Hour of Code is Here!

I learned about Hour of Code last year and kinda sorta did it with my kids.  I didn't think much would come of it - until I saw them doing it.  Holy cannoli - these kids were writing html and Java like bosses!!  And they were loving it!  They were collaborating and problem solving and celebrating.  In fact, it was so exciting, I texted our principal to just come down and watch them.

So I knew that I wanted to do it bigger and better this year.  I began at the beginning of the year, setting up a class account with usernames and passwords for each of my kids (which is super easy to do, by the way).  Then, I coordinated with the computer programming teacher at our high school (our high schoolers are coding for the first time this year), and my thirders are going to get to take a bus over there Tuesday to code with the big kids!!  I honestly don't know who's more excited - me, Mrs. Colbert, my kids, or her kids.  We've planned some time for the high schoolers to mentor my kids on the Hour of Code site, some time for lunch in the big kid cafeteria, and then more time later for the high schoolers to help the thirders turn their "Naughty and Nice" holiday paragraphs into customized web pages.  

I'm so excited for a lot of reasons.  I can't wait for my kids to see this incredible computer lab - I blogged about it here.  I can't wait for them to see that their skills aren't that far behind those of the high schoolers.  And I'm excited to share the importance of coding with media - we'll have reporters there to join in and see the fun.

It's not too late for you to participate in Hour of Code this week!  All it takes is one hour and a computer lab.  And you do not have to have any prior coding experience - the videos and tutorials take care of it all.  If you do join in, be sure to Tweet and share with the hashtag #hourofcode.  Be a part of this global movement to make sure all kids have the opportunity to learn programming!

Happy coding,