Ring in the New Year by downloading an awesome new app that sparks kids’ creativity while teaching them how to code.

The number one educational brand for kids is at it again with the introduction of PBS KIDS ScratchJr. Available for both iPad and Android tablets, this free app caters to children between the ages of five and ten and helps them produce interactive stories and games while learning coding basics. Familiar faces from hit series that children know and love like WordGirl, Peg + Cat, and Nature Cat come to life as they connect colorful programing blocks to make them dance, move, jump, and sing. Check out the video below:

“PBS KIDS ScratchJr uses the power of technology to help children learn,” says Sara DeWitt, Vice President of PBS KIDS Digital, “The PBS KIDS ScratchJr App puts kids in the driver’s seat, where they express themselves through storytelling. While kids are playing with their favorite characters, they are also exploring the basics of coding, an important 21st-century literacy.”

The fun doesn’t stop here. With support from Verizon and Ready to Learn, PBS member stations will use content from PBS ScratchJr to teach students in disadvantaged areas about coding through outreach programs and partnerships with Title I schools. Teachers can also receive professional development on how to integrate the program in their classrooms and afterschool activities.

“Coding is becoming as fundamental as the three Rs,” says Marina Umaschi Bers, professor in the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development at Tufts and director of the Tufts’ Development Technologies research group, which co-developed ScratchJr, “Children who learn to code at a young age through ScratchJr learn to engage in problem-solving and develop skills that are important building blocks for future academic growth.”

Additional activities are available through PBS LearningMedia, a free resource for all Georgia educators. If you have any questions about accessing your free account, contact us at education@gpb.org.

Download PBS KIDS ScratchJr by visiting the App Store or Google Play to get coding. You can also access information about PBS KIDS apps by visiting pbskids.org/apps.

Share your experience with PBS KIDS ScratchJr by leaving a comment below.