Community reviews for Hopscotch-Programming for Kids

I like this tool as it provides another easy way to teach coding. I found that this app might be overwhelming and confusing to students if they did not already have a grasp on writing lines of code. Using other tools such as code.org or tools like BeeBots help students understand the purpose of lines of code before jumping into an app like Hopscotch.

I would recommend this app to practice coding, but not necessarily to teach coding. It is advanced for students who do not understand the basics of programming. I am amazed at what some of my students are able to create and how some of my students achieve a real passion for programming. I would highly recommend this app to any teacher looking to infuse some creativity into there room as well as teach an extremely important 21st century skill.

it makes the students put on their thinking caps. its good for introduction to world of programming,

A search for videos online did result in some tutorials for the younger students that I could pause and demonstrate. Even with a small group of 8 it was difficult to keep the little ones exploring the ipad and so they lost interest while waiting for instructions.

It's very similar to the Windows-based "Scratch" program but works on the iPad.

Hopscotch really drove a lot of student driven collaboration. They would experiment, get the sprites to do something, then share with a friend. It really allowed me to be a guide on the side. I do wish the sharing and saving system was better. When working with iPads from a cart it was sometimes discouraging for students to lose their code when another student used it. Maybe a system like Scratch uses would be helpful. All in all Hopscotch is my favorite coding app for young minds who want to see their work in motion immediately.

Hopscotch is a wonderful tool to start a discussion of simple coding/programming. I felt that my students were engaged, learning and interested in a subject that could have been dry (programming/coding). The higher level kids were able to create more (a figure that was able to write their name!) and the lower level students were able to feel success in creating a working character. I will be using Hopscotch in the future with 3rd and 4th grade and will expand to teach coding to 1st and 2nd grade as well. My only critique would be to add a step by step tutorial that students would be able to access independently in order to facilitate learning beyond the typical lessons.

This app immediately captures student attention with interesting characters and easy to understand basic instructions. Students can quickly write their first program and are rewarded with immediate, positive reinforcement. The app introduces logical thinking and math based rotation and movement. Students can keep working with design using richer and more complex sprite movements. Students can also create interactive games involving variables, loop structures, character collisions and more. The website offers good introductory lesson plans for teachers with limited programming experience and individual student learning. However, students supporting each other helped build a community of coders. The Community tab for programs is an excellent way for new coders to get ideas. I was also very impressed with the immediate attention my questions received by the staff at Hopscotch.

An excellent way to introduce coding to students. The colors and characters are inviting and make the task of coding see fun and easily manageable. The drag and drop makes the process easy and the labelling on the different options are written clearly so students can understand what each block does. When the students used it in "free play" their engagement waned rather quickly as they weren't exactly sure what to do with the various components. After proposing a challenge (maze where characters had to move/ bump into the walls) the students were much more engaged and focused. We used an example maze tutorial from the scratch website as an example to get them started on their project. Without a focused project some students may not tolerate the open-ended nature of this app for a long period of time.

This app was great for introducing programming. It had a wide variety of commands to let the students write different programs. The students loved choosing the character - it just added to the fun. I liked that you could do very simple commands but could also do more complicated commands that required some math skills - like turning a certain number of degrees or scaling by using percentages. I liked the drawing tools, so the students could not only make a program that did something, they could see a finished product. That allowed me to present programming as "solving a problem".