Programs & challenges
Curated programs & challenges resources within coding for curious kids and their grown-ups.
← All Coding resources
121 resources · Programs & challenges
NASA Learning Resources
NASA student and educator resources with STEM activities, missions, videos, challenges, careers, and family learning ideas.
Astro Pi Mission Zero
ESA and the Raspberry Pi Foundation invite young people to write beginner Python programs that run on Astro Pi computers aboard the International Space Station.
ScratchJr
A playful first coding app where young children create interactive stories and games with picture-based programming blocks.
University of Toronto Grades 1–12 Math Programs
The University of Toronto Math Outreach Office offers seasonal math enrichment and online Python coding programmes for students in grades 1–12.
Astro Pi European Space Coding Challenge 2026/27
The official Astro Pi challenge gives young people the chance to write Python programs that run on Raspberry Pi computers in space, with beginner Mission Zero and advanced Mission Space Lab pathways for the 2026/27 season.
Raspberry Pi Computing Curriculum
The Raspberry Pi Foundation curriculum provides free, structured computing resources for ages 5–16, including localized materials, programming, AI and computer-science learning pathways.
ESA CanSat
The European Space Agency CanSat program challenges teams to design, build and launch a soda-can-sized satellite, then collect and analyse mission data.
MicroBlocks
A free, live block-programming environment for making interactive projects with microcontrollers, sensors, lights, and motors.
Code for Life
Free coding courses and creative programming activities for children, with guided learning paths for school and home.
Code Club
Free coding clubs, projects, and community support that help young people create with code.
NASA JPL STEM Activities for Families
A NASA JPL collection of family STEM activities spanning engineering, science, technology, computer science, mathematics, rockets, space missions, and design challenges.
Canadian Space Agency Space Brain Hack
A Canadian Space Agency challenge collection for grades 6–12 that asks learners to design solutions for astronaut mental health, food production, and sustainable satellites.
Brown University Artemis Coding Program
Brown University’s Artemis program offers free, supportive computer-science learning for Providence-area students in grades 5–8 through Microbits, Scratch, and Python tracks.
Coding for Climate
Coding for Climate is a free online global classroom collaboration where students explore climate challenges, learn coding and computational thinking, and design solutions across land, water, energy and ocean leagues.
Code.org Computer Science for Ages 5–11
Code.org’s elementary student hub provides free AI literacy and computer science activities for ages 5–11, including Hour of AI, pre-reader courses, programming challenges, Music Lab, Sprite Lab, and curriculum links.
ESA Moon Camp Challenge 2026/27
The ESA Moon Camp Challenge invites students aged 5–16 to design a space habitat using creative tools such as arts and crafts, 3D design, robotics and videogames while exploring how people could live on the Moon or another celestial body.
ESA Education 2026–2027 School Projects
The European Space Agency’s 2026–27 school-project overview connects children and teens with space-themed science, coding, environmental investigation, astronaut training, and design challenges.
Raspberry Pi Learn to Code
Raspberry Pi’s free learning hub connects children and educators with Code Club, code-at-home projects, AI and hardware activities, Astro Pi, and Coolest Projects.
Kodu Game Lab
A visual game-making environment for children to build 3D worlds, stories, and games with simple programming tiles.
Snap!
A browser-based visual programming language that extends Scratch with custom blocks and deeper computer-science ideas.
FIRST LEGO League
A guided robotics and STEM program where children build, code, collaborate, and solve real-world challenges.
KID Museum
A hands-on maker museum with coding, robotics, engineering, electronics, woodshop, textiles, and design challenges.
Code.org Computer Science Fundamentals
A beginner elementary computer-science curriculum with grade-specific courses, unplugged activities, programming, games, animations, and teacher support for kindergarten through fifth grade.
Raspberry Pi Code Club Projects
More than 200 free step-by-step coding and creative-technology projects covering Scratch, Python, web development, AI, physical computing, nature, music, art, and science.
ScratchJr
ScratchJr is a free introductory programming environment for young children. The official MIT project page describes a block-based app for ages 5–7 that lets children create interactive stories and games.
Rice 24/7 CSEd Resources
Rice University’s School Mathematics Project curates free computer-science resources for children and families, including Code Break, Hour of Code, and CS Fundamentals Express.
UT Austin Academy for All
UT Austin Computer Science offers a free residential summer academy for rising high-school seniors, combining Arduino or Python/AI projects with teamwork, campus life, and technology-career exploration.
micro:bit Teach Featured
The official micro:bit Teach Featured hub gathers age-banded units of work, coding projects, AI-literacy lessons, design challenges, classroom resources, events, and free professional-development courses for young learners and educators.
