By Made Deliberate · October 8, 2026

Video game design activities for kids

A child who has plenty to say about an unfair level already has a question worth exploring: what would they change? Put that question on the table with some paper and a few game pieces, and you have somewhere to begin.

These five homeschool activities are designed for ages 7 to 11. They introduce game design through drawing, rules, testing and writing, with no coding experience or console needed. Choose one to try first. If your child wants to turn the idea into a playable video game, our MakeCode Arcade guide for homeschool beginners explains the next step.

1. Build a paper version of one game idea

Gather: paper, a pencil and a small object to represent the player.

Ask your child to finish this sentence: “In my game, the player keeps trying to...” Collect something? Reach a safe place? Dodge an obstacle? Choose one repeated action, then sketch a small play area and mark a goal.

Move the piece through the sketch together. Your child explains what happens after each move while you follow the rules as literally as you can. If a rule is missing, pause and let them add it. Keep the crossed-out ideas so they can see what changed.

Ask: “What does the player do again and again, and what makes them want another turn?” That repeated sequence is the beginning of a core game loop.

2. Design a character with a 16-by-16 grid

Gather: graph paper and four colored pencils or markers.

Draw a square that is 16 cells wide and 16 cells tall. Each cell is one pixel. Have your child design an original character using no more than four colors, then step back and look at it from across the table.

Can someone tell which way the character faces? Which details disappear at a small size? Invite your child to revise one part of the drawing and explain why. The limited space gives each choice a purpose.

Save this drawing. It can become the starting point for a digital sprite, the character or object your child will control in a game.

3. Change one rule and test fairness

Gather: the paper prototype and a place to record results.

Play the same short challenge a few times. Record how many attempts it takes to reach the goal. Then change just one rule, perhaps the number of moves allowed or the position of an obstacle, and try again.

Compare the attempts together. A game can be difficult and still feel fair if the player understands what happened and has something useful to try next. Ask your child where that line sits in their design.

Ask: “Did the change make the game more interesting, or did it make the player feel stuck?” A few tries give you observations to discuss, not proof that everyone will have the same experience.

4. Write instructions, then resist explaining them

Gather: a fresh sheet of paper and a willing playtester.

Have your child write the goal, the controls or allowed moves, and what ends the game. A younger child can dictate while you write. Give those instructions to another person and let them try without a running explanation from the designer.

When the player hesitates, write down where. That moment gives your child a specific revision to make: add a missing step, explain a symbol or clarify what counts as a win. Writing has an immediate audience, and the audience can show whether it works.

5. Keep a small bug and feedback journal

Gather: a notebook divided into four headings: What I expected, What happened, What I changed, and What happened next.

Use it when a paper rule breaks down or, later, when the code behaves unexpectedly. Let your child describe the problem before helping solve it. “The player gets stuck here” gives you more to work with than “It doesn’t work.”

For feedback, ask a playtester for one enjoyable moment and one confusing moment. Let the designer choose a change and test it. Practicing how to hear feedback, disagree kindly and explain a decision belongs in the project too.

Turn their game into a homeschool unit study

Keep the first drawing, revised rules and testing notes together. They give you work to discuss across art, math, writing and problem-solving. You can also investigate a game’s history together, keeping track of where the information comes from and which questions remain unanswered.

Press Start, our video game homeschool unit study, connects that kind of work across eight worlds for ages 7 to 11. Players explore ancient games, inventors, brain science and digital citizenship while developing an original game. Paper design comes first; guided MakeCode Arcade coding begins in World 4.

The printable teaching plans, Player activities and Dev Journal provide a sequence to follow. Books and supplies are separate, and the optional handheld is not required. You can see the actual activity pages and materials list before deciding whether it fits your family.