Author: Gicela

Scratching away

Posted on by Gicela

Right now I’m feeling a huge sense of satisfaction after delivering 3 x 3 hour sessions of Scratch at Yatton Junior School with James Irwin (@gracesauto), whose employer allowed him to join me during school hours to mentor young children on how to code.

We set off on this journey feeling a little nervous; 26 children in the computer room, all waiting for our instructions. We didn’t want to tell the children what to do, but rather encouraged them to use their creativity to create anything they wanted. The children already had a bit of experience with Scratch, so it wasn’t difficult to get them started. Continue reading “Scratching away”

Scratch that programming itch in school

Posted on by Gicela

I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to run a series of three morning Scratch coding sessions at Yatton Junior School.

We – I’m doing this with my neighbour and friend @gracesauto – have the blessing of the Head Teacher, and the commitment of Year 6 teachers and the enthusiasm of the children. Continue reading “Scratch that programming itch in school”

Creative Coding for Children

Posted on by Gicela

Yesterday I led a workshop for primary school teachers in North Somerset on some of the Open Source tools now available to enable children to make stuff for the web. I covered Scratch, Python and RaspberryPi, but I also wanted to introduce Mozilla Webmaker tools – Thimble, Popcorn and X-Ray Googles.

As I had used Mozilla Webmaker with children before, I thought the teachers would also be keen to have a play. I was right, and we could have filled the room three times over! In my experience, Thimble is by far the best tool to use when learning to create your first web page, and I could sense the satisfaction in the room as the teachers shared their creations. Continue reading “Creative Coding for Children”

Code Club for girls

Posted on by Gicela

Today is the last day of the school term and I’m very much looking forward to running a Code Club during half term.

I believe that primary-age children should be learning how to make things for the web and learn the principles of coding. They are so comfortable playing with their laptops and mobile devices – but mainly as consumers. It’s time they look at computers and their iPods in a different way. As devices they can manipulate and make them do things they want. Continue reading “Code Club for girls”

Thimble, Popcorn,Scratch, etc.

Posted on by Gicela

Code Club for girlsThis week, I ran a Code Club for girls; three sessions of three hours each. I’m generally very pleased with the outcome and hope that the girls can keep the momentum going and continue to develop their understanding of coding.

The group of girls consisted of my daughter’s friends from school – a group of five 10-11 year olds… and a smaller second group of 8 year olds

Continue reading “Thimble, Popcorn,Scratch, etc.”