Back to CoderDojo McDonough website
CoderDojo McDonough is a free and fun place where Henry County's kids learn how to code, supported by mentors and parents! We hope you have a great time.
Students, remember that the dojo is partly a classroom, but mostly a playground. Ultimately, you get to decide what programming languages, tools, and ideas you want to explore, learn, and play with. And, all of us: mentors, other students, and parents are here to help you learn and have fun.
We want you to feel free to pursue what is interesting to you. You can always ask a mentor about things that interest you, or any other questions you have.
- 1:00 PM: Volunteers begin setting up
- 1:30 PM: Doors open - parents and students check in at the library lobby.
- 2:00 PM: Welcome and kickoff -- Mentors will describe the goals for their group and coding begins.
- 4:15 PM: Sessions wind up -- Mentors seek feedback from the students about the session and ask them what they want to try next time
- 4:30 PM: Volunteers begin shutting down
Google Maps link for McDonough Public Library
- Bring a laptop for your child. If you do not have access to a laptop please email info@coderdojohenry.com and we will try to make one available for you.
- We'll have soft drinks and water and a some snacks, but if you'd like to bring some other snacks to share, that would be great.
Please create an account on either the Codecademy or Scratch websites on behalf of your children. Your child will need to use the same login information for each CoderDojo session. Children who would like to learn programming concepts with minimal typing involved should be registered for Scratch. Other students should be registered for Codecademy.
In case there are difficulties connecting to the internet at the library, please have the following software installed on the student's laptop before they come. Thumb drives will be available with the necessary software if you are unable to install the software before the session.
Scratch students: install Scratch from http://scratch.mit.edu
JavaScript and HTML/CSS students: install the free editor Brackets from http://brackets.io/ or another popular code editor like Sublime Text 2. (NOTE: While Sublime Text 2 offers an extended evaluation period during which it is free to use, it is not free software.)
Parents and students check in at the library lobby. A mentor will sign you in and guide you to the appropriate session room. Students should get a name tag and print their first name on their name tag.
Students can join another session at any time. Students 7 - 12 who are complete beginners are encouraged to join the Scratch group. We encourage the parent and student to discuss and decided what session their student attends. Talk to a mentor for advice on what session your student should attend.
CoderDojo McDonough uses Meetup.com's RSVP system to reserve spaces for students at each session. Visit our website and click the "RSVP for a session" link to reserve your student's spot for a session. You will need to RSVP separately for all sessions you want your student to attend.
Parents should only RSVP for the number of students participating and do not include parents or guardians. This will allow us to know how many students to allow based on our number of mentors.
Due to the high level of student interest, attendees who are not registered on our Meetup.com site may not be allowed to sit in a session room with a mentor. Students who are not on our RSVP list will wait in a waiting area. If the room is full to capacity with registered students, students not on the RSVP will be allowed to either move to another dojo session with availability or students can sit in another area of the library and work on code learning websites with minimal help from a mentor. Mentors will work to ensure that all students in the library at least have access to a text editor or Scratch and ability to view learning material. If a session room is not full with registered students when the dojo begins around 1:30pm, dojo coordinators will begin to allow waiting students to sit in the session room.
Mentors are encouraged to lead groups with no more than 8 students. Having a limit on the number of students per mentor makes sure that students who register are able to receive adequate attention.
We encourage intermediate or advanced students to register using our Advanced Student Signup form at http://www.coderdojohenry.com/AdvancedStudentSignup. Intermediate students are students who understand the basics of HTML/CSS, JavaScript, Scratch, or another programming language. Having more details about our intermediate students will allow the coