By dragging and dropping graphic sprites across the ScratchJr screen, little programmers can bring simple — and lightly interactive — scenes to life. The Lego-like, snap-together commands make the basic programs easy to create. For example, drag a cartoon cat onto a beach scene and  a small icon into the programming window to add a movement command. Then just add a “start when touched” command and snap a repeat element onto the move icon, and a tap on the cat sends the cartoon skittering across the screen.

Taking advantage of your device’s tactile interface, everything in the program is a tap or swipe away. The entire interface is well-designed to look like toys and art supplies carefully arranged on a desk, so it’s easy to engage the title’s 5- to 7-year-old target age range. And although kids left alone can easily get lost in the various options, with a little guidance, they can design, build, and enjoy their own presentations.

ScratchJr will work best when kids have lots of guided practice through structured exercises and hands-on support. Although the interface is designed to appeal to younger kids, the program still features a lot of things to click and drag around. So confusion is likely, and getting stuck is easy. But with carefully prepared lessons that walk learners step by step through the activities, in an hour or two, they should be able to modify stock programs and even start building their own interactive scenes.

Before using the app, consider doing some off-screen learning around putting steps in order, what each block represents, and how the blocks relate to actual coding languages. If you use shared tablets in your classroom, make sure kids remember which project is theirs since the app doesn’t use multiple profiles. The projects are saved locally to the device, but there are sharing options. If you have ELLs who need to access the app in a language other than English, check out the list of supported languages and update the device settings accordingly. And if you notice kids who need a bit more challenge, they can progress to Scratch!

Computer programming can be hard to learn. For younger kids, the idea of writing code is far too much to imagine when they’re just beginning to learn to read and write. So ScratchJr’s icon-driven interface is a good fit when the goal is to introduce kids to programming concepts without all the complex programming. The multiple trays, editors, and input screens take some getting used to, so it’s not as simple as handing the program to a classroom of kids. But include a little educator guidance, and ScratchJr offers a rich and challenging environment for very young programmers. Plus, it’s free, and there are educator resources on the developer’s site that can help get you started. At its best, ScratchJr may be most important for teaching a love of digital creation.

Website: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.scratchjr.android

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id895485086?uo=4&at=10laCG&ct=website

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AKGTD2E?tag=comsenmed07-20

Overall User Consensus About the App

Learner Engagement

Classic drag-and-drop mechanics combined with colorful characters make early coding logic friendly and just challenging enough.

Curriculum and Instruction

Snap-together programming blocks and a real-time building model allow kids to see their thinking come to life as they iterate.

Customer Support

On the developer’s site, there are activities, lessons, and assessments to support educators in the classroom, and the app supports multiple languages.