Primary Computing Hacks (for busy teachers)
My colleague asked his 8-year-old son what he did in his Computing lesson that week at his outstanding school in Ealing, West London.
“We just did Times Tables Rockstars.”
But is that really ‘Computing’? I suppose it's close enough. I'm personally a big advocate for games-based learning, for all the obvious reasons. But isn't that a Maths lesson?
Now, don't get me wrong. I know class teachers are pulled in every direction, buried under piles of marking and differentiating for an ever-widening attainment gap. I know that something has to give (and it's often Computing).
So if only there were free apps or websites that were like TT Rockstars - with levels and progression and pupils able to lead their own learning and go at their own pace.
Well, there are.
Image created using Adobe Firefly
Code Spark Academy allows players to learn coding concepts through level-based puzzles, design platform games and program role-playing adventures. All with minimal teacher input. Kids don't even need to use a complicated login: the teacher generates a class code, displays it on the board and the kids type it in and find their name. Then they're away.
Oh, and it's free for schools.
Kodable is the same. Hits the national curriculum objectives of sequence, repetition, conditionals (if statements). You, the teacher, can demo a couple of levels, discuss what a repeat loop is (it repeats the sequence of code inside it) and model the process of testing and adding code until you complete the level. Then let the kids loose: thinking logically, debugging, decomposing a problem into smaller parts; all those juicy things the curriculum calls for. And the free version is easily enough.
Image from Adobe Express
Now I'm not saying you shouldn't teach Computing in a more ‘traditional’ way (whatever that means) but there are so many benefits to pupils learning coding and computational thinking through a game:
You are less likely to have 30 pupils all stuck on their program (they can also help each other)
The learning is progressive
It's engaging
It gives immediate feedback on your code and usually has a visual way of highlighting the bug (error) in your code
It takes the focus and the onus off the teacher and onto the learner
These game-based coding apps don't fit neatly into a Teach Computing or an Oak Academy curriculum - and those organisations likely see their inclusion in their curriculum as too high risk. But if you can be flexible, you can create space for these enriching coding experiences which compliment the more traditional Scratch programming.
And you'll be working smarter not harder.
Through this blog, I'm going to be sharing free tools and strategies that I've developed and refined over the past decade as a specialist Primary Computing teacher. These tools are designed to:
Engage learners actively
Deepen and reinforce learning concepts
Improve classroom behavior
Offer a visual and inclusive approach to learning
Allow students to progress at their own pace and ability level
Prioritise the emotional experience of students
Encourage creativity and experimentation
Leverage digital technology for interactive and immediate feedback
Reduce teacher workload
Image sourced and edited in Adobe Express
If you're interested in making your Computing lessons more fun and student-friendly, follow me on LinkedIn and Twitter/X. I'll be sharing insights, tips, and free resources to enhance digital learning and make computing education more engaging for students and easier for busy teachers to deliver.