Museum of Science Boston Youth Programs
The Museum of Science Boston Youth Programs page gathers high-school STEM opportunities including science series, computer-science events, a 2026 innovation hackathon, biotechnology and renewable-energy workshops, MEDscience, and internships.
Hedy
A free, open-source, multilingual gradual text-programming environment for classroom learners aged 10+; browser lessons support stories, drawings, games, and apps.
Microsoft MakeCode for micro:bit
Microsoft MakeCode for micro:bit is a browser coding environment with block-based and text programming, tutorials, games, projects, search, import, and optional account features for young makers.
Coding with Kids
Coding with Kids provides live online and in-person classes, camps, school programmes, robotics, engineering, game design, Python, Minecraft modding, and age-progressive coding and AI projects for children and teens.
NASA STEM Opportunities and Activities for Students
NASA’s official opportunities hub collects student challenges, robotics and coding activities, design projects, internships, and other STEM pathways for middle-school, high-school, college, and university learners.
ISRO YUVIKA Young Scientist Programme
The Indian Space Research Organisation’s YUVIKA programme introduces school children to space technology, space science, and space applications through a selective young-scientist experience.
MIT App Inventor
A block-based platform for building and testing Android apps while learning programming concepts.
TeachEngineering
Standards-aligned engineering lessons, activities, and design challenges for K–12 learners.
Alice
A creative programming environment for building 3D stories, animations, and games while learning computational thinking and object-oriented programming.
Pencil Code
A free collaborative coding space for drawing, music, games, stories, webpages, math, and creative programming.
Computerphile
Interviews and demonstrations about computers, programming, cybersecurity, algorithms, hardware, and computer science.
Alguni
Coding lessons for kids ages 8–15 covering Python, JavaScript, C/C++, digital logic, Git, math, AI, robotics, and competitive programming.
MicroObservatory Robotic Telescope Network
A Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and Center for Astrophysics program that lets learners control robotic telescopes online and explore real astronomy images.
NASA For Students Grades 9–12
NASA’s high-school collection connects students with STEM challenges, career spotlights, interactives, NASA+, Artemis activities, podcasts, and space-science projects.
CodingTeading
CodingTeading is a nonprofit education group that shares free browser-based coding and AI programmes, from early block coding and no-reading puzzles to game making, science, maths, and AI exploration.
StarCode
A free robotics and coding environment that lets children build robot programs with blocks and move toward Python, C++, and Java on web, desktop, Android, and Chromebook.
Digital Guardian
An age-banded K–12 online-safety curriculum with practical lessons and challenges for privacy, game chat, cyberbullying, AI, and what to do when something feels wrong online.
Block Coding Lab
Free interactive programming games that teach sequences, loops, logic, CSS, JavaScript, and procedural drawing through browser puzzles and learning paths.
Code.org AI Foundations
A free high-school AI and computer-science curriculum covering AI literacy, the internet, cybersecurity, data, ethics, bias, JavaScript, web development, and responsible AI creation.
Surrey Libraries Kids & Families
Surrey Libraries’ Kids & Families page connects families with storytimes, early-literacy programs, reading support, book lists, coding kits, digital resources, and children’s media.
Greater Boston STEM Program
The Greater Boston STEM Program provides free introductory computer science, math, engineering, and science enrichment for elementary and middle-school students through remote or in-person small-group classes.
Boise State Kidsteam
Boise State University’s Kidsteam invites children to help design technology with researchers through free twice-weekly after-school sessions involving drawing, programming, problem solving, and collaborative making.
UArizona Girls Who Code Club
The University of Arizona’s Girls Who Code club offers free Saturday coding classes for grades 6–12, including Python, Arduino, robotics, AI, website development, and game projects.
ESA Education YouTube
The European Space Agency’s education video hub offers space-STEM explainers, experiments, student mission documentaries, expert interviews, and behind-the-scenes learning videos.
UTD Summer Math Camps 2026
The University of Texas at Dallas 2026 Summer Math Camps offer five-week programmes for high-school students in Mathematical Adventures, SAT Math, and Mathematics Behind Artificial Intelligence, with in-person and online components.
KID Museum Invent the Future Expo
KID Museum’s Invent the Future Expo showcases young people’s creative technology and making projects, encouraging children and teens to imagine and build solutions to real-world challenges.
ESA Back to School Student Space Projects
The European Space Agency’s teacher page presents student projects including Astro Pi, Moon Camp, and CanSat to inspire classroom space and engineering learning.
Blockly Games
A sequence of browser games that introduce programming logic through visual blocks.
KidsCanCode
Python, game-development, and creative coding lessons for children and teens, with beginner pathways and classroom programs.
Solve It! for Kids
A science and engineering podcast that introduces children to real scientists, engineers, and experts, then invites listeners to tackle a problem-solving challenge of their own.
