Many of the projects done by students in our computer department classes use software that is free for download onto home computers (mac, pc, and linux in most cases) and some of them also work on web devices including chromebooks, tablets, and phones.
PS: a shortcut for jumping to this website is tinyurl.com/sacc-software2 (please include the suffix "2" or you will end up on our old discontinued site.)
Please see our DEI page for samples of software that encourages discussion and thought about diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Please see our third grade page for samples and safety reviews of software for third grade students.
Here are some of our favorite free and open-source programs, with links to their web pages and download pages. (Our links here will not cause the downloads to actually start.) (The short address to get back to this page is http://tinyurl.com/sacc-software2 and we also have a tinyurl.com/sacc-movies channel which includes videos by our students showing their animation and programming.)
Alice [downloads page...] (Grades 3-12. Easily build and animate landscapes with interactive 3D buildings, creatures, and people. Mac & Windows. Note: we use Alice 2, not Alice 3.)
Arduino [downloads page...] (Grades 7-12. Download your programs to micro-controllers. Mac & Windows.)
Autodesk software for 3D (including 123d design, 123d catch, 123d make, 123d creature.) (Grades 5-12. Also for ipad. Import and design 3D objects. Mac & Windows.)
Blender [downloads page...] (Grades 7-12. Build 3D shapes and scenes by combining polygons. Has steeper learning curve than sketchup. Mac & Windows.)
BlueJ [downloads page...] (Grades 5-12. Java editing and testing. Mac & Windows.)
Brackets (Grades 9-12 and keen middle-schoolers) - open-source IDE for web development in HTML, CSS, and Javascript. Mac & Windows.
Eclipse [downloads page...] (Grades 9-12. Java and C++ Integrated Development Environment (IDE) for power users. Mac & Windows.)
Girihdesigner.com [our instructions for this online tool] (Make designs with “girih” Islamic decorative tiles. Works on newer web browsers that understand webgl, such as google chrome 47 and safari 9.)
Github [download pages for mac..., for windows..., for linux...] (Grades 9-12. Online storage for collaborative open-source public software projects. Mac & Windows.)
Golly - a free program that lets you explore the famous "Game of Life" by mathematician John Conway (available for Mac, PC, Android, and iPad)
Inkscape [downloads page...] (Grades 5-12) Powerful free software for making vector-graphic designs. Mac & Windows.
LiveCode [downloads page...] (Grades 3-12. Learn to program with buttons and text fields and drawings. Mac & Windows & Linux.)
MeshMixer [downloads page...] (Middle and High School) Tool for working with 3D models as "meshes" - useful for editing and cleaning-up models, and for playing in an intuitive and sculptural way.
OnShape [online tool] (Middle and High School) Online CAD (computer assisted design) software that runs in the browser. Good for making 3D models for printing.
p5.js [downloads page...] (Grades 5-12) This is a version of Processing (see above) that runs with Javascript in the browser. Mac & Windows.
Processing [downloads page...] (Grades 5-12. Create colorful interactive artistic graphic programs using Java. Here's a colorful sample of swaying branches. Mac & Windows.)
Scratch [download page for offline use... (as we do) or use it online (parent info)] (Grades 3-10. Very easy way to program interactive animated characters. Mac & Windows.)
Sculptris [has "free download" button in middle of page] (Grades 5-12. Pinch and pull onscreen to build 3D shapes & sculptures.)
Sketchup [downloads page...] (Grades 3-12. Easily create buildings and furnishings in 3D; Mac & Windows.)
Snowflake Maker - website that lets you design intricate and/or unrealistic paper cut-out snowflakes. Surprisingly fun.
Tinkercad.com [online tool] (Grades 5-12. Design 3D objects for 3D printing.)
Typingagent.com [(Grades 3-12. Learn to type with home-row position. Instructions below.)
Typing.com - our previous online typing website. Please see info about our current program, TypingAgent, below.
It is highly recommended that with this program—or any other typing program—students use "home row" hand position and use the lessons instead of the games because students so often get excited in the games and forget about their hand position, making their "practice" pretty much useless.
Unity3D [downloads page...] (Grades 7-12. Build interactive 3D games with physics and javascript programming. Seems to require a free account.)
