Code Club teaches school kids how to code
10 August 2015 / Published in Your CommunityCode Club Aotearoa’s mission is to give every Kiwi kid the chance to learn to code (and it’s well on its way to doing this!).
After launching in 2014 with one club in Christchurch, there are now over 100 clubs nationwide – the goal is to grow it to 200 clubs by the end of the year.
Code Club is a network of free volunteer-led coding clubs for children aged 8-12. Code Club Aotearoa is part of the wider Code Club Global Network which originally started with Code Club UK in 2012. There are now over 2,607 clubs worldwide.
Code Club’s role is to help volunteers and schools find each other and it also creates the projects for volunteers to teach at club sessions. The projects teach kids to code by making computer games, animations and websites.
Code Club Aotearoa provides all the resources (training material, tools etc.). Schools provide the equipment, a teacher, internet access and a location. The volunteers run the programme, over 10 weeks at lunch-time or in the evening.
Knowing how to code is an important skill for kids to have in this digital age. They need to know more than just how to use technology, they need to know how to design and build it. Code Club believes that “each child, regardless of their background, should have the chance to explore the endless possibilities technology provides to them. Every student in New Zealand deserves the opportunity to decide for themselves whether a career in IT is something they want to pursue.”
Code Club not only teaches kids how to code and sets them up for a future in IT but it also teaches them computational thinking, problem solving, planning, designing and collaboration – useful skills for any career path.
ASB got involved earlier this year and some volunteers from our Technology & Innovation team are running Code Clubs at two schools.
We’re teaming up with Code Club to help them expand around the country – starting with Auckland’s North Shore. On 20th August we’re hosting an information event at ASB Technology & Innovation Hub. If you’re a teacher, librarian, youth worker, parent or interested volunteer from the IT industry then we invite you to come along to learn more. It will be the perfect opportunity for volunteers and schools (or other venues) to connect and create a new club.
Thursday 20 August 2015, 5.30pm-7.00pm
ASB Technology & Innovation Hub
33 Corinthian Drive, Albany, Auckland
Learn more about Code Club.
