ThoughtWorks
  • Contact
  • Español
  • Português
  • Deutsch
  • 中文
Go to overview
  • Engineering Culture, Delivery Mindset

    Embrace a modern approach to software development and deliver value faster

    Intelligence-Driven Decision Making

    Leverage your data assets to unlock new sources of value

  • Frictionless Operating Model

    Improve your organization's ability to respond to change

    Platform Strategy

    Create adaptable technology platforms that move with your business strategy

  • Experience Design and Product Capability

    Rapidly design, deliver and evolve exceptional products and experiences

    Partnerships

    Leveraging our network of trusted partners to amplify the outcomes we deliver for our clients

Go to overview
  • Automotive
  • Cleantech, Energy and Utilities
  • Financial Services and Insurance
  • Healthcare
  • Media and Publishing
  • Not-for-profit
  • Public Sector
  • Retail and E-commerce
  • Travel and Transport
Go to overview

Featured

  • Technology

    An in-depth exploration of enterprise technology and engineering excellence

  • Business

    Keep up to date with the latest business and industry insights for digital leaders

  • Culture

    The place for career-building content and tips, and our view on social justice and inclusivity

Digital Publications and Tools

  • Technology Radar

    An opinionated guide to technology frontiers

  • Perspectives

    A publication for digital leaders

  • Digital Fluency Model

    A model for prioritizing the digital capabilities needed to navigate uncertainty

  • Decoder

    The business execs' A-Z guide to technology

All Insights

  • Articles

    Expert insights to help your business grow

  • Blogs

    Personal perspectives from ThoughtWorkers around the globe

  • Books

    Explore our extensive library

  • Podcasts

    Captivating conversations on the latest in business and tech

Go to overview
  • Application process

    What to expect as you interview with us

  • Grads and career changers

    Start your tech career on the right foot

  • Search jobs

    Find open positions in your region

  • Stay connected

    Sign up for our monthly newsletter

Go to overview
  • Conferences and Events
  • Diversity and Inclusion
  • News
  • Open Source
  • Our Leaders
  • Social Change
  • Español
  • Português
  • Deutsch
  • 中文
ThoughtWorksMenu
  • Close   ✕
  • What we do
  • Who we work with
  • Insights
  • Careers
  • About
  • Contact
  • Back
  • Close   ✕
  • Go to overview
  • Engineering Culture, Delivery Mindset

    Embrace a modern approach to software development and deliver value faster

  • Experience Design and Product Capability

    Rapidly design, deliver and evolve exceptional products and experiences

  • Frictionless Operating Model

    Improve your organization's ability to respond to change

  • Intelligence-Driven Decision Making

    Leverage your data assets to unlock new sources of value

  • Partnerships

    Leveraging our network of trusted partners to amplify the outcomes we deliver for our clients

  • Platform Strategy

    Create adaptable technology platforms that move with your business strategy

  • Back
  • Close   ✕
  • Go to overview
  • Automotive
  • Cleantech, Energy and Utilities
  • Financial Services and Insurance
  • Healthcare
  • Media and Publishing
  • Not-for-profit
  • Public Sector
  • Retail and E-commerce
  • Travel and Transport
  • Back
  • Close   ✕
  • Go to overview
  • Featured

  • Technology

    An in-depth exploration of enterprise technology and engineering excellence

  • Business

    Keep up to date with the latest business and industry insights for digital leaders

  • Culture

    The place for career-building content and tips, and our view on social justice and inclusivity

  • Digital Publications and Tools

  • Technology Radar

    An opinionated guide to technology frontiers

  • Perspectives

    A publication for digital leaders

  • Digital Fluency Model

    A model for prioritizing the digital capabilities needed to navigate uncertainty

  • Decoder

    The business execs' A-Z guide to technology

  • All Insights

  • Articles

    Expert insights to help your business grow

  • Blogs

    Personal perspectives from ThoughtWorkers around the globe

  • Books

    Explore our extensive library

  • Podcasts

    Captivating conversations on the latest in business and tech

  • Back
  • Close   ✕
  • Go to overview
  • Application process

    What to expect as you interview with us

  • Grads and career changers

    Start your tech career on the right foot

  • Search jobs

    Find open positions in your region

  • Stay connected

    Sign up for our monthly newsletter

  • Back
  • Close   ✕
  • Go to overview
  • Conferences and Events
  • Diversity and Inclusion
  • News
  • Open Source
  • Our Leaders
  • Social Change
Blogs
Select a topic
View all topicsClose
Technology 
Agile Project Management Cloud Continuous Delivery  Data Science & Engineering Defending the Free Internet Evolutionary Architecture Experience Design IoT Languages, Tools & Frameworks Legacy Modernization Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence Microservices Platforms Security Software Testing Technology Strategy 
Business 
Financial Services Global Health Innovation Retail  Transformation 
Careers 
Career Hacks Diversity & Inclusion Social Change 
Blogs

