Category Archives: Education

Coding Education, Education

The Robot Coding Teacher?

Everyone is looking for the best way to impart coding education on kids. Obviously, there is no substitute for quality mentoring. Nonetheless, new innovations are helping to fill in the gaps for people throughout the world. Consider a recent article for Yahoo News titled “A robot to teach kids coding.”

Ben Gruber of Yahoo News writes, “A robot named Root has been developed to expose kids of all ages to coding in a way that brings the often daunting world of computer science to life. Root looks like a smoke detector but is actually a sophisticated robot. A magnetic surface, wheels, and an impressive arsenal of sensors allow it to navigate a classroom whiteboard. But Root isn’t actually programed to do anything. Its tasks and functionality hinge on a child’s imagination. The robot is capable of driving and drawing as well as playing music, but Root needs instructions to operate, a line of code. Zivthan Dubrovsky of Harvard’s Wyss Institute recalls testing out Root with kids for the first time. ‘If you ask kids can you make a text based java script line follower? They go ‘no that’s hard, can’t do that’, but we can put level one in front of them and they can do it in minutes,’ he said. Using a tablet wirelessly connected to the robot, level one introduces kids to the principles of programing using an interface of simple commands and pictures. As they become more adept, they jump to levels 2 and 3, at which point writing computer code becomes second nature, according to Dubrovsky. He says getting kids interested in the abstract world of programming isn’t easy, but thinks Root can help with that. ‘We are not trying to create a fun toy where you are just making a racing game. We are going to figure out how to make the racing game and that is going to be a lot of work, a lot of perhaps negative energy. But then there is so much positive energy at the end that it is worth the effort,’ he added.”

If you are looking for the best in customized coding education, your best bet is CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our camps today!

Education

A New Bracelet Designed to Get More Girls Coding

Technology is improving every day. It is permeating all aspects of our life. New wearable technology is being used to encourage more girls to code. Consider a recent article for Kill Screen titled “THE WEARABLE TECH THAT’S GETTING GIRLS INTO CODING.”

Cassidee Moser of Kill Screen writes, “Taking friendship bracelets into the digital age, Jewelbots teaches young girls to tinker and code their way into the exploding world of wearable technology. Whether it’s the Queen of Coding Grace Hopper or the new wave of women innovation engineers, fashion brand CEOs and musicians, young girls today have a growing number of role models who use science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) in their recipes for success. Having more role models is critical, but according to the founders of Jewelbots—the so-called friendship bracelets for the iPhone era—the next generation of women leaders and inventors will chase STEM endeavors at an early age, like a game of tag. ‘Kids want to have fun; it’s their job,’ said Brooke Moreland, co-founder of Jewelbots. These programmable wearables, which are powered by Arduino Gemma microcontrollers, teach girls how to hack hardware and code software so they can customize their own watches. ‘The sooner they realize how much fun they can have, the sooner they will be hooked,’ Moreland said. Hooking young girls with hands-on technology could lead them to careers that are underserved by women today. It might even inspire many to start their own STEM-related businesses, like Moreland and Jewelbots co-founder Sara Chipps. Through Jewelbots, Moreland and Chipps hope to inspire girls to pursue any careers, whether that means programming new video games or studying computer science. Hacking digital bracelets helps girls unlock their own curiosity and potential for becoming leaders in technology and business… Chipps is also a developer and co-founder of the non-profit Girl Develop It. She first noticed the importance of empowering young women while teaching them to write software at Flatiron School. Her female students were particularly excited, never realizing what they could do with software until someone took the time to show them.”

When it comes to hands-on coding education, your best bet is CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our camps today!

Coding Education, Education

Turner Joins Obama Coding Initiative

President Barack Obama has made no bones about his push to get more young people into coding. Now Turner Broadcasting is putting its name into the fold. Consider a recent article for Fortune titled “Why Turner Is Investing $30 Million in Obama’s Coding Initiative.”

John Gaudiosi of Fortune writes, “President Barack Obama has made the ‘Computer Science For All’ initiative a key priority for his last year in office. And Turner Broadcasting is the latest company to invest in this initiative, which focuses on making coding and other hands-on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) learning an integral part of every student’s education. Turner’s $30 million investment in engaging kids in creative coding will roll out this year and become part of how Cartoon Network connects with its 6- to 11-year-old audience moving forward, according to Christina Miller, president and general manager of Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, and Boomerang. The network’s multimedia platform reaches over 94 million children. ‘Technology is transforming the access point for the next generation of creators and we have the outreach to go to our audience and let them know that if they want to be an animator or a storyteller there are PC tools available at their fingertips,’ Miller says. ‘We know this generation of kids is different than the one before it because they want to participate. They’re more of an open source generation.’ Turner has partnered with the MIT Media Lab to alert kids that the free block-based coding language Scratch is available. The Adventure Time characters were used in a recent DIY.org animation contest as a way for kids to use Scratch to code simple animation like the show’s characters walking.”

