The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of goal specificity and scaffolding on the programming performance and self‐regulation of elementary students engaged in learning game design. This study recruited 232 students for the experimental activities. Two levels of goal specificity were employed: specific and nonspecific. Structuring and problematizing scaffolds were also used to support students in the process of learning. Our results reveal the following: (1) nonspecific goals and structuring scaffolds led to superior comprehension of programming, (2) nonspecific goals with problematizing scaffolds led to better problem‐solving performance, (3) problematizing scaffolds were more effective than structuring scaffolds in the development of self‐regulation behavior, and (4) nonspecific goals were more effective than specific goals in the promotion of resource management associated with self‐regulation.