• Author: Al Sweigart
• Format: PDF, online HTML
• Price: free ($25 for paperback version)

Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python is a free book that teaches you how to program in the Python programming language. Each chapter gives you the complete source code for a new game, and then teaches the programming concepts from the example.

It was written to be understandable by kids as young as 10 to 12 years old, although it is great for anyone of any age who has never programmed before.

This second edition has revised and expanded content, including using the Pygame library to make games with graphics, animation, and sound.

Chapters include:

• Installing Python
• The Interactive Shell
• Strings
• Guess the Number
• Jokes
• Dragon Realm
• Using the Debugger (new!)
• Flow Charts
• Hangman
• Tic Tac Toe
• Bagels
• Cartesian Coordinates
• Sonar
• Caesar Cipher
• Reversi
• AI Simulation
• Graphics and Animation
• Collision Detection and Input
• Sound and Images
• Dodger
• Differences between Python 2 and 3
• Statements, Functions, and Methods Reference   
• Running Python Programs Without Python Installed   
• Common Error Messages in Python

http://inventwithpython.com

• Author: Microsoft
• Format: online HTML, msi installer for offline reading
• Price: free

Writing programs is Fun! This e-book will have you coding your very own Visual Basic programs in no time! With fun cartoons and easy to follow code samples, you’ll be creating your own inventions in no time!

Requires Visual Basic Express Edition (available for free)

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Software You’ll Need
• Formatting Standards Used in this Book
• What’s Next?
• A Shared View of The World: The Alien, the Elephant and the Coconut Tree
• Computers Are Just Like Aliens
• The Object-Oriented Approach Summarized
• Classes
• Objects
• Fields and Their Types
• Types
• How to Use Fields
• Methods
• More About Methods
• Parameters
• Methods that Send Values Back
• Public, Private and Protected Methods
• Constructor Methods
• Events
• The Button Click Event
• Mouse Events
• Name Spaces
• Inheritance
• Vocabulary
• Some General Grammar Rules
• Capital and Small Letters
• Statements
• Code Blocks – Grouping Statements Together
• Comments – Helping the Humans Out
• Indenting Your Code
• Variables
• Operators
• Converting Between Types
• Branching
• Looping
• The For Loop
• The While Loop
• Whole Program Structure
• Using Class Libraries
• System.Console
• System.Windows.Forms
• System.Drawing
• System.Data
• System.Xml

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/beginner/bb308758.aspx

• Author: Microsoft
• Format: online HTML, msi installer for offline reading
• Price: free

Writing programs is Fun! This e-book will have you coding your very own C# programs in no time! With fun cartoons and easy to follow code samples, you’ll be creating your own inventions in no time!

Requires Visual C# Express Edition (available for free)

Chapters include:

• Introduction
• Software You’ll Need
• Formatting Standards Used in this Book
• What’s Next?
• A Shared View of The World: The Alien, the Elephant and the Coconut Tree
• Computers Are Just Like Aliens
• The Object-Oriented Approach Summarized
• Classes
• Objects
• Fields and Their Types
• Types
• How to Use Fields
• Methods
• More About Methods
• Parameters
• Methods that Send Values Back
• Public, Private and Protected Methods
• Constructor Methods
• Events
• The Button Click Event
• Mouse Events
• Name Spaces
• Inheritance
• Vocabulary
• Some General Grammar Rules
• Capital and Small Letters
• Statements
• Code Blocks – Grouping Statements Together
• Comments – Helping the Humans Out
• Indenting Your Code
• Variables
• Operators
• Converting Between Types
• Branching
• Looping
• The For Loop
• The While Loop
• Whole Program Structure
• Using Class Libraries
• System.Console
• System.Windows.Forms
• System.Drawing
• System.Data
• System.Xml

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/beginner/bb308756.aspx

• Author: Jason R. Briggs
• Format: PDF
• Price: free

Specifically for teaching kids ages 8 and older how to program, using Python.

This one is meant to be printed out and stapled together and given to your child as a gift.

It comes in 3 different flavors (Mac, Linux, Windows) and 2 different versions (for Python 3 & Python 2).

It is an ongoing work, and is updated as needed. If your child has difficulty understanding anything in the book, contact the author and let him know, so he can improve it.

Contents include:

• Not all snakes will squish you
• A Few Words About Language
• The Order of Non-venomous Constricting Serpentes
• Your First Python program
• Your Second Python program. . .the same again?
• multiplied by 3.57 equals
• Use of brackets and “Order of Operations”
• There’s nothing so fickle as a variable
• Using Variable
• A Piece of String?
• Tricks with Strings
• Not quite a shopping list
• Tuples and Lists
• Things to try
• Turtles, and other slow moving creatures
• Things to try
• How to ask a question
• Do this. . . or ELSE!!!
• Do this. . . or do this. . . or do this. . . or ELSE!!!
• Combining conditions
• Emptiness
• What’s the difference. . .?
• Again and again
• When is a block not square?
• While we’re talking about looping
• Things to try
• Sort of like recycling
• Bits and Pieces
• Modules
• Things to try
• A short chapter about Files
• Turtles galore
• Colouring in
• Darkness
• Filling things
• Things to try
• A bit graphic
• Quick Draw
• Simple Drawing
• Drawing Boxes
• Drawing Arcs
• Drawing Ovals
• Drawing Polygons
• Drawing Images
• Basic Animation
• Reacting to events
• Where to go from here
• Python Keywords
• Built-in Functions
• A Few Python Modules
• Answers to “Things to try”

http://www.briggs.net.nz/log/writing/snake-wrangling-for-kids/