TurtleArt is an app that lets you create images with code. Snap puzzle-like blocks together to give the turtle a sequence of commands and watch your image take shape.
Recommended ages 9+
CREATE WITH CODE
We created TurtleArt to make images at the intersection of art and math. It also happens to be a gentle introduction to coding. TurtleArt has a small vocabulary. This makes it a microworld, not a general coding environment like many other block based systems. TurtleArt is 'hard fun'!
FEATURES
- Simple drag and drop blocks
- Samples for exploring and remixing
- Help materials to answer your questions
- Save images to the Camera Roll to share with friends and family
- Copy and paste any TurtleArt image into a new project and see its code
- No levels, no puzzles, no explicit goals
- No third-party advertising
- No in-app purchases
A CONSTRUCTIONIST LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
TurtleArt is rooted in Seymour Papert’s constructionism, where children learn best by making things that are personally meaningful. In the late 1960s Seymour Papert and his colleagues started developing the Logo programming language. The early versions of Logo introduced the Turtle, a cybernetic creature that responded to commands and established an environment rich in mathematical thinking.
ABOUT
TurtleArt is brought to you by the Playful Invention Company. We play. We invent. The company is a playground for its founders, Paula Bontá and Brian Silverman. Check out our website www.playfulinvention.com to see other projects and passions.
PRIVACY
We take kids' privacy very seriously. We do not collect personal information of any kind. Children will never be exposed to in-app purchases or third-party advertisements while playing with the app.
Version history
1.0.14
2021-11-30
Supports iPad Air new screen ratio
1.0.12
2020-01-09
Update for iOS 13
1.0.10
2018-12-12
Restore compatibility with iOS 9.3
1.0.9
2018-05-08
Compatibility with iOS 11.3
1.0.8
2017-12-02
Updated for iOS 11
1.0.6
2016-09-24
Now compatible with iOS 10.
1.0.1
2016-08-19
Download TurtleArt: Make Art with Code on Android and iPhone for free
This is a fantastic program. It is making it easy to teach programming to my son who is in 3rd grade. The best implementation of logo for iOS I have found.
daveledangeroux,
Needs updates for modern iPads & iOS
I gave this a shot; at one point, this seems like it was probably the best implementation of logo on the iPad. But it’s not up-to-date in ways that make it difficult to use on my iPad Pro running iOS 14. In particular, it gets very confused about the size of the screen and so some critical controls simply can’t be accessed. That’s, unfortunately, a dealbreaker. There are other things I can see even without using those controls, like the fact that the turtle graphic and the things it draws do not support retina displays (that is, everything is pixelated!) that make it clear this software needs an update. I hope it gets one; visual logo like this is a great learning tool!