Cody Block
Category: Kiddie Rider, Bicycler
Introduction:
We’d like to introduce you to a brand new Kickstarter project called: Cody Block. For parents not familiar with Kickstarter, please take a look at their Wikipedia page. Long story short, Kickstarter is an American public-benefit corporation that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life." For kids who are inventors, or makers, this is an excellent place for them to develop a prototype and understand how fundraising (or crowdfunding) works -- a huge skill needed for entrepreneurship. (NOTE: Link to Kickstarter and entrepreneurship). We will cover the idea of entrepreneurship deeper in the parent resource center.
As of today's day March 30th, (NOTE: we will change this date when we launch), the project is still developing. Cody Block has successfully finished fundraising (they exceeded their funding goal!) with the support of lots of parents and other individuals. However, they are still in the manufacturing phase of their development.
There are a lot of toys out there to introduce the basic concept of coding to your kids. Among all of them, Cody Block seems like one of the simplest. If your child is a first-time coder, Cody Block would be a great introduction to the exciting world of coding.
With the simple blocks in the building and car format, children will navigate car browsing through the city. By doing so, they will naturally learn basic coding concepts such as algorithm, sequencing, debugging, function, and logic all while they play.
Source: Cody Block Indiegogo page
Our advice is to stay in the loop by signing up for their update email with 5 CHF (It is a Zurich-based company) or follow their social media here: IG, FB, Twitter so you’ll know when they’ve officially launched and are ready for shipping.
If you don’t mind waiting after ordering, you can pre-order with a discounted price for early birds, either through their Kickstarter page or Indiegogo page (another crowdfunding platform) or directly through their official website.
Plus / discussion points:
You can simply play, but Cody Block also comes with the “City Guide”, a storybook with several exercises & adventures providing different learning outcomes.
There are no right or wrong answers in this playtime. Cody Block prompts children to come up with problems and solutions to stimulate their critical thinking.
Our Two Cents :
Let them fully enjoy understanding each block's function, do not jump in too quickly suggesting other problems. For example, if the child has started to understand left and right blocks, give them time to enjoy this accomplishment and digest the process completely by repeating it. They’ll likely move on to another block for more problem-solving.
After you think your child fully understands each block's functions, try to introduce sequencing with multiple blocks. Add a new block, one by one, and make longer sequences as they get used to it.
Move around the environment to give them different challenges—kitchen, bedroom, or even on the dining table. Kids will likely suggest moving the table or the couch to make challenges easier but propose that they embrace the challenge by saying something like, “Let’s make our car move around without moving furniture! That’s our challenge for today!”
