Now that their school is out for the summer, I was looking for a simple yet fun way for the kids to learn programming. There are plenty of programming languages I could start them on but that seemed like it might seem like too much work.
Thanks to a blog post from Marshall Brain, though, I found this Adobe Flash game called Light-Bot. Players devise a series of commands to move Light-Bot across a grid and light up all the blue tiles on the grid. The number of commands the player can use is limited and there are two functions that the player can use to automate repetitive tasks. Using these tools, the player can have fun playing while at the same time learn a little about logic and programming.
To say it has been a success would be an understatement. Light-Bot is addictive! I’ve never seen my kids so focused as they were while solving these puzzles. Even I couldn’t stop until I completed my levels, and Kelly has now been sucked into the game, too! The kids seem to really understand the concepts behind the fun and that makes for a great foundation for learning how to program.