Looking for alternatives to Scratch?

Looking for some great Scratch alternatives? Scratch seems to have become the go-to software for schools trying to teach the new computing curriculum.  It is simple and more importantly totally free.  It is the perfect fit for the computing curriculum at primary but is it the only way?

Now don’t get me wrong, I love Scratch and think it is awesome. There is a danger however that some of our students could become ‘scratched to death.’ I want to look at a number of other options there exist out there. I use quite a few of the resources below to supplement our curriculum, to challenge the more able and to inject something a little different to break up the repetitiveness of the same software for several years.

So why look for a Scratch alternative? 

Here are some compelling reasons:

• Lack of training when using scratch. This could be on behalf of the teacher and student.
• Teachers cannot monitor what students are creating in scratch. Inappropriate material may be used by the student that the teacher would have no knowledge of until they view the final scratch project

Top Scratch Alternatives

There are many wonderful Scratch alternatives available. Some of them are free to use while some Scratch alternatives are paid and created for schools. Here we have listed and reviewed the best alternatives to Scratch.

SNAP! (Formerly BYOB)

This is very similar to Scratch in many ways.  Developed at Berkley in the USA it has a few tricks up its sleeve. Snap allows you to be a bit more complicated and creative.  It allows for more use of variables, as well as creating your own blocks.  This is handy as often Scratch requires the same pairs of blocks all the time.

Tynker

Tynker is a closed platform kids coding solution that introduces kids to visual block coding and gradually moves them into text-based coding as they progress. Similar to Scratch, one other cool feature that Tynker has developed gives kids the ability to share their projects on Tynker’s community server, while allowing kids to click “Remix”  to see the visual block source code. This can be really helpful for kids that are inspired by the work of others and who want to make their own version of the shared game.

KODU

Kodu is Microsoft’s game design platform.  Originally created as a game creation app for the Xbox, it is also available on PC for free.  It produces simple games with stunning 3d graphics.  The big win here is that you can plug in an Xbox controller to play your games.  The interface is very intuitive and fun.

Hour of code

Hour of code provides wide range of coding resources categorized by subject for K12 students offered for free by a non-profit. This is the behemoth of a site supported by the American Government, Facebook and numerous app developers.  It is all free to use and there is a wealth of tutorials in all kinds of languages.

Erase all Kittens

Erase All Kittens is the first game designed from the ground-up to inspire young people to code, and teach them practical coding languages, via highly gamified, story-driven gameplay. An incredibly fun way to learn HTML.  Although HTML is not strictly a programming language, it requires children to code.  This is an irreverent mix of coding and cat gifs.

Code Kingdoms

Code Kingdoms is a free game that uses JavaScript to allow kids to create their own Minecraft Mods and learn programming. If your kid is obsessed with Minecraft, this tool can help them explore their interest in an educational way. Code Kingdoms is meant for ages 8 to 14, but younger kids who are already familiar with Minecraft might enjoy the tools as well. This is a paid site, but an excellent resource for children to learn to code in JavaScript.  Children explore the kingdom and have to use pieces of code to solve problems and overcome obstacles.

Microbit Portal

Although the microbits themselves are as rare are unicorns, you can use the online emulator for free.  It allows you to code a virtual Microbit in JavaScript, Blockly, Python and touch develop.  Blockly is a language similar to the Scratch interface.

CodeCombat

CodeCombat is a great tool for gaming kids who want to navigate mazes, hunt assassins, and discover buried treasure. Most kids forget that they’re even supposed to be learning when they play this game, much less discovering the principles of programming. If your child is nervous about diving into the principles of computer science (or you’re worried about teaching them) consider starting with this game to spark an interest and take the pressure off of learning to code.

Barclays’ Code Playground

High street bank Barclays have a whole site devoted to helping parents and children work together to learn how to code.  You can change the variables on the site (using JavaScript) to see how it changes the behaviours of the characters.

Turtle Academy

Learn to code using the LOGO language.  Logo is out of fashion somewhat now but still has a place.

One of my other favourite toys to play with is X-ray Specs. It allows you to peek at and change ANY website.  Do not worry it is not actually changing the real page but allows pupils to see what is ‘under the hood’ and experiment.  It creates a local copy of the page.  It is also a lot of fun!

There is a whole host of apps available for tablets too.  I can recommend Lightbot, Kodeable, Cargobot and A.L.E.X.   They are all very simple and accessible for younger children. ScratchJr is an introductory programming language that enables young children to create their own interactive stories and games.

The key success behind many of these activities is that children do not feel like they are learning.  It I fun to them.  Lee Parkinson, a leading CPD provider, talks of ‘camouflage learning’, the idea of children learning through fun activities.

Finally, it is also possible to teach much of the computing curriculum unplugged from a computer.  While that sounds highly counter intuitive, it works.  Much of the computing curriculum is about creating, improving and following sets of instructions.  This can be achieved in fun ways through PE or other cross-curricular activities.

There is an excellent book available here that has pages and pages of activities that can support the curriculum without having to touch a computer.

Whatever resources you choose to use to achieve this it must be used in fun and engaging ways.  Children can design their own games, rather than copying sections of code. This is the difference between creative writing and copying out a passage of text by an author. While the content of the second may be better, the learning taking place in the former is much greater.

While you can decompose the work of others to understand why it has been created in that way, we need to create original content using problem solving skills to do so. Most importantly, enjoy exploring the wealth of resources available out there for the learning of coding including our collection of coding apps for kids.