For the past 25 years RP4K has been teaching game programming to children and teens. Our first game programming classes took place in Winnipeg in the mid 1990s.
We have decided to split our educational services into three interconnected streams:
We have now decided to offer specialized courses in AI and Mathematics in addition to our tried-and-true game programming courses. Each of the three educational streams concentrates its focus more heavily.
Online Applied Math Courses
We currently offer three (Beginner, Developing and Advanced) Applied Math for Coders courses and one Elite Pure Math for Coders course.
We are aware of competent programmers who have weak math skills. This may sound surprising, but it is reality. If students are serious about a career in programming or going on into Science or Computer Science, then they will need good math skills.
If a student can get to the mathematical roots of a programming concept, he or she will become more confident using it.
In the future, we may be offering remedial math courses and math tutoring. After all that’s how we started in Winnipeg in 1990!
Online AI Courses
AI is very relevant to video game programming. We hope our AI courses will demystify AI concepts like Pathfinding, Machine Learning, Neural Networks, and Prompt Engineering.
We now offer two AI courses.
Intermediate AI
Advanced AI
Coding Courses
Don’t forget that we have 16 tried and true game coding courses!
Elite Open Project Game Programming, any programming language – 18 weeks, 2 hours per week (this is for very advanced students only, but it is a coding course where your child’s wish is our command!)
Game Programming, AI & Mathematics
AI and Mathematics were already manifesting in our game programming courses in the 1990s!
As soon as we started to teach kids how to program the retro Pac-Man game, we were using AI to govern the Ghost’s movement! We may not have formally called it AI, but nevertheless it was AI.
This means that AI can manifest in game programming.
In 2021 Elliott wrote and began teaching an Elite Level Pure Math & Physics for Coders course. One topic that Elliott touched on was Dijkstra’s algorithm, which is an algorithm for finding the shortest path between nodes in a network.
This algorithm is useful to pathfinding in video game programming. Pathfinding is part of AI. Other pathfinding algorithms like A* are also part of AI.
This means some topics in mathematics can be categorized as AI.
When you’re coding a game, you may need to use the Pythagoras formula for collision detection.
So, mathematics naturally manifests in game programming.
The previous examples help explain the connections between game programming, AI and mathematics.
Real Programming 4 Kids History and Milestones
Elliott taught Calculus and Linear Algebra at the University of Manitoba
We offered Math tutoring and Math enrichment classes in Winnipeg
We began offering Coding Classes in an apartment on Corydon Ave, Winnipeg
Rented Space from a private school in Winnipeg to offer our classes to students from all over Manitoba
We expanded to eight cities in Ontario
We pivoted to Online Coding for Kids Classes
Elliott began teaching online math classes
We are now offering Online Coding, AI and Applied Math classes
I can't say enough good things about the RP4K coding and math school! My son has been taking different courses since 2021, and it's been an incredible experiencen for him. He's gone through all the levels—from beginner to intermediate to advanced/elite—and has learned different coding languages along the way. Through the process of learning and comparing different coding languages, he was able to figure out the specific area he's most passionate about. The instructors are always top-notch at any course level, super professional, and make every class engaging and fun. Absolutely all the courses are really well-planned and way ahead of what he's learning in school. My son's favorite as of 2025 is the Advanced Applied Math course, with a very bright and talented instructor Craig. My son loves diving into new math concepts combined with physics and programming. This course is about learning, thinking, discovering and exploring, which has really sparked his interest in math even more. This school has given my son so much confidence and a deep love for coding and math that goes beyond the classroom. Highly recommend it to any parent looking to give their child an awesome educational experience—especially in AI, coding, and math, which are becoming increasingly essential with the rise of AI technology!
My 12-year old child showed an interest in coding a few years ago and so we started looking for coding programs for them. They participated in courses at many other organizations including several after-school in-person coding programs, summer coding camps and in-school extra-curricular coding clubs and this is the best one by far - in terms of teaching actual coding theory and developing an understanding of the variables at play and the mechanics of coding. At other programs, my child would tell me things like "I do the tasks, but don't feel like I really understand why I was doing those things" or "we basically just play games" or "the instructors couldn't really explain things, they could just tell me what the next step was." This was NOT their experience at Real Programming 4 Kids. The instructors are great, really understand the content and my child expressed how they really learned things - both how to create code as well as WHY code is written a certain way. Highly recommend.
My son has been taking classes with RP4K for a while now and really enjoys the lessons. I'm impressed with his knowledge. It's interesting to hear how the instructors teach the kids such complex topics.
After attending RP4K for six years across two math & physics classes and several coding courses, I can confidently attest to the quality of education here. Complex material is introduced in fun, manageable ways with extremely small class sizes. Though math is incorporated in all programming courses, RP4K also provides further programs focused entirely on math and physics. Programming has been one of my greatest interests for several years, and math not so much, which is why I was surprised to find out that the course I am currently taking, "Elite Math and Physics for Game Programmers", is even more enjoyable for me than previous courses. RP4K approaches teaching these seemingly intimidating concepts through a unique lens, helping to convey their importance and spark an interest in mathematics.
Over the past few years I've taken ten courses here. From not knowing a single thing about programming to now being able to help my friends in my school classes. I've had a really fun time here learning many, many new things that I don't think I would have ever been able to learn on my own. The small class sizes along with the simplicity of them is an amazing way to learn. Over the years, my favourite part of these classes were the teachers, taking into consideration the small class sizes, the teachers are quick to help and also explain everything very simply. This is a great place for beginner, and experienced programmers. - Austin