The week of December 3-9, students in all five Logan County elementary and middle schools participated in the Hour of Code, a one-hour introduction to computer science designed to demystify "code" and show that anyone can learn the basics of coding.
Hour of Code is a worldwide effort to celebrate computer science and spark interest in science technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. It takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week.
Students in grades K-8 took part in the Hour of Code to learn computer coding in a fun and interactive way.
Students in Marty White’s second grade class at Chandler’s Elementary used the code.org website to learn coding. This isn’t the first time Mrs. White’s class has done computer coding, but for the International Hour of Code, her students used Dance Party and Mindcraft programs. While coding in Dance Party, students choose their own music and program characters to dance to the music and while coding in Mindcraft, students explore and build adventures.
Auburn Students in Stephanie Wheeldon’s library class also used the hour of code website to learn coding. Mrs. Wheeldon said, “Coding is really computer science and in my opinion is a great thing for kids to learn right now. I think they will be doing more and more of it as they get older.”
Olmstead second graders coded for two hours during the week. According to second grade teacher Samantha Cole, “Students had to think ahead so their critical thinking was at work. Our classes have been using Code.org. They have loved the challenge of coding and it has been very engaging for them. They ask us every day if they get to code. This is something we would love to continue to do with our students.”