X-Plane [downloads page of free Demo...] (grades 4-12. Use your mouse to fly airplanes with realistic physics. We are using it in the "Pilot School" seminar. Mac, Windows, Linux. The demo allows you to fly many planes from the airports in the Seattle vicinity, and save scenarios and replays, but you can only fly for 20 minutes at a time: then have to quit and re-start the program. No such limitations in the $60 version which has airports and scenery for the whole world.)
If you have suggestions for more, please send a note to mroam at saintannsny.org
Affinity is a new competitor to the more famous Photoshop, but only costs $50. Available for Mac and PC.
Bbedit is a text-editor that costs around $50.
Kerbal Space Program (KSP) [downloads page] (Grades 3-12; $39). The demo version was free and awesome but isn't available anymore. Easily create rockets in 3D; launch them and try to reach the moon. Here's a public wiki, and here's our “how-to-fly” page which provides a quick intro to using the old demo. Mac & Windows.)
Photoshop - is the classic and still industry-standard photo editing software. Adobe has recently switched to a cloud-based subscription model - your mileage may vary.
The online tutorial Dash, by General Assembly, is an excellent (and free!) introduction to using HTML, CSS, and Javascript to make modern-feeling web pages.
We use Bbedit text editor and award-winning Affinity Photo graphic editor—both work great but cost money (around $50). (We switched to Affinity Photo in Fall 2016 rather than pay subscription to Photoshop -- Affinity is now available for both Mac and PC, and is highly recommended!) Free alternatives are Atom, Brackets (see above) or the sublime text editor (free indefinite-time trial but please buy if you like it) and gimp photo-editor (free, donation requested), respectively.
Quartz Composer (Mac only) TODO: describe how Mac users can get Quartz Composer (downloading from developer.apple.com --looks like you have to have a free apple developer account to get to the download page at https://developer.apple.com/downloads/?name=graphics . Here's Composer's wikipedia article. (Grades 5-12. Allows one to tinker with graphic effects using a system of patches with inputs and outputs. Not exactly a great platform for a beginning programmers but deserves mention here for its beautiful interface and the fact that—like Scratch—it's a visual programming environment.)
GarageBand (only available on Mac, iPad, iPhone, not free. Some websites claim to have garageband for pc, but it seems kind of sketchy: using android emulation and special installers. (Super easy system for building sound and music loops.)
Pages is Apple's version of Word.
Numbers is Apple's version of Excel.
Photo Booth lets you take pictures and video with your built-in camera.
iMovie is Apple's video-editing software - it's quite powerful without being a fully-featured program like Final Cut.
We are frequently asked which typing practice program our students use. 2019-20 is the first year Chris and Jascha tried out Typing Agent as a typing environment, and now all classes use it. It's a paid program (computer department bought 200 licenses) that runs as a web page - for students to log in, the recipe is:
Click the top left button: "Sign in with Google"
Conveniently, name and password are the same as the students' Google Login for school and Google Classroom:
Username = first Initial + last name + class year + "@saintannsny.org" ... e.g. Suzy Vytautas would be "svytautas.2031@saintannsny,org"
Password = secret password containing 3 animals or objects (students received their passwords in computer classes)
After a student logs In for the first time, the Google sign on page will retain the username, but they need to enter their password each time. If they are already logged into Google with their Saint Ann's account (NOT their personal gmail), they can just pick their Saint Ann's account from the accounts list and they won't have to type any login information to get enter Typing Agent.
A list of programming environments (programs for programming) that are the easiest to get started in.
code.org has interesting, good-looking, (and free) "hour of code" exercises online, some of which include puzzles from minecraft, star wars, and frozen, accompanied by videos of coders of all colors and ages. We've seen third graders through eleventh graders enjoy them.
codecombat.com Nifty "learn to code" puzzles (like code.org and lightbot.com) with mazes and treasures and enemies and helpers. Teacher can set up a "class" that is glued to python or javascript.
Scratch [download page for offline use... (as we do) or use it online (parent info)] (Grades 3-10. Very easy way to program interactive animated characters. Mac & Windows.)
LiveCode [downloads page...] (Grades 3-12. Learn to program with buttons and text fields and drawings. Mac & Windows & Linux.)
Alice [downloads page...] (Grades 3-12. Easily build and animate landscapes with interactive 3D buildings, creatures, and people. Mac, Linux, & Windows.)
Hopscotch (ipad and iphone app, like “Scratch” which is described above).
