We experience computers and its digital creations every day. It is not enough to just know how to use a computer anymore. Creating, developing computational thinking and ability to personalize & customize applications to solve your problems are needed skills today.

It is no surprise then that Computer Science represents the fastest growing segment of jobs in all STEM fields. Experts believe that this field is impacting roughly 80% of all STEM jobs directly or indirectly.

Programs are designed to engage young minds and help them advance from being merely computer users to creators.

Computer Programming I

This is an exciting introduction to computer programming. Curriculum is designed to engage young minds and help them advance from being merely computer users to creators. Participants learn the basics of creating using computers through some unplugged activities followed by drag-and-drop programming, Various tools are utilized including code.org and Scratch programming. They apply their programming skills to create simple programs, animations and games. Skills Focus: Critical Thinking, Computational Thinking, Computing Practice and Programming. Activities include: Unplugged Human Machine, We R Programming, Maze, Name Animation, Debugging and more.

Computer Programming II

Participants extend their computer programming skills and apply it to create their virtual worlds, scintillating characters, 3D animations and digital storytelling. This program utilizes drag-and-drop programming Alice, developed at the Carnegie Mellon University. Skills Focus: Critical Thinking, Computational Thinking, Computing Practice and Programming. Activities include: We R Programming, Unplugged Building a Program, Apple Picking, Algorithmic Think, Fun!-ctional Keychain, Alice in Space and more.

Computer Programming III

From Drag and Drop Programming to Coding! This is an introduction to text-based computer programming or coding. Participants will learn programming in a fun variation of BASIC language. BASIC (an acronym for Beginner’s All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages designed for ease of use. Versions of BASIC became widespread on microcomputers in the mid-1970s and 1980s. Today, many computer languages including Microsoft’s Visual Basic are derived from BASIC. Our budding coders will begin their journey like any computer programmer with their first “Hello, World”. The coders will then learn about using variables and functions to automate repetitive tasks. They will create shapes and movement using loops and conditionals. Challenges are plenty, can the participants move their robots using keyboard and mouse keys? Let the start to something amazing begin!

Computer Programming IV

Introduction to the Python® Computer Programming Language Python is an in-demand computer programming language, used by companies like Google and Youtube. It is being used successfully in various applications including internet and web developments, general purpose applications, software and scientific development, and data analysis. Learn this versatile language and experience the power of computer programming in your hands! Our budding coders will learn the fundamentals of coding using the Python language and apply it to create simple games and applications. Creations include: Rock, Paper, Scissors!, Digital Fortune Teller, a store and an ATM machine. Python is a registered trademark of the Python Software Foundation.

Game Making Lab I (TM)

Don’t Just Play. Make Your Own Computer Games! In Computer Game Making Lab, participants will explore the foundations of video game design then plan and create their own multi-level video games! Every video game must follow a basic story line which has five parts: setting, plot, characters, interactive objects and goal. Just like an interesting movie or a book, these five parts together give the story purpose. Video games allow users to experience and control that story! Our video-gamers-in-training, learn about landscaping and environmental fabrication capabilities in video gaming to create the setting and mood. designing and programming characters to move in their game worlds. capturing event triggers to shift behaviors of the characters. adding power-ups, health and timer. creating multi-level games. The super-charged experience has a way of providing immediate gratification as the participants see the effect of their programmatic changes in their own gaming worlds. They may feel on top of the world because they get to decide how many lives the main character gets!

Game Making Lab II – Minecraft

Calling all Minecraft Gamers! GameMakingLabII - MInecraft Mods Javascript STEM For Kids Don’t just play vanilla Minecraft. Experience Minecraft with engineering, designing and budgeting. Create your own Mods and make it your own unique game. Parents, this program takes your child’s interest in video gaming to creating something using computer programming. Participants will plan a city and engineer their worlds while they manage budgets and time constraints. As they develop advanced Minecraft modification (“modding”) skills and Javascript, they will automate their city construction by using the power of computer programming. Skills Focus: Communication, Collaboration, Creativity, Critical Thinking, Mathematical Practice, Computational Thinking, Computing Practice and Programming. Minecraft is the registered trademark of Mojang Synergies AB, now owned by Microsoft.

Python and Data Science

Introduction to the World of Big Data! In today’s world of big data, massive amounts of data are being collected and stored by organizations around the world. To put world’s data into perspective, they amount to about 200 billion HD movies which would take a person 47 million year to watch! Data Science skills are in high demand across industries like technology, business, finance, healthcare, academia, government and more. Join us for an introduction to this versatile world of data. Participants will learn how to use Python Programming Language to analyze, visualize and present data. The budding data scientists will take a closer look at the US population information and then as a sales analyst at Walmart, they will deduce how temperature impacts sales in various departments. They will get a glimpse of website traffic data as tracked by Google. The action packed program, then puts them into the shoes of a financial advisor as they review stock market prices and make investment advise to a friend. There is more! The participants will then turn their attention towards healthcare as they research youth tobacco usage survey from Center for Disease Control (CDC). They will use their learning to develop a public service announcement on the perils of tobacco use. Catch this amazing adventure with the all so prevalent data and learn some transferable skills. Python is a registered trademark of the Python Software Foundation.