When it comes to customized coding education, you can’t go wrong with CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our winter camps today!

Coding Education, Education

Several Ways You Can Help Empower Girls to Learn Coding

it comes to coding education, a major issue is equity. Coding provides a lot of opportunities not just for underrepresented groups, but their families, friends, and communities as well. Consider a recent article for Mashable titled “8 ways you can empower girls to learn coding.”

Matt Petronizio of Mashable writes, “Before anything, you need to understand the systemic obstacles preventing girls from getting into coding. Both a culture that persistently ignores and discourages girls’ abilities in computer science, and the lack of access to tools and education, play influential roles. Reshma Saujani, founder and CEO of Girls Who Code, says it’s deeply ingrained in our culture to let it be OK for girls to say they don’t like math and science. ‘We almost sensationalize it in culture for girls to promote that,’ she tells Mashable. ‘You can walk into a Forever 21 and buy a T-shirt that says ‘I’m allergic to algebra’ … You’re always showcasing these really smart girls hiding their intelligencewhen it comes to math and science.’ If girls can’t see themselves in these professions, Saujani adds, they’re not going to choose to pursue them. And that also extends to inside classrooms, where coding is rarely offered to students in general, much less focusing on girls — an obstacle Code.org founder and CEO Hadi Partovi says is equally as significant as culture. ‘If you enter a classroom and you see 18 boys and two girls, you automatically think, ‘I’m in the wrong place and I’m not welcome,’’ Partovi says. ‘And that makes it harder.’ … One of the most important ways to advocate for girls is to get schools to actually offer courses on the subject. On the public advocacy side, you can contact your local politicians and legislators to lobby on behalf of making coding a priority in public school education. As a parent or guardian, you can put pressure on school administrations to include more computer science courses in curricula for various age levels. And if you’re a teacher, you can effect change within the school system itself.”

When it comes to customized coding education, you can’t go wrong with CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our winter camps today!

Coding Education, Education

Proposal to Make Coding a Foreign Language Shows Need for Customized Coding Education

The need for more computer programmers in the U.S. is very serious. People all throughout the country are taking steps, some more drastic than others, to catch up. Consider a recent article for the Tampa Bay Times titled “Proposal allowing computer coding as foreign language advances.”

Kristen M. Clark of the Tampa Bay Times writes, “A controversial idea to allow high school students to count computer coding classes toward foreign language credits cleared its second committee in the Florida Senate on Wednesday — but senators did not seek to resolve concerns it could impose an unfunded mandate on schools. Sen. Jeremy Ring, D-Margate, had previously said the Senate’s education budget committee would address the fiscal impact of his plan (SB 468), but that panel on Wednesday discussed nothing about the dollars that might be needed to fund it. Ring said after the meeting that he felt there were no financial impacts, because Senate committee staff didn’t note any when reviewing the bill. The analysis acknowledges, however: ‘The bill may have a minimal fiscal impact on school districts as they shift resources to offer more computer coding courses.’ Some senators previously worried that the bill would place a burden on schools — especially those with already strapped technology resources — by requiring them to have sufficient computers, software and specialized teachers to meet the demand of students who opt to learn coding in lieu of a foreign language. Sen. Dwight Bullard, D-Miami, said he voted against it again Wednesday because his concerns weren’t addressed. The rest of the Senate budget committee voted in favor of the bill. ‘All it takes is that one parent and it overburdens schools when they say, ‘I want my child to have computer coding,’ because now you have to figure out how to facilitate a teacher and space,’ Bullard said. ‘All of those have dollars attached, and none of those concerns were remedied.’”

When it comes to sustainable, customized coding education, you can’t go wrong with CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our winter camps today!

Coding Education, Education

What Does a Chinese Coding Boot Camp Look Like?

While we encourage children to code to expand their opportunities and explore the fun of programming, we also have to keep in mind that their is a global competition of sorts to be at the top of the coding mountain. Sometimes it’s important to take a look at your competition. Consider a recent article for the Huffington Post titled “Inside A Chinese Coding Boot Camp.”