Playgrounds (gorgeous coding intro/game, app for ipads (requires ipad running ios 10+).
(Uh-oh, can no longer recommend lightbot.com because as of 2022 it is still in "flash" which won't run on modern browsers/computers. Alternatively it has iOS and android apps that cost $2.99. Wonderful coding exercises in which you direct a cute little robot to hop up and down and through a grid to turn on various lightbulbs. Like code.org, above, the exercises build up to using loops (repeats) and recursion.)
BlueJ [downloads page...] (Grades 7-12. Java editing and testing. Mac, Linux, & Windows.)
Greenfoot [downloads page...] (Grades 7-12. Java editing, emphasizing simulations, with great "scenario" tutorials. Mac, Linux & Windows.)
Processing [downloads page...] (Grades 5-12. Create colorful interactive artistic graphic programs using Java. Here's a colorful sample of swaying branches. Mac, Linux & Windows.)
e-book “App Development with Swift.” Apple Inc. - Education, 2016. iBooks. Our iPhone Programming class 2016-7 is using this. Free from the iBooks Store at https://itun.es/us/aVbRcb.l (Excellent engaging step-by-step tutorial includes partly-built examples and thoughtful asides about user-interface design and becoming a better programmer.) Uses Apple's free Xcode (which requires an Apple Mac computer).
Oops: the following was nice but seems to be falling out of date without upgrades: http://swifteducation.github.io/ had 100+ lesson plans and projects for programming with the "Swift" language in Apple's free Xcode (requires an Apple Mac computer that is no more than seven years old).
If you are letting your children use your personal computer, you probably want to set up a separate (and limited) user account for them on that computer, and don't give them your administrative password or you'll be sorry when they start adjusting screen settings and downloading "malware".
For what it's worth: here are two reasons that Minecraft (a 3D game, wikipedia) is cool:
Its lack of a fixed narrative encourages creativity.
It can be used to learn circuitry(!): its world features a sophisticated system of wires and resistors.
"Minecraft EE" (Education Edition) is a special version of the Minecraft that has little turtles that can be programmed to build and dig. We still use its predecessor "Minecraft EDU" so Mike doesn't know much about EE. Fancy programs can churn out entire buildings. That said, minecraft also seems to be a way for people of all age groups to waste a lot of time—we wouldn't want to encourage anyone to think that it represents an ideal point of entry into other fields of creativity on the computer.
The “Computer Science Teacher Association” has put together some STEAM software suggestions organized by grade level. (“STEAM” stands for “Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, & Math.”)
Videos on how stuff works:
PBS.org has a wonderful YouTube channel called "Crash Course," with lengthy playlists on a range of topics. Their computer science course is excellent.
Code.org has great playlists on YouTube dealing with how the internet works and how computers work.
BootStrapWorld.org has lesson plans for integrating computer programming into math classes, allowing them in schools that don't have programming classes or computer labs. Their https://www.bootstrapworld.org/impact/ page has research articles about programming in a browser without installing other software, and adjusting javascript to simultaneity and debugging online.
Software listed above (but repeated here for easy finding):
MeshMixer [downloads page...] (Middle and High School) Tool for working with 3D models as "meshes" - useful for editing and cleaning-up models, and for playing in an intuitive and sculptural way.
OnShape [online tool] (Middle and High School) Online CAD (computer assisted design) software that runs in the browser. Good for making 3D models for printing.
Tinkercad.com [online tool] (Grades 5-12. Design 3D objects for 3D printing.)
Fourth graders get access to online document editing in the middle of the year, after having discussions about digital citizenship: courtesy, privacy, safety, strong passwords, appropriate use, etc. While fourth graders don't have access to school email, they sign-in for documents using the name that will eventually be their school email address. They can sign in at the "students" page reached from the top of the saintannsny.org site, or may go directly to the docs.google.com site using their full sign-in name (including @saintannsny.org at the end).
For email and docs, students in 6th grade + may sign in through google.com on a browser by pressing the "waffle" (3x3 grid on upper right) and choosing Drive or Gmail. An alternative is going directly to mail.google.com or use the "E-mail" link on the "students" page reached from the top of saintannsny.org.
**Note: this page was imported from classic to new google sites, Aug 2020. This page is for editing by SACC teachers! (The version on old classic sites is just a frozen archive copy.)