Coding Game for Kids Teaching Design Thinking

This is our last Hot Dog Coding Game in the series. The focus of this game is to help kids understand when and why you need backward thinking, or thinking the end result before starting your coding project planning, or the design thinking process.

In the previous coding games, the objective of the game is singular, just one objective. However, in real world projects, there are usually more than one objectives. Sometimes these objectives are even intertwined together. This is a typical scenario to start the planning from the end. From the expected end result, think backward.

For kids who are used to linear thinking, starting from the end could be hard. For some it is hard to think in a reversed order. For others, it is hard to incorporate more than one goals at the same time. We will help them to overcome both hurdles with this coding game.

Coding Game for Backward Thinking Set Up

You just bought more buns for the restaurant, and you need to take the buns from the entrance to the kitchen. Additionally, you are asked to check the ketchup on each table and bring those empty ones to the kitchen to be refilled. On your way to kitchen, you are also asked to bring the blue bucket to the kitchen.

Coding Game for Backward Thinking Game Goal

Design and code a route that allows you to finish the tasks in the shortest time period, or the shortest codes.

Coding Game for Backward Thinking Teaching Ideas

The easy way to help kids establish the backward thinking skill is to follow the steps:
1. List out all objectives;
2. Focus on solution for ONE objective at a time;
3. Find ways to combine two (or more) solutions for different objectives into one.

After many practice, kids will start gaining the skills of starting from the end results and thinking and planning backward.

Download the Coding Game: Hot Dog Coding Game 5 – Start from the End

Also on TpT (works for VAT countries) Hot Dog Coding Game 5 – Start from the End

Coding Game for Backward Thinking Teaching Activities

1. After sharing the game goal to the kids, ask them to share their ideas. Help kids compare different ideas.

2. Ask kids to code the best route if there is only one objective: to bring the buns to the kitchen. Ask them to draw the route on the game board, then code the route, then use another clean board to test the code by executing the code.

3. Ask kids to code the best route if the only objective is to check the ketchup and bring the empty ones to kitchen. Start with drawing the route on the game board, followed by coding the route, and then testing the code on a clean game board without their drawings.

4. Ask the kids to code the best route if they just need bring the bucket to kitchen. Then go through the same planning, coding, and testing process.

5. Lastly, ask kids how they can achieve all three goals in one trip. Then go through the same process: design, code, test.

Note 1: if you have time, you can also add activities to achieve two objectives at a time, and have kids compare the differences on routes and programs (coding).

Note 2: if you are short on time and you have more than 3 kids, you can break kids into groups, and each group does a different activity, and then ask them share their design and code with everyone.

Note 3: depending on kids ability and time, you can also pick any of the two objectives as the final goal, instead of three.

Key teaching points of the coding game for backward thinking

At the end, we want kids understand
1. The final program / codes are different based on the objectives.
2. When it is hard to incorporate all objectives into planning, a good start is to focus on one objective at a time, till solutions for all objectives are found. Then the task left is just to combine all the solutions into one.

Download the Coding Game: Hot Dog Coding Game 5 – Start from the End

Also on TpT (works for VAT countries) Hot Dog Coding Game 5 – Start from the End

Looking for more Coding Games for Kids? Try the whole coding game series in this post DIY Coding Camp at Home.

You may also consider starting with Hands On Coding Toys for Kids. There are toys for all coding skill levels.