Matt Sheehan of the Huffington Post writes, “In this fluorescent-lit classroom in northwest Beijing, a bespectacled Chinese man who calls himself Shrek is doing his part to haul China’s economy into the 21st century. He is the founder of a coding boot camp and online education platform that trains thousands of young Chinese to program Apple Watches, maintain Oracle databases and build Android apps — the very skills that China’s leaders hope will vault the country toward a high-income economy. The country’s traditional sources of growth, cheap exports and massive infrastructure spending, are sputtering — and economists warn that if China doesn’t move up the value chain, it could fall into the notorious ‘middle-income trap.’ Transitioning away from these mainstays of economic growth will be wrenching for China’s industrial rustbelt, but Chinese leaders are banking on ‘mass innovation’ to pick up the slack. China’s Premier Li Keqiang has spent two years exhorting the country’s youth toward ‘mass entrepreneurship,’ frequently rhapsodizing on the power of innovation to provide high-paying tech jobs and to upgrade traditional industries. Government-orchestrated mass mobilizations are part of the Maoist DNA of modern China. But how can an education system that rewards rote memorization and a government that prizes stability above all else train a new generation of innovative coders intent on disruption? That’s where Shrek comes in. (His real name is Qie Xiaoye. He chose ‘Shrek’ because his wife’s English name is Fiona and his personality matches the gentle green ogre.)”

When it comes to customized coding education, you can’t go wrong with CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our winter camps today!

Coding Education, Education

Engineering and Hands-On Coding Education

Kids need hands-on learning. They need to be engaged with whatever they are learning in order to truly internalize it. Everything else is just rote memorization that could get lost after a week. Consider a recent article for DNA Info titled “‘Creative Engineering’ Class Teaches Kids Coding and Programming.”

Camille Bautista of DNA Info writes, “Kids can get an early start on cracking computer codes through a new series of ‘creative engineering’ classes being offered in Bed-Stuy. Ada and Leo, a 12-week workshop for children ages 6 through 9, starts this January. Brooklyn-based programmer Ben Wheeler is offering the introductory classes out of his Putnam Avenue home in hopes of sparking kids’ interest in technology, he said. ‘The biggest thing I hope that they get out of it is to see themselves as the kind of people who make things with computers, who create technology,’ Wheeler, 36, said. ‘So that when they hear about a programmer as an adult, or a project a teen did, they’re imagining that’s something they might do.’ Students can 3D-print their own designs, learn circuitry work and construct their own robots with LEGO MindStorms kits. Wheeler and teacher Audrey Fox guide participants through programs such as Tinkercad, a free online design tool, and Scratch from MIT. The father of two has already hosted one 12-week session this past fall where kids have created their own games, he said. Wheeler was motivated to start Ada and Leo after teaching adult programming classes and seeing the creative spark in his young daughters. ‘I saw the way my daughter, who is six, and her little sister were becoming creative with drawing with markers, writing and starting to make little picture books,’ Wheeler said. ‘There’s really meaningful work and meaningful expressiveness at the end of that.’ ‘I want to find the same kind of things they can be doing with computers. How could I make them feel the same kind of delight in the simple version of coding the way they do with drawing?’”

When it comes to customized coding education, your best bet is CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our winter camps today!

Coding Education, Education

Coding and a Globalized Education

We live in an increasingly globalized society. Everything we do is tied together with someone thousands of miles away that we have never met. As we get more connected, we have to start thinking about how that applies to education. For many, the answer is a more globalized education system. This includes coding. Consider a recent article for Devex titled “Can coding become a building block of global education?”

Catherine Cheney of Devex writes, “A group of nearly 40 students gathered around tables crowded with laptops in a classroom at Laboratoria, a social enterprise in Lima, Peru, that teaches young women to code. Beyond learning technical skills and building websites, the girls also gain confidence in their own skills, said Ana Maria Martinez, one of the four cofounders of the shop. Earlier this month students from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe participated in the third annual Hour of Code. The event’s continued growth across the world demonstrates the increasingly global reach of digital literacy initiatives. But despite momentum from social enterprises, supportive policies from a growing number of governments, and events like Computer Science Education Week that unite these efforts, the global development community can do more to ensure that coding will become a part of a basic education. Teaching kids how to use computers but not how to understand their algorithmic language is like teaching them to read but not to write, said Cristina Pombo Rivera of the Inter-American Development Bank. ‘There is a moral obligation that exists to properly prepare children for the technology-focused world and job market they will inherit,’ she said. The IDB gave Laboratoria $1 million to expand its model in Peru Chile, and Mexico. Other donors have not provided as much support but a group of foundations and private capital has stepped up. The Omidyar Network, for example, invested in Andela, which offers coding classes in Lagos, Nigeria.”

