Every parent wants their kids to be ready for the world of tomorrow’s technology, never mind today’s. We live in a digital world, and while nobody can say for sure what tomorrow’s devices will look like, they’ll surely be written in code.
That’s why parents love the idea of their children learning these vital skills in a warm, supportive atmosphere. However, class isn’t every kid’s idea of the best way to spend their summer. If you ask a child how they’d like to spend their summer break, “class” may not be their first option!
RP4K understands that, and frankly, we agree with kids! Summer should be fun. All extracurriculars should always be fun. Let’s check out a few ways that we ensure our programming classes in our summer coding camp are fun for kids of all skill and experience levels.
When kids play, they don’t even realize they’re learning. Whether at the playground during recess, free time set aside in class, or when kids are among each other after school, they learn much about the world while playing. Unlike formal instruction, which has an explicit pedagogy, kids get to experiment without pressure and absorb information naturally when they’re playing.
RP4K’s coding camps for kids revolve around making video games, and we understand how to make a game of it. Kids as young as seven can learn how to write code to create a Pac-Man-style game they can play afterwards with friends and family. Kids are driven to finish projects when they can show them off afterwards and feel proud of their accomplishments. Showing your parents an “A+” is great, but walking them through a game they designed and programmed themselves is on another level.
RP4K also uses gamification dynamics in our sessions, leveraging what makes video games so engaging for learning purposes. We don’t just teach kids how to write code by using video games as a motivator; we harness what makes kids so addicted to video games to ensure they’re just as driven to learn how to write code.
Nobody wants to spend time learning something of secondary importance, especially when it’s kids during the summer break. RP4K only teaches the most in-demand coding languages, ones that employers expect the people they hire to know.
Learning the coding languages used to build today’s most popular apps, video games, and websites is a great way to empower kids. They’ll have the skills necessary to blaze their own digital trail, eventually get a job as a professional video game coder, or work in one of the countless other jobs that open up to people with advanced coding skills.
RP4K is proud to teach such coding languages as:
Contact us when choosing the right summer coding classes based on your child’s specific level of skill and experience. Even young kids with no prior coding experience can learn Python, while our advanced students will have their hands full with our more senior courses. There’s something for everybody: no student will ever be bored or overwhelmed.
Kids get passionate after dipping a toe in the water and realizing the temperature is comfortable. Soon, they’ll be diving in and going for an extended swim.
It’s hard for kids to develop a passion for any subject while learning it in a noisy, disruptive environment. Teachers shouldn’t have to struggle with classroom management issues. They should be free to focus on the material so students can concentrate on learning to code rather than struggle to get their teacher’s attention.
RP4K caps our class size at four, making every session orderly and productive. Parents can feel secure knowing that their child’s class will have a maximum of three other students.
We also make it a point to hire undergraduate students studying computer sciences and computer engineering for a few reasons. One, they have the necessary subject matter expertise to be instructors. Two, they also grew up playing video games as kids and know the nostalgia of childhood gaming first-hand.
If older students wonder where coding can take them after school, they’ll have the perfect people at hand to ask. The digital job market changes perhaps more quickly than any other, so it’s crucial for teens speak to people with relevant, up-to-date experience.
Older mentors can help light the fire that sparks their passion for coding, but they can also help guide them or at least help chart their path forward.
Kids are just looking to have fun during their summer break and build and play video games, right? They don’t want to spend their vacation learning math, do they? RP4K’s classes have fundamental math concepts embedded in them, so kids will stay sharp during the summer break.
RP4K has improved and refined our curriculum over our 20+ years in operation, and we understand how to make learning to code so much fun that kids don’t even realize they’re learning math. Our founder, Elliott Bay, has an advanced math background and has worked for years teaching students math.
Kids taking RP4K’s online coding classes will learn subjects like integers, vectors, and even trigonometry! Becoming a programmer requires specific coding skills, an engineer’s mental habits, and some important math concepts.
Today, it’s important for kids to enjoy their summer and learn some important coding concepts. Once their passion is lit, to keep it fuelled moving forward, it really helps to have a solid math foundation.
Decades ago, parents wanted their kids to take typing lessons or merely play with computers so they could familiarize themselves with the new technology whose role would surely only grow in the coming years. Understanding how to write the lines of code powering video games, websites, and apps takes thing to another level. Sign up for RP4K’s summer coding camp to get your child set on becoming a passionate programmer!
