Greenfoot is visual programming environment in which you create and program 'actors' which live in 'worlds' to build games, simulations, and other graphical programs.
It’s designed to make learning about object orientation concepts easy and fun, but you don’t need to look at these concepts in detail to make great programs.
Who is Greenfoot for?
It can be used from key stage 3 to A level to provide a 2D world to program in and create non-console-based programs.
At key stage 3, the Stride editor can be used to help bridge the transition from blocks to full-text programming and the IDE has syntax highlighting and auto-completion to assist students as they develop their ability to write Java.
How can I use it in my school or college?
Easy early activities for students could include building a range of simple classic 80’s computer games, many of which students now play on their own mobile devices.
In a recent lesson, I thought we were developing a Frogger-style game but my students were really impressed that they had built “Crossy Road”. Programming tasks in Greenfoot form part of the assessment for the EduQAS GCSE in computer science
At A level, Greenfoot is a great environment for introducing object-oriented programming (OOP) concepts including inheritance, public and private methods etc. Doing this in the context of 2D games or simulation makes the concepts far less abstract.
Vectors are another part of the A level syllabus that really comes alive when you put it into the context of simulating gravity and physics-based motion. Additionally, Greenfoot makes an easy environment for students to make interesting projects within for their A level project.
Bring Greenfoot into the classroom
If you want to learn more about using this engaging programming environment, we are running a bursary-supported CPD activity in July.