When it comes to customized coding education, you can’t go wrong with CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our winter camps today!

Coding Education, Education, Skills

Hackathon Aims to Strengthen Conservation

Coding provides the potential solutions to many of the world’s problems. This includes conservation. Consider a recent article for Mongabay WildTech titled “Coding for conservation: Hackathons generate apps and ideas.”

Sue Palminteri of Mongabay WildTech writes, “The general goal is to quickly develop a product that solves the challenge presented at the start of the event. Products generally take the form of websites, mobile apps, and robots, which can be created on the spot with limited time and resources. The Facebook ‘Like’ button, for example, was apparently designed at a hackathon. Participants also seek less tangible outcomes, including the chance to meet like-minded people, learn new skills, and use these skills creatively to build something new that addresses a particular challenge. The challenge proposed for the Hackathon for Wildlife was to ‘Develop innovative approaches and business models to connect 20 million people worldwide with wild animals, through a combination of technologies that include GPS hardware, data, games, and social media.’  The challenge built on the worldwide outrage about the killing of a lion named Cecil in Zimbabwe. Once people knew his name, he gained celebrity status and the concern of many thousands of people.  Might games or social media be venues for generating this kind of compassion for other wild animals?… Participants are typically technology developers, designers, programmers, and user-interface experts.  A themed hackathon might also attract subject-matter experts. At the Hackathon for Wildlife, attendees included 13 tech and wildlife specialists from companies including ESRI, BRCK, and Amazon, and seven local and international wildlife organizations. Among the 65 participants were also wildlife enthusiasts, computer science students, teachers, and working professionals… Participants mainly work furiously to complete a project that was likely proposed and agreed upon hours before. After a brief introduction to people and objectives, teams of 3 to 8 people, who often have just met one another, self-select to work collaboratively toward a particular idea or solution to the hackathon’s challenge. (Hackathon for Wildlife participants formed 10 teams.) They spend the next 24 to 48 hours (usually a weekend) brainstorming, designing, coding, and learning new technologies, with the goal of producing a prototype for that concept. They also might attend one or more short training sessions.”

Looking for the best in customized coding education? You can’t go wrong with CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our winter camps today!

Coding Education, Education, Skills

The Coding Lessons That Go Beyond Computer Skills

For many people, how there is even a debate still going on the validity of coding in the classroom is mind boggling. Yet, that debate continues to rage on throughout the country. Consider a recent article for the Lancaster Online titled “What do kids learn from coding? Much more than just computer skills, educators say.”

Kara Newhouse of Lancaster Online writes, “Third-graders at Pequea Elementary School in Penn Manor can’t quite explain how computer coding is used in the real world, but they do know this: it’s a lot of fun. ‘I like coding because you get to play games, but it makes you think and stuff,’ said 8-year-old Kennedy Dings. Last Thursday, Kennedy and her classmates participated in Hour of Code, a global campaign in which children try software programming for one hour anytime during Computer Science Education Week. The event was launched in 2013 by Code.org, a Seattle-based nonprofit dedicated to expanding participation in computer science. During the first year, only a few Lancaster County schools and organizations joined in the Hour of Code. This year, at least 10 local districts and private schools participated. Kennedy and her Pequea classmates, who have been learning coding all year, served as ‘tech experts’ for older and younger students at Hambright Elementary during Hour of Code. (Pequea’s third-grade classrooms are located at Hambright this year because of school renovations.) On Thursday they introduced fifth-graders to coding with online and offline games. In the online games, students drag and drop instructions — ‘lines of code’ — into a sequence to make a character perform a task, such as navigating a maze. The instructions are in plain language, such as ‘turn right’ or ‘jump,’ but the principles are the same as for building computer programs. In a board game called Robot Turtles, players get a stack of cards with directions such as ‘move forward’ or ‘blast through the wall.’ They take turns picking choosing cards to create their code.”

When it comes to customized coding education, your best bet is CodeRev Kids. At CodeRev Kids, our lessons focus on computational thinking, which encompasses a wide variety of programming languages and concepts.

Our lessons build upon one another and we adjust starting points to each student’s level of expertise. Thus, the entire curriculum is customized. We are known for saying we are the most educational tech camp out there, but we also keep the focus on having fun. As a result, students stay engaged while learning to blend creativity with technology.

Sign up for one of our winter camps today!