A Tangible Programming Tool for Children to Cultivate Computational Thinking

Abstract EN

Game and creation are activities which have good potential for computational thinking skills.

In this paper we present T-Maze, an economical tangible programming tool for children aged 5–9 to build computer programs in maze games by placing wooden blocks.

Through the use of computer vision technology, T-Maze provides a live programming interface with real-time graphical and voice feedback.

We conducted a user study with 7 children using T-Maze to play two levels of maze-escape games and create their own mazes.

The results show that T-Maze is not only easy to use, but also has the potential to help children cultivate computational thinking like abstraction, problem decomposition, and creativity.