ABSTRACT
The object-oriented programming paradigm serves as the basis
for the most used programming languages nowadays, where large
scale projects take advantage of certain characteristics, such as
code reuse, encapsulation, better organization on the system design,
and consequently the improvement on the maintainability
of software in general. These features are intrinsic in the objectoriented
paradigm. However, preparing professionals to work as
systems analysts or developers for projects based in this paradigm
has been shown difficult in academia, since it is necessary to understand
a set of abstract concepts before starting the codification phase.
In this context, this paper seeks to contribute with the study of two
programming tools – Scratch and Snap! – developed exclusively
for teaching computer programming, exploring them in order to
teach object-oriented concepts in a visual and interactive mode,
aiming to apply these concepts later in a traditional programming
language such as Java, C#, or C++.