A coding competition built for children who have never coded
The Little Tech Explorers Challenge 2027. Eight coding classes in a small group from October to January, then a competition day where your child runs their own animated story and explains it to the judges.
For children aged 4 to 7 in local and international schools in Singapore. No coding experience needed.
Registration closes [CLOSING DATE]. Places are limited by class size.
Who it is for
Is this right for my child?
The competition is designed for first-time coders. Children start from the very first block in class, so there is nothing to prepare beforehand.
A good fit if
- Your child is between 4 and 7 years old
- Your child has not coded before, or has only tried it at home
- Your child is in K1, K2 or Primary 1 at a local school, or in Reception, Year 1 or Year 2 at an international school in Singapore
- Your child enjoys drawing, making up stories, or using a tablet
- You would like your child to practise explaining their own work to other people
Get in touch first if
- Your child turns 8 before competition day, or is not yet 4 – message us and we will point you to the right programme for their age
- Your child already writes text-based code such as Python
- You are not sure your child will sit through a two-hour class – tell us and we will talk it through with you honestly
How it works
Eight classes, one project, one competition day
Your child does not turn up cold on competition day. They spend the term building the thing they will present.
Learn the blocks
Eight classes of 90 minutes, once a week from October to January, in a small group with an MOE-registered trainer. Your child learns to make characters walk, talk, change scene and react – by dragging picture blocks, not by typing.
Build their own story
Your child picks their own idea on the theme My Little Adventure and builds it into an animated story with a beginning, a middle and an end. Their characters, their drawings, their choices.
Present it on the day
On competition day your child runs their story and explains it to two judges and to the other families in the room. Every child leaves with a certificate. Trophies and medals go to the top entries.
From the 2026 challenge
What the children actually made
Twelve show-and-tell presentations from the 2026 Little Tech Explorers Challenge, filmed on the day. This is what your child will be doing on 30 January: running their own story and explaining it out loud.
In the training programme
The STEM ideas your child picks up along the way
Children think they are making a cartoon. What they are practising is the groundwork for maths, science and computing later on.
Sequencing
Putting instructions in an order that works, and seeing straight away what happens when the order is wrong. This is the single biggest idea in early computing.
Loops and repetition
Using a repeat block instead of dragging the same instruction ten times. Children meet the idea of a pattern that runs again and again.
Cause and effect
A trigger block makes something happen. Tap here, this character moves. Children test a rule, watch the result, and adjust the rule.
Counting and estimating
How many steps to cross the screen, how many seconds to wait. Number work with an immediate, visible answer.
Space and direction
Left, right, up, down, turn. Children plan a path across the screen before they build it, which is early spatial reasoning.
Test, find the problem, fix it
When the cat walks off the screen, your child works out which block caused it and changes that one. This is debugging, and it is a habit more than a skill.
For parents weighing this up
Why start coding at 4 to 7, and why this format
Block-based coding lets a child build a working program before they can read instructions on a screen. That is what makes 4 to 7 a workable starting age rather than an early one.
The app your child uses is ScratchJr, a free block-based coding app made for young children. There is nothing to type and nothing to spell. Your child drags a picture block to make a cat walk, another to make it speak, another to make it wait. That is sequencing, and it is the same idea behind Scratch in upper primary and Python in secondary school.
What your child practises: putting steps in the right order, noticing when something did not happen the way they expected, and changing it until it does. It looks like play. It is the first version of debugging.
We run it as a competition rather than an ordinary term class because a date and an audience change how a young child works on something. They finish it. They practise it. They decide how it should end.
For families who later look at Direct School Admission, two of MOE’s DSA talent categories are the relevant ones here: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, and Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Inside those categories, individual secondary schools run their own named talent areas, and several are squarely about what your child starts today. That stage is years away, in Primary 6. What your child gets now is a first completed project and a first presentation to build on.
