Hour of Code - Visual Programming Tool

It is a very dependable and great app for students to learn about coding. Besides allowing students to work on their problem solving skills, it really challenges their critical thinking skills and creativity, as they get to create whatever they want. The only downside to this app I would say is that it can be very easy for kids to get distracted on the website. I seen first hand that when students on working on a coding project, they might get bored and just go to play on an already published site. That is really the only downside, as it truly is a great website that teaches students how to code in a engaging way.

Scratch is a beautiful website where people can upload their own games, stories, and more! However, it isn't perfect. 1. Projects are taken down if they're reported by 4 different users. No moderation, just removal. I know this because there have been people who got angry at a project (god knows why), and so they created a bunch of alt accounts or got other people to report it, and the project was taken down. 2. There's no way to ban a user from a studio, project, forum, forum thread, or user page. This has led to lots of chainmail, project advertising, and spam. Even if you use code to ban their username from a project, they can simply use the "See Inside" feature to go into the code and remove their username from the project. 3. There's an option to download a project as a file. While this feature may seem innocent at first, it can be used for project theft. All you have to do is download the project, create a new project, upload the file, publish it, and there. You just committed Grand Theft Project. This has caused there to be thousands of clone platformer projects, all with that same stupid black and beveled cube with an eye. And yet, the general populous remains blissfully ignorant. 4. Adults are taking over Scratch. Adults with more experience have posted projects like online platformers, 3D laser-tag games, and even recreations of the game Among Us! This drowns out the projects of hard-working kids. In words you ancient adults will understand, trying to make a popular project as a starter (or a novice kid) is like trying to get a job in Hollywood acting.

Overall, this resource has been around for more than a decade and it's still one of the best block based coding program that's popular with children. I don't doubt the capabilities whatsoever. Some critical advice for this resource however is that it's easy for kids to get distracted here. If kids are busy trying to code their first project, they could end up losing focus and going along to play other games that are published on the website. I don't really know what can be done about this, but aside from that, it's the best resource to learn the basics of coding.