Code Club World
The Raspberry Pi Foundation’s free coding game hub helps children make characters, T-shirts, music, games, art, websites, and more while earning project badges.
North Vancouver City Library Children’s Community Hub
A public-library children’s hub with storytimes, take-and-make kits, kid-friendly meditation, homework help, digital picture books, and family programs.
Tutorfic Code Club
A free browser coding club with guided lessons and projects spanning blocks, HTML, JavaScript, SQL, and Python, with no sign-up or ads.
Raspberry Pi Foundation Teaching Resources
Free classroom resources for computing and AI, including curriculum materials, lesson plans, worksheets, assessments, Code Club support, Experience AI, and projects for school-age learners.
Code.org Computer Science Discoveries
A flexible middle-school computer-science curriculum covering animations and games, design, data and society, app creation with devices, physical computing, AI, and creative problem solving.
Sphero Coding Apps
Sphero’s official app collection supports robotics and STEAM learning with drawing, block-based, Python, and JavaScript programming, plus a browser-based Sphero Edu experience.
DevTech Children and Families
Boston College’s DevTech Research Group offers family coding activities using ScratchJr and KIBO, including family coding days, beginner workshops, and child-friendly robotics and storytelling projects.
CoKids Screen-Free Coding Kit & App
A bilingual screen-free coding kit using board and card play, with an offline companion app for computational thinking at home or school.
FIRST Resource Library
FIRST’s resource library connects teams, families, educators, and young people with STEM, robotics, teamwork, and challenge resources across FIRST programs.
Brisbane Libraries
Brisbane City Council’s library service gives families access to free library membership, children’s stories and learning programmes, ebooks, audiobooks, online games, digital resources, and a library app.
Girls Who Code
Coding clubs, lessons, pathways, and community programs designed to support girls and nonbinary students in computing.
Greenfoot
A beginner-friendly programming environment where learners create games and simulations with visual worlds and real Java code.
TurtleStitch
A free, open-source coding and textile platform where learners turn visual programs into embroidery patterns and physical designs.
Markham Public Library Kids Makerspace
A library makerspace guide featuring screen-free programmable toys such as Botley and Code-a-Pillar, with instructions and recommended ages for hands-on coding play.
KokeLab
KokeLab offers kids learning games and projects in programming, math, science, and drawing, with a free-to-start browser experience aimed at ages 4–12.
Trinket by Strive Math
A free, community-hosted, open-source browser coding platform for writing and running Python, HTML, Java, and interactive courses without downloads.
Hello Ruby Play
A free collection of playful computer-science, programming, mathematics, and digital-literacy activities from the Hello Ruby project. Activities include puzzles, algorithms, geometry, counting, secret codes, internet safety, and hands-on making.
CoddyKit Learn JavaScript for Kids
CoddyKit’s beginner coding app starts with tappable JavaScript, then builds through block puzzles, short courses, missions, and a code editor for young learners.
PrimaSTEM
A screen-free coding and mathematics system in which children program a physical robot with tokens to solve mazes, sequences, geometry, and drawing challenges.
Arludo
A free STEM platform where children ages 8–12 explore science through learning islands, experiments, games, challenges, scientist stories, and career pathways.
The Code of Nature
EU Code Week’s early-learning activity combines unplugged or Bee-Bot-style coding with outdoor observation missions about trees, water, soil, gardens and protecting nature.
EDC IDEAS Maker Program
Education Development Center’s IDEAS project is an inventing, designing, and engineering maker program for students and informal STEM learning.
FIRST LEGO League Technical Resources
FIRST LEGO League technical resources support teams with robot-building, programming, engineering design, and challenge-season guidance.
MadaTech Summer-Tech
MadaTech’s Summer-Tech programme offers daily summer workshops for children in grades 1–6, combining museum-based experiments, technology, and hands-on STEM activities.
FIRST Program Options
FIRST offers age-banded team robotics programs that introduce children and teens to engineering, programming, design, collaboration, and competition.
VisualModder
A free browser-based coding environment where children program inside Minecraft Java using drag-and-drop blocks and Python.
OC Public Libraries Kids & Family
Orange County Public Libraries’ kids and family hub offers library services, reading and learning links, children’s programming, and digital resources for young patrons.
FIRST LEGO League Family Engagement Resources
FIRST LEGO League family-engagement resources help adults support teamwork, confidence, curiosity, and children’s participation in robotics challenges.
ScienceKid
ScienceKid is a free supplementary STEM platform with real-world quizzes, adventure tracks, badges, and short interactive challenges across science, math, engineering, and technology.
Black Girls CODE
Computer-science education and community programs created to introduce Black girls to technology and digital making.
