👩🏾‍💻 Coding in K-2: Free resources for teachers

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💡 Tips, Tools and Templates

Celebrating Computer Science Education Week in K-2

Computer Science Education Week, is celebrated this year on December 8-14, aims to inspire students and teachers to engage with computer science through activities like the "Hour of Code," which is now called an "Hour of AI".

Even though AI is now a huge focus around, well, pretty much everything, it’s still important to teach students the basics of computer science and coding even in the youngest grades. Even the most powerful AI models have humans behind them!

Below you will find useful resources for teaching computer science and coding to our youngest learners in a relatable way that’s, most importantly, easy for you to implement.

🤖 Introduction to Computer Science K-2 HyperDoc

Note: This HyperDoc is meant to be assigned as "view only", students will use the links provided to complete activities.

📖 Hello Ruby

This one is technically NOT free if you choose to buy this book. You can find this book read aloud online or in PDF form in the lessons below, however, it’s worth it to buy it. This is my (Karly’s) favorite way to introduce computer science concepts like sequencing, loops and conditionals to K-2 students.

Teaching with Hello Ruby and CSinSF

CSinSF has unplugged lessons that use movement and crafts to extend the learning through the story. These lessons are made for K-2 learners.

• Lesson 1: Ruby's Algorithms

• Lesson 2: Ruby's Dance Loops

• Lesson 3: Ruby's Big Events

• Lesson 4: Ruby's Dress Code Conditionals

🔌 Unplugged Lessons and Worksheets

Want to teach coding principles without using computers? Unplugged lessons focus on the core concept: teaching kids to think like a coder. Like prioritizing hands-on, engaging projects that build the crucial skills—resilience, critical thinking, logical reasoning, and creative problem-solving—that every computer scientist relies on daily.

🐝 Bee-Bots: Hands-on or virtual Robots

This friendly, colorful robot is a fantastic resource specifically made for K-2 students. Because it’s so easy to use, it’s ideal for integrating lessons on counting, directionality, sequencing, and estimation. It’s a wonderful way to foster engagement and tackle problem-solving in a fun, tactile way.

Teaching with Bee-Bots and CSinSF

In these units, students go beyond basic commands and build entire sequences! As they program, they automatically practice core coding behaviors: careful planning, immediate testing to see if it worked, and strong debugging skills to handle increasingly complex challenges.

Grab all of the lessons and resources for teaching computer science in this Google Drive folder.

📺 Teaching with Teachflix Junior

💻 Parts of a Computer

🎥 Video Link: Parts of a Computer: Hardware

This video introduces young learners to basic computer hardware by showing how devices like the monitor, keyboard, mouse, printer, and speakers help us see, type, click, print, and hear on a computer. Through simple analogies and playful storytelling, students see how each part has a purpose and works together. It’s a kid-friendly way to build early digital literacy and help them name the main parts of their own computers.

Ready-made video resources:

✏️ Em Builds a Robot With Hardware from Seesaw

This Computer Science lesson from Seesaw introduces students to hardware by having them watch a video to learn key vocabulary, then engage in a hands-on activity where they sort components to build a "hardware robot." Students apply this knowledge by identifying real-world examples with a partner before completing a matching task to demonstrate their understanding of hardware functions.

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