Code for the Planet: Celebrate Earth Week with These 6 Computer Science Activities

Computer science and coding have major connections to the environment, from open-source online platforms that monitor forests to Artificial Intelligence that improves efficiency in energy production while reducing environmental risk. For Earth Week, we’ve compiled a list of games and activities that will bolster kids’ skills and open their eyes to the real-world potential of making an impact through coding and computer science.

Grades K-2: 

Animal Themed Coding Activities for Beginners (Unplugged!): These 5 unplugged print-and-go activities that teach kids about following directional codes will thrill the young animal lovers in your life.

Beach Clean Up: How can we protect the animals that live in the ocean? Learn programming using basic commands to help clean up the beach and protect aquatic life.

Save the Forest from Microsoft MakeCode Arcade

Grades 3+

AI For Oceans: Train artificial intelligence (AI) to clean up the ocean through this series of activities that explores AI, machine learning, training data, and bias, all while exploring ethical issues and how AI can be used to address real world problems. 

Save the Forest: In this action-packed activity, learners will code a game that recreates the conditions for a forest fire and then create a fire-fighting airtanker plane to spray water and put out the flames.

Grades 6+

Code your own colossal squid game: Did you know colossal squid are the largest invertebrates in the world? This coding game teaches the basics of coding through the creation of a game that explores the squid's life under the sea. 

Climate Clock: When human-induced climate change causes a temperature increase of 1.5°C, it will be irreversible. Code this Climate Clock to understand how important it is to fight climate change now.