Topics

Choose a topic
  • Technology
    Technology
  • Technology Overview
  • Agile Project Management
  • Cloud
  • Continuous Delivery
  • Data Science & Engineering
  • Defending the Free Internet
  • Evolutionary Architecture
  • Experience Design
  • IoT
  • Languages, Tools & Frameworks
  • Legacy Modernization
  • Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence
  • Microservices
  • Platforms
  • Security
  • Software Testing
  • Technology Strategy
  • Business
    Business
  • Business Overview
  • Financial Services
  • Global Health
  • Innovation
  • Retail
  • Transformation
  • Careers
    Careers
  • Careers Overview
  • Career Hacks
  • Diversity & Inclusion
  • Social Change
LondonDiversity & InclusionCareers

Herding Kittens: My Experience Running a Code Club for Kids

Stuart Curran Stuart Curran

Published: May 26, 2014

The Code Club program was created early last year in the wake of the unfavorable review of UK high school ICT curriculum. Its aim is to give every child in the UK the chance to learn to code, specifically targeting 9 to 11 year-olds.

Here's a snippet from the Guardian article John Naughton wrote announcing his manifesto, “The biggest justification for change is not economic but moral. It is that if we don’t act now we will be short-changing our children ... if they don’t have a deeper understanding of this stuff then they will effectively be intellectually crippled.”

How can you say no to that?

As a parent and technologist, I wanted to do my part to help introduce kids to concepts and skills that will shape their future working lives. Creating a Code Club at a small village school near my home felt like the right thing to do to open new doors to eager students, and to be part of an exciting grassroots opportunity to change the course of UK schooling.

Confession time: I am not a programmer! What little code I do know has been cobbled together from years of tinkering out of necessity, failed attempts to make computers do what I want and generally mucking about on the Internet. So one of the great things about Code Club, as far as I am concerned, is that you don’t need to be a programmer to be an effective teacher.

At the Code Club I support there are about four girls and eight boys who regularly participate for an hour a week. Fortunately, I also have a teacher or two who helps run the club with me.  Code Club sets its own curriculum based on the language, Scratch, which was developed to make it easier for children to learn basic programming concepts.

Currently there are twelve lessons over two term grouped into levels of increasing difficulty. Each lesson teaches something new from the Scratch interface and builds upon concepts that the kids are exposed to each week. Rather than simply adopt the existing Scratch lessons, Code Club has worked with a number of creative coders and educators to design their own lessons.

The lessons don’t end with Scratch however. In term three kids are introduced to HTML and CSS, allowing them to build and publish their own web pages. Term four takes things a step further still and teaches them about building their own apps using the Python programming language.

Last year, Code Club also held a Raspberry Pi hackathon in London with a view to creating ideas for hardware projects that could be taught as lessons for Code Club.
 

The example shown above is a pi-powered lego playground. Another example included a mini band using small sensors to replicate drum kits and guitars.

As my co-worker Andrew Maddison said about his volunteer work at a different Code Club, “I had very little teaching experience when I started a year ago. Now, helping out is one of the highlights of my week. I am making a difference in the lives of these kids, even if some just want to use the time to play Minecraft.

“If we could get 40 or 50 more technologist friends or colleagues to volunteer for Code Club, we could really make an impact."

Will you help? Code Clubs are expanding across the UK. Here’s how to get started.

If you are interested in starting a Code Club outside of the UK, Code Club World provides access to the Code Club curriculum in different languages.

Ready to shape the future of tech?

Join our team of passionate and bright technologists.

Join us
  • What we do
  • Who we work with
  • Insights
  • Careers
  • About
  • Contact

WeChat

×
QR code to ThoughtWorks China WeChat subscription account

Media and analyst relations | Privacy policy | Modern Slavery statement ThoughtWorks| Accessibility | © 2021 ThoughtWorks, Inc.