PickCode – An educational coding environment for students after Scratch
PickCode is designed for use on desktop and tablet, and supports creating chatbots, visual designs, and 2D games. There is plenty of functionality missing - you can't add media to games for instance, but the current version shows off the foundation of what I'm aiming at. I taught myself to code using MIT's App Inventor, so I have an enormous respect for block based languages like App Inventor, Scratch, Snap!, MakeCode, etc. PickCode is my attempt at adding options for students who want to learn more about programming without making the jump to text, or as an alternative to block coding for…
In plain words
PickCode is an educational coding environment for students transitioning beyond visual block languages like Scratch. It runs on desktop and tablet and lets users create chatbots, visual designs, and 2D games using a visual programming approach. Designed as a bridge between block-based coding and text programming, PickCode aims to help students progress without the steep jump to traditional coding while enabling them to build projects they can be proud of quickly.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
In the maker’s words, at launch
PickCode is designed for use on desktop and tablet, and supports creating chatbots, visual designs, and 2D games. There is plenty of functionality missing - you can't add media to games for instance, but the current version shows off the foundation of what I'm aiming at. I taught myself to code using MIT's App Inventor, so I have an enormous respect for block based languages like App Inventor, Scratch, Snap!, MakeCode, etc. PickCode is my attempt at adding options for students who want to learn more about programming without making the jump to text, or as an alternative to block coding for beginners coming to programming at an older age. The visual language is meant to lower the barrier to entry to coding but the far more important aspect for me is giving students the ability to make things they're proud of as quickly as possible. A JS/Python API for controlling the chatbot and game engine are in the works. As of now, there are sample programs to play with and an editor which saves your programs to local storage. Full user accounts, tutorials and administrator accounts for teachers to organize assignments are on their way soon. If you're interested in using PickCode in a classroom or want to discuss feedback, send me an email at [email protected]
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