What you’ll learn
- Getting started with the programming using Blockly.
- Create smart and fun games using Scratch .
- Create animations and cool visual effects using Scratch.
- Mobile app development using App Inventor
- How to apply creativity, reasoning, and problem-solving to solve complex computer science issues.
This course is designed for
- Children (above 8 years)
- Absolute beginners in programming and computer science
Description
In this virtual course, we’ll learn to code, starting from the basics. Blockly games are a fun option for getting started and have a basic understanding of the foundational ideas of programming. This will take four weeks with 2, two hour sessions a week to finish.
After this, we dive into Scratch and build on what we learnt using the Blockly sessions. Scratch is a Visual programming platform developed by MIT, it is so fun that it makes programming seem like a game and yet there are complex programming concepts behind it that the kids get to learn. This will be another four weeks of 2, two hour sessions a week. 
After successfully going through Blockly and Scratch, the learners will have gathered enough skills to dive into developing simple android applications. We will introduce learners to mobile app development using App Inventor, another visual programming tool to make android applications. This would take another four weeks with 2 two hour sessions a week.
We will learn this by doing. The course is designed so that you create the games and applications with your hands and thoughts under the guidance of our experienced instructors. We learn a variety of complex but important computer science topics. We shall get to “hide” the toughness behind characters, animations, analogies, problem solving, and fun!
That’s because, in these sessions, we train our intuition to make sense of what we want to achieve, visualize how to get there and then translate your thoughts into codes. This would mean that there will be potential mistakes while doing this and what we do is to retrace our steps, collaborate, find solutions and eventually accomplish something exciting.
The content is designed to be fun! We learn to create animations and cool effects and we create clones of some of the most popular games. The games are handpicked to optimize learning computer science ideas while having fun along the way.
By the end of the course, you will have learnt how to:
- Think like a programmer
- Apply computational thinking in solving problems
- Identify patterns
- Critically examine problems in finding solutions
- Collaborate with other learners in developing mini projects
Mode of Delivery
This is a purely virtual course. We shall be using safe and secure platforms like Big Blue Button to engage and interact with students.
Instructors
Our team of instructors are experienced STEAM educators, Mathematicians, and Computer Scientists with over 5 year experience working with kids, teenagers and adults in fields such as programming, extra-curricular maths, and robotics.
Why should I enroll my child?
- It enables students to develop logical mindsets which are very vital in their daily lives.
- With our experience in running all these sessions we have learnt that this is the easiest and the fun way to introduce pupils to computer programming which can sometimes be complex in nature.
- By students participating in the building and programming increases students’ creativity as they engage in making tangible objects perform various commands designed and given by the learners themselves.
- It’s a way in which the students’ frustrations can be turned into innovations as some of the programs can seem complicated but easily executable when you take time.
- We highly recommend that you take 20 minutes of your time to listen to this wonderful and informative podcast by the Education Development Center on how programming helps children learn math.
We can’t wait to have you in the course.
To register for this course please fill out this form.