logo followed by a delightfully presented ‘home screen’. 

 

This ‘home screen’ includes an option for different languages, an app information button where the developers can be contacted (please note that this has a parental lock), a sound mute button and a rewards or trophy button where the user can track progress. 

 

This enchanting game takes the first steps into basic computer coding with Aurora – a cute purple fuzz ball. The objective of the app is to get Aurora home by completing the 30 levels of puzzles. The application works through various levels including basics, functions, conditionals and loops. Children will need to put the commands into the right order, so to practice sequencing. They also will discover the need to repeat commands to move the character around the screen, since each move only takes it one unit in any direction. Every few levels, a new command is introduced, increasing the complexity of the task and the number of steps necessary to accomplish it. 

 

Once entering a level, the ‘play screen’ is shown, this includes some really nice graphics that children will find very appealing. The menus on the left allow the child to place the functions from the bottom of the screen into a command box to get our lovable fuzz ball Aurora to the rotating coloured home portal. The ‘play button’ enables the user to view the sequence. We love the fact that you can do this as many times as possible without a time limit. The app really allows the child to experiment and solve the puzzles at their own pace. The screen also offers an optional ‘grid overlay’ that helps with steps and distance. The coding and commands are very easy to edit and erase. The app includes a nice selection of hints via the ‘question mark’ button, which should prevent youngsters from becoming hopelessly stuck as they build the skills to complete all levels. We did find that some children really struggled to pass a level and required either a further hint or a chance to skip this level so they could move onto the next. The app plays easier on a mobile tablet rather than a mobile device as some of the icons are quite small. Each level also has a scoring star system that rewards you on your performance. These can be seen in the ‘Level Mapping’ screen. 

 

A nice touch by the developers is the ‘certificate icon’ at the bottom of the ‘Level Mapping screen’. This shows the progress of the child as a personalised certificate. Children can write their name and get a special personalised certificate which can be downloaded when they complete at least 65 % of the game. They developers could consider including a leader board scoring feature to promote competition within the classroom with multiple users. 

 

This application is seamless and even those children who will never program a real computer will benefit from the app because it makes learning a fun based activity and nurtures logical thinking and sequencing. Code Adventure is not only challenging but also highly entertaining and addictive. Coding can often be very difficult to teach, especially for younger children, and this application really helps by introducing difficult concepts such as loops, conditionals and functions in a simple way. 

Code Adventures: Coding Puzzles for Kids is by far one of the best visual coding applications for children and comes highly recommended by the EducationalAppstore.com