The Hour Of Code Challenge Starts Next Week
With much of our world automated, many experts believe that coding should be a core part of modern education. Yet, only 20 US states offer high school students access to computer science courses, and just 8 of those make the subject accessible to kids in lower grades. However, thanks to Seattle-based Code.org's Hour of Code Challenge, learners of all ages and backgrounds can now get exposure to this all-important subject.
Now in its eighth year, the event, offered annually during Computer Science Education Week (December 7th - 13th, 2020), attracts over 100 million participants across 180 countries. The hour-long coding activities, created with help from over 400 partners, including Google, Microsoft, and Khan Academy, are offered in 45 different languages. Suitable for all ages — from 4 to 104 — and experience levels, they are designed to demystify the world of coding and inspire students of all backgrounds to consider a career in software engineering. Though school sessions are usually restricted to sixty minutes, individuals can pursue longer coding challenges and tackle as many of the offerings as they wish on their own time.
Students can select their coding project based on their age, interest level, and programming prowess. Among this year's offerings is A Minecraft Tale of Two Villages. Created by the popular video game's programmers, it is designed to raise awareness of unconscious bias by bringing together two villages with the power of code. The developers state, “[We hope] coders will experience compassion for their neighbors, learn about cooperation and equity, and embrace the diversity that makes us all uniquely special."
Kids will also be able to select COVID-19-centric games involving coding social distance procedures, as well as program their own superhero. With over 200 projects to choose from, there is something to interest programmers of all ages and coding skills.
While 60 minutes is enough time to get students intrigued about the subject, it is inadequate to master programming. To enable them to continue, Code.org offers ongoing computer science tutorials for students and professional learning for teachers. Since 2013, the non-profit has trained over 200,000 educators across grades K-12. In 2018, more than 19,000 Code.org students signed up for and passed the Advanced Placement Computer Science Principles examination.
Though the progress is encouraging, there is still a lot that needs to be done, especially given that most future jobs will require some programming knowledge. To learn how you and your school can get involved with the Hour of Code and the future of computer science, check out hourofcode.com.
Resources: Hourofcode.com
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254 Comments
b1ng0Tuesday, January 12, 2021 at 9:20 amI love coding!
mintbookwormThursday, January 7, 2021 at 7:53 pmI loooooooooooooooooove coding (💖👩🏻💻)! Do any of you use Scratch, Java Script or Python?
tonyynotTuesday, February 2, 2021 at 6:29 ami do scratch and code.org
jay60Friday, January 22, 2021 at 10:50 amI use Scratch, and rarely JavaScript.
5000unicornsFriday, January 22, 2021 at 10:02 ami use scrach and python i think
pangjangThursday, January 21, 2021 at 4:50 pmMy cousin uses python
thedarkcandleThursday, January 21, 2021 at 6:57 amScratch but I want to learn python
ilovetacoslolSaturday, January 9, 2021 at 10:01 amCoding is amazing!✨👩💻😋
cool_dogsFriday, January 8, 2021 at 6:54 amNope... but I use swift!
littleartistTuesday, January 5, 2021 at 10:18 amI did this in 1st grade!- littleartistTuesday, January 5, 2021 at 10:08 amNeat! I used that in 1st grade!
optukeMonday, January 4, 2021 at 8:07 amCOOL!
flexy-123456789Tuesday, December 22, 2020 at 7:09 pmI think it's awsome.
devillady2010Saturday, January 2, 2021 at 1:10 amYea that game is cool, maybe that game is just really really famous.......!!!!???
kittypowerrosieSaturday, December 19, 2020 at 5:23 amI've done hour of code at my school it's pretty fun but not as fun as roblox lol XD
artgirl2Saturday, January 9, 2021 at 6:35 amI like Minecraft and world of cubes they are basically the same thing lol- mintbookwormThursday, January 7, 2021 at 7:54 pmWhat you're favourite game on roblox?
destroyergabaTuesday, December 22, 2020 at 6:53 ami love roblox- b1ng0Tuesday, January 12, 2021 at 9:21 amMe too
- mintbookwormThursday, January 7, 2021 at 7:55 pmMe too! Just wish I could play it more often.
jotaroTuesday, December 15, 2020 at 8:28 amMinecraft is one of my fav games
zywuhelucidiTuesday, December 15, 2020 at 5:42 amWe do coding at my school to and Minecraft is my favorite game to.- devillady2010Saturday, January 2, 2021 at 1:07 amYea my school does that too. And I like the Minecraft one as well!
kittyloverjamMonday, December 14, 2020 at 9:18 amI LOVE Minercraft it's one of my favorite video games!!!- devillady2010Saturday, January 2, 2021 at 1:14 amI really like the music in the game Minecraft. The music is like mysterious and soft ..........
captiancool234Sunday, January 3, 2021 at 1:42 pmYea, true...
- devillady2010Saturday, January 2, 2021 at 1:12 amI L-O-V-E MINECRAFT. When I first played the game I loved it so much!
- artgirl2Saturday, January 9, 2021 at 6:36 amSame I luv it
- captiancool234Sunday, January 3, 2021 at 1:42 pmMe too! 😁😀
