Coding for kids that makes something light up
Many kids learn to code on a screen that only ever shows more screen. Here the code switches on a light, plays a note or reads a button, which makes every line mean something you can see.
- A good fit for ages 11 and up
- About 20 to 40 minutes a project
- Typed code, not blocks
Projects to open
Each one runs in your browser in one click, with no account. Ages and times are suggestions.
First blink
One pin, on and off. Change the delay and see the speed change.
- Ages 11 and up
- About 20 minutes
Fade an LED
A light that breathes. The first taste of numbers controlling brightness.
- Ages 11 and up
- About 20 minutes
Read a knob
Turn a knob and watch the numbers scroll past on the serial monitor.
- Ages 11 and up
- About 25 minutes
Piezo melody
A list of notes and a loop. Rewrite it into any tune.
- Ages 11 and up
- About 30 minutes
Typed code, at a gentle pace
Mokxi uses the same C++ that real Arduino boards run. There are no drag-and-drop blocks, so it suits kids who are ready to type, often around 11 or 12. Younger children who need blocks will get on better with a block tool first, and can come here next.
Every project starts with working code. The first step is changing one number and seeing what happens, which is how most programmers start.
A path from first line to first game
Take these in order and each one adds one new idea:
- Output: make a pin go on and off (Blink).
- Timing: change how long it waits (Fade an LED).
- Input: read a button and decide what to do (Button and LED).
- Numbers: read a knob and print the value (Read a knob).
- Sequences: play a list of notes (Piezo melody).
- A whole program: a game with a score (Reaction duel).
What you need
Nothing but a browser. Mokxi is a web page. The circuit and the code run inside the browser tab, the C++ compiles there too, and nothing is downloaded or installed, so it works on a school Chromebook, a family laptop or a tablet.
Kids’ privacy, plainly
What happens to a child’s information, written from what the code does.
- Every project here opens and runs with no account, so a child never has to give a name or an email to use it.
- Saving work needs an account. A child under 13 can have one only with consent: a parent writes to us from their own email address and we confirm it, or a school gives consent for its classes.
- For a student in a class, no analytics or advertising tag loads on any page, and classmates never see each other’s email addresses.
The details, for parents and schools: Student data privacy, COPPA and FERPA
Questions
What language is it?
Arduino C++, the language real Arduino boards are programmed in. The code your child writes here is the same kind of code they would put on a real board.
Is there block coding?
No. Mokxi is typed code only. If your child is not ready to type yet, start with a block-based tool and come back when they are.
How does my child know they got it right?
The built-in lessons check each step against the running circuit and say what is still wrong in one sentence, so a learner is never left guessing.
Is my child’s data collected?
Projects open and run with no account. If your child wants to save work and is under 13, an account needs your consent first, and we confirm it with you by email.
Give it a try
Open a project, press Run, and change one thing. No account needed to start.
Free forever. Every board and part. Saves your projects. Works on Chromebooks.