Karel Adventures 1 (Elementary)
- Level Elementary School
- Number of Lessons 24
- Grade 5th, 6th
Karel Adventures 1 introduces students to programming in the JavaScript Karel coding environment. Students learn about sequences and control structures as they follow Karel on two fun-filled adventures. Recommended for 5th or 6th grade.
See the full syllabus for all topics and activities, or explore the course to try it out.
UNITS - 4 (24 lessons)
In this lesson, students will meet Karel the dog and explore the syntax of Karel’s commands. Students will then tour the CodeHS editor and write their first Karel programs.
In this lesson, students go through their first Karel Adventure story! The lesson structure has students watch a video that tells part of a story and then complete a programming task that is aligned with the action of the story. They will repeat this process throughout the lesson. In this story, students will help Karel catch Riley the Rabbit.
In this lesson, students go through their second Karel Adventure story! In this story, students will help Karel travel to Mars to find her friend Tracy. Along the way, students will learn about if/else statements and while loops.
In this lesson, students put together all they’ve learned throughout this module to complete an end of unit quiz and/or project. These items can be used in whatever way you feel will benefit you and your students.
Explore a sample lesson from this course!
Students learn to program Karel the dog by following two story-based adventures. Each lesson pairs a short story video with a coding task tied to the action. In The Rabbit Chase, students write sequences of commands to help Karel catch Riley the Rabbit, and in Lost in Space, they use if statements, if/else statements, and while loops to help Karel reach Mars. The course ends with a final challenge and a project where students create their own Karel Adventure story.
Students start with drag-and-drop code blocks and have the option to switch to text-based JavaScript as they gain confidence, so the course supports both new coders and students ready for a challenge. Teachers also get lesson slides, problem guides, solution references, and printable Karel command sheets in English and Spanish to support every lesson.
Karel Adventures 1 is recommended for 5th or 6th grade, and no prior coding experience is needed. The first module introduces Karel's commands and the CodeHS editor before students begin the adventures.
The course includes 24 lessons, totaling about 13 hours of instruction. Most coding lessons take 15 to 30 minutes, story wrap-ups take about 45 minutes, and the final Create Karel Adventures project takes about 3 hours. Many lessons are short, multi-part activities that can be combined into a single class period.
Karel Adventures 1 is aligned to state computer science standards and CSTA standards.