See the tech-related DSA talent areas and which schools offer them
Under Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics: Robotics (19 schools, including Admiralty Secondary), STEM (20 schools), Digital Media (5, including Boon Lay Secondary), Coding (4, including Ngee Ann Secondary), STEAM (3, including School of Science and Technology), Computational Thinking Skills (2, including Methodist Girls’ School), Programming and 3D Modelling (2, including Serangoon Secondary), STEM – Aerospace and Aviation (2, including Bukit View Secondary), Infocomm (Hwa Chong Institution), Design, Technology and Engineering (Greendale Secondary), Engineering Innovation and Solutions (Yuan Ching Secondary), Mechatronics, Aeronautics and Robotics (Yio Chu Kang Secondary), Science and Technology (Clementi Town Secondary), STEM – Creative Engineering and Modelling (Tampines Secondary), STEM – Aeronautics (Compassvale Secondary), Aerospace (Northbrooks Secondary).
Under Entrepreneurship and Innovation: Entrepreneurship (Bowen Secondary, Hwa Chong Institution, Outram Secondary), Innovation (Bedok South Secondary, Edgefield Secondary), Social Innovation (Cedar Girls’ Secondary, Westwood Secondary).
Talent areas as listed on MOE SchoolFinder for the 2026 DSA-Sec exercise. Schools review their talent areas each year, so check SchoolFinder for the current list when your child reaches Primary 6.
Classes run at our Novena and River Valley centres, and the competition is open to children in local and international schools in Singapore.
About Empire AI
Who is teaching your child
In partnership with Crayola Creativity Week.
Two ways in
What it costs
The classes are where your child’s project gets built, so the second option is the one to pick unless your child already uses ScratchJr regularly.
Competition entry only
If your child already uses ScratchJr at home or at school.
- Entry to competition day
- Event T-shirt
- Certificate of participation
- Judging and prize eligibility
Eight classes + competition entry
Twelve hours of teaching, and the competition entry is included in this price.
- 8 classes × 90 minutes, small group
- MOE-registered trainer
- Your child’s project built and rehearsed in class
- Snacks in class
- Everything in the entry-only option
Early bird: S$30 off if you register before 30 September 2026, so S$250 in total.
Class dates
8 x 90-minute sessions, once a week from October to January. Replacement classes during the year-end holidays can be arranged.
Weekdays
[DAY, TIME]
Novena and River Valley
Weekends
[DAY, TIME]
Novena and River Valley
Competition day
10am-12pm · River Valley
Saturday 30 January 2027
Travelling over the year-end break? Tell us when you register and we will arrange replacement classes so your child does not fall behind.
Children bring their own iPad with the free ScratchJr app installed. Message us on WhatsApp before registering if you have a question regarding the tablet required.
Questions parents actually ask
FAQ
Does my child need any coding experience?
No. Most children in this age group have never coded. The classes start from the first block.
My child is 4. Is that too young?
Four is the youngest age we take. Judging looks at creativity, effort and how your child explains their story, not at how complex the program is, so a 4 year old and a 7 year old are judged on the same things.
What is ScratchJr?
A free block-based coding app for young children. Instead of typing code, your child drags picture blocks together to make characters move, talk and change scene. There is no reading or spelling required to use it.
My child is at an international school. Can they take part?
Yes. Children from international schools and from local kindergartens, childcare centres and primary schools all take part in the same competition. The only requirement is the age range, 4 to 7.
Where are the classes and the competition held?
Classes run at our Novena and River Valley centres. Competition day is at our River Valley centre, 8 Mohd Sultan Road, Singapore 238958, on Saturday 30 January 2027 from 10am to 12pm.
Do we need to buy an iPad?
Children bring their own iPad with ScratchJr installed. The app is free. Message us on WhatsApp before registering if you have a question regarding the tablet required.
What if we miss one of the classes?
Inform us 2 days in advance and we will move your child into the same session on another day where there is space.
Does this help with DSA later on?
DSA applications happen in Primary 6. The earlier your child starts on STEAM, the bigger the head start. What your child gets now is a first completed project and a first presentation, which is the kind of work a STEM portfolio is built from over the years in between.
Can I stay and watch on competition day?
Yes. Parents are encouraged to stay for the presentations.
Can siblings register together?
Yes, as long as each child is between 4 and 7. Register each child separately so we get both names right on the certificates.
Step one
Register your child
Takes about two minutes. You will get a confirmation email straight away – if it does not arrive, WhatsApp us on 8145 5004.
Places are capped by class size
Registration closes [CLOSING DATE], or earlier if the classes fill.