TypingClub
A structured touch-typing curriculum with browser lessons, practice, progress tracking, and school tools for learners.
codeSpark Academy
A game-based coding platform for children with coding challenges, creative projects, and activities designed for early learners.
Peer Programming
Free one-to-one online coding mentorship connecting K–12 students with volunteer instructors across Python, web development, databases, and other languages.
SparkDen
A nonprofit teen coding program providing free cloud hosting, mentorship, and a monitored community for young people shipping their own projects.
HanuLab
A bilingual coding and AI playground with unplugged games, block programming, and hundreds of game-like stages for children.
Markham Public Library Learning Place
A public-library program hub for children and families with age-banded STEAM, coding, animation, and creative technology learning opportunities.
Mia & Codie: Coding for Kids
Mia & Codie combines short story episodes with visible sequencing and coding challenges so young children can explore computational thinking, early logic, patterns, and creative problem-solving without needing to read independently.
Applaa AI Academy
Applaa’s desktop AI Academy offers interactive coding lessons, challenges, quizzes, and tracks covering Python, JavaScript, web development, databases, games, AI, and robotics.
Virginia Tech CodeKids
Virginia Tech’s CodeKids project provides free child-facing coding resources and stories designed to make computer science approachable and engaging.
QwikXR
A browser-based coding platform where learners explore 3D worlds through Blockly, JavaScript, and Python simulations, with ready-made missions and remixable projects.
Alamance County Library Kids
Alamance County Public Libraries’ children’s hub combines early-literacy programs, storytimes, virtual tours, digital resources, coding links, and family reading activities.
Plethora
Plethora uses game-based challenges to teach computational thinking, logical reasoning, problem solving, and computer-science foundations without requiring prior coding.
Syracuse University Kids + Coding Resources
Syracuse University Engineering@Syracuse presents a collection of coding tools and educator tips for introducing children to programming, with linked explainers on coding terms, teaching approaches, languages, and learning tools.
iD Tech Online Coding Camp 2027
iD Tech’s official online program page presents live coding camps and lessons for children and teens, with options covering programming, game development, robotics and creative technology.
RoboNinja
RoboNinja is a free student-built guide to competitive robotics, with self-paced lessons in building, CAD, programming, engineering notebooks, and interactive simulations.
Sphero Robotics Missions
Sphero Robotics Missions are age-banded robotics challenges for indi, BOLT, RVR, and the Sphero Robotics Competition, combining programming, engineering, and hands-on robot work.
Discover Coding
Discover Coding offers hands-on and online coding programs from block coding through Python, Minecraft, web, app, 3D, and design projects.
Train the Future
Train the Future is a Berlin coding school that guides children through visual programming, Python, robotics, Roblox game design, and AI pathways.
CodeCombat
A game-based coding environment where learners write real code to guide characters through challenges.
FromOne
A playful learning platform combining Python space missions with mental-math challenges, built around short interactive levels and progress.
Soulxer
A free browser collection of coding games and courses where children solve challenges, repair broken pages, and practise reading code without an account.
BluPants
BluPants is a browser-based coding environment for programming real robots, with visual blocks, a path toward Python, video lessons, and online-class support.
P3 Robotics & Coding Programs
P3 offers age-banded robotics and coding tracks including RoboKIDS, RoboKIT, Scratch, Python, and Young AI Makers.
The Lab Singapore
The Lab is a Singapore technology school offering progressive coding, robotics, AI, LEGO, Python, and Unity programs for children and teens.
Ultimate Coders
Ultimate Coders provides progressive coding, robotics, AI, and math programs from visual first projects through Python, web, app, and machine-learning pathways.
Coding for Kids
An interactive browser playground that teaches programming through beginner coding, Python, and advanced Python courses.
Wovi
A pre-launch AI-learning world for ages 9–13 with browser missions that teach agents, classification, data literacy, testing, and reflection.
GetSetKode
GetSetKode is a browser-based first coding adventure where children guide a robot through short puzzles using Python-style logic.
Loop
Loop is an Israeli technology education provider with age-banded coding, robotics, web development, app development, Arduino, and entrepreneurship programs.
Code Ninjas Programs
Code Ninjas programs give children structured pathways through game coding, ScratchJr, AI, robotics, digital art, camps, and STEM challenges.
Bricks 4 Kidz Calgary Robotics & Coding
Bricks 4 Kidz Calgary offers LEGO robotics and coding programs using WeDo, micro:bit, Scratch, SPIKE Prime, and Mindstorms challenges.
Snapology Alpharetta Programs
Snapology Alpharetta offers playful STEM classes including Junior Builders, coding, robotics, FIRST LEGO League, gamebots, and invention challenges.
DIY
A kid-focused creative platform for building games and projects with AI-assisted tools, challenges, and guided making experiences.