Coding on Chromebooks, with nothing to install

Why coding on Chromebooks is usually a hassle

Most coding tools expect a "real" computer: an installed editor, a Python download, a terminal. School Chromebooks are locked down, Linux is usually switched off, and extensions need IT approval. So classes end up with a tool that does one language, or with an afternoon lost to setup.

Made in Class skips all of it. The editor, the live preview and Python itself run in the browser tab, so if a Chromebook can open a website, it can run your lesson.

What students can do on a Chromebook

• Build web pagesHTML, CSS and JavaScript with the page running live next to the code.
• Make gamesCanvas games with keyboard controls, scores and levels, like Snake and Pixel Jumper.
• Write PythonReal Python 3: input(), loops, functions, multiple files, even numpy.
• PublishEach project gets its own link and lands on the student's portfolio.
• Find their bugsErrors show with the line they happened on, in a console above the preview.
• Never lose workIt saves as they type, and every published version can be brought back.

For the IT team

• Nothing to deploy. No app, no extension, no Linux container. It's a website.
• Allow three hosts: madeinclass.com, sites.madeinclass.com and cdn.jsdelivr.net (Python's runtime).
• No student email. Students sign in with a class code and a secret word that their teacher hands out.
• Student code is sandboxed. Previews and published projects run in sealed sandboxes, so one student's code can't read another's, or the app's.
• First Python run. Python takes a few seconds to load the first time (longer on busy school Wi-Fi), then it's quick.

Rolling it out to a whole school or district? Use the form at the bottom of the home page and we'll help with setup and privacy agreements.

A first lesson that works on any Chromebook

1. Students open Snake and play a round.
2. They press Remix this to get their own copy of the code.
3. They change the speed and the board size with SPEED and SIZE, the settings at the top of game.js.
4. They pick a challenge from the project page, like a golden apple worth 5 points.
5. They press Publish and share the link.