With Tek
How to start coding: your first program
To start coding, a kid writes a first program: a short list of steps that a robot does one at a time, in the order they're written. In this course your kid writes the steps for an everyday task, plays the robot game with arrow cards and a grown-up as the robot, finds and fixes a program whose cards are swapped, then does the first job on their own robot. Tek hosts four short films for kids 6 to 13, and your kid ends with a first program that works. Plan about 4 minutes of films and 30–45 minutes of practice. With Kubrio, your kid programs the robot they built in the Robotics Studio, starting with job 1 in the Program room.
All 4 lessons and the quiz are free on this page. Your kid doesn't need an account. See every lesson
Liked this lesson?
There's a whole world of this.
In Kubrio Worlds your kid explores places, asks the people who made them anything, and makes their own things. You set the screen time.
3 days free, then $49 $19 a month per kid.
▶ 1:45 tourWhat your kid makes
Your kid ends with a first program that works: a list of steps in the right order that gets a robot to its goal. On paper they keep a numbered tooth-brushing program and a set of arrow cards, and in the Robotics Studio their own robot finishes job 1.
- Ages
- 6 to 13
- Time
- 4 films, about 4 minutes, then 30–45 minutes of practice on paper, at home, and in the Robotics Studio
- You need
- Paper and a pencil, card or paper for 3 arrow cards, a toy to use as the goal, a grown-up to play the robot, a computer or tablet for the Robotics Studio in lesson 4
- Host
- Tek
The 4 lessons
Lesson 1. Steps in order
A program is a list of steps that a robot does one at a time, from the top, in the order you write them.
- Write the steps for brushing your teeth
- Number them 1, 2, 3
- Read them mixed up and see what happens
Where: Paper
Lesson 2. Be the robot
Three arrow cards (Forward, Turn left, and Turn right) make a program a grown-up can follow, one step at a time, to reach a goal.
- Draw a Forward, a Turn left, and a Turn right card
- Put a toy across the room as the goal
- Lay one card per step, top to bottom, and read them out loud
Where: At home
Lesson 3. Order matters
Swapping two cards sends the robot far from the goal, even though no card is missing. Running it one step at a time shows the first step that goes off course.
- Swap two cards on purpose and run the program
- Run it again, one step at a time
- Stop at the first step that goes off course and move the card back
Where: At home
Lesson 4. Your robot's first job
In the Robotics Studio, job 1 in the Program room is a plain list of steps. A mixed-up order stops the robot, and the right order finishes the job with 3 stars.
- Build your robot and open Program
- Pick job 1 and play the tiles in a mixed-up order
- Swap them, watch with One step, and earn 3 stars
Where: Robotics Studio
Take the quiz
Tek asks 3 questions about the films. Get 2 right and you finish the course.
Transcript
Lesson 1: Steps in order
A robot can't guess what you want. It needs steps, one after another. A list of steps like that is called a program!
You follow programs every day. Putting on your shoes? First your sock. Then your shoe.
Now swap them. Shoe first, then sock? Silly! Same steps, wrong order.
A robot reads its program from the top. It does one step. Then the next. Then the next.
So the order you write is the order it does. Every single time.
On paper, write the steps for brushing your teeth. Number them one, two, three. Then try them mixed up!
Lesson 2: Be the robot
Now let's program a real robot. Your grown-up!
Make three arrow cards. Forward means one step. Turn left and Turn right turn on the spot.
Put a toy across the room. That's the goal. Your robot starts here, facing the arrow.
Plan the path one step at a time. One card for each step, top to bottom. Forward. Forward. Turn right. Forward.
Now read the cards out loud, one at a time. Your robot does one step, then waits. It reached the toy!
Draw your three arrow cards. Pick a goal, lay out your program, and let your grown-up be the robot.
Lesson 3: Order matters
Here's the same program, with the same four cards. But two cards got swapped.
Turn right. Forward. Forward. Forward. Uh-oh! The robot ends up far from the toy.
No card is missing, and no card is wrong. Only the order changed, and that changed everything.
To fix it, run it again, one step at a time. Stop at the first step that goes the wrong way.
There! The turn came too early. Move it after the two Forwards, and run it from the start. Got it!
Swap two of your cards on purpose. Run it, find the first wrong step, and put your cards back in order.
Lesson 4: Your robot's first job
The Robotics Studio reads programs the same way. Build your robot, open Program, and pick job one.
The House robot's job: put the toy in the box. Two tiles: Grab a toy, and Put in the box.
Wrong order first. Put in the box, then Grab a toy. Press play, and the robot says: my hands are empty!
So swap them. Grab a toy first. Want to watch each line? The step button runs one line at a time.
Job done! Two lines, three stars. Every robot has a job one. The Bug robot climbs the rock, then walks to the finish.
You made your first program. Steps, in the right order, one at a time!
Free guides to practise with
Questions parents ask
What do kids learn first in coding?
Sequence: a program is a list of steps, and the computer does them one at a time, in the order they're written. Loops, if-then choices, and everything after build on it. Kids meet the same idea in Scratch, in block coding apps, and later in Python.
What age is this for?
Kids 6 to 13. Younger kids can play the robot game with a grown-up reading the cards out loud. Older kids usually move on to the next jobs, and to loops, on their own.
Does my kid need a robot kit?
No. Lessons 1 to 3 happen on paper and at home, with a grown-up as the robot. Lesson 4 uses the Robotics Studio on Kubrio, where your kid programs the robot they built there, on a computer or tablet.