While there are no shortage of coding educators willing to tell people about the wonders of coding, sometimes it takes outside voices to spark interest in children. Consider a recent article for the Clarion-Ledger titled “Gov. Bryant, Deuce McAllister spread coding gospel.”
Bracey Harris of the Clarion-Ledger writes, “Former New Orleans Saints running back Deuce McAllister joined Gov. Phil Bryant Monday in evangelizing the need for coding in the state’s classrooms. During the Bytes + Bites coding event to raise legislative awareness about the benefits of incorporating programming into a school’s curriculum, roughly two dozen students from a cluster of Jackson-metro elementary and middle schools switched roles to become teachers for the day. Sen. Brice Wiggins and Rep. Jay Hughes crouched down between scholars from Brown Elementary, Olde Towne Middle School, Reimagine Prep and Highland Elementary who showcased what they’d learned through programs like code.org and SCRATCH. McAllister, a longtime advocate for childhood education in Mississippi, told the young group of 15-year-old Luke Bannister from the U.K. who won $250,000, after placing first in World Drone Pix in Dubai. ‘I believe that next individual could be one of you guys in this room, because that’s the type of talent that you have,’ said McAllister. A common theme was that early exposure makes a difference. Half of the hands in the room shot up when Alexandra Vlachakis, southern district manager for code.org, asked how many students had an interest in computer science. Only a few were raised when she inquired how many had even known such a career path existed. Participants sat in three rows, deep in concentration as they tried to maneuver Princess Anna from the popular movie ‘Frozen’ around the screen, using a learning program from code.org, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting computer science. The budding coders may have seen what was a favorite character from a beloved movie, but Gov. Phil Bryant saw something different — workforce development. ‘We’re getting you ready for a job,’ said Bryant. ‘Go tell your mom and dad that you’ll have a really good job in the future.’”
Looking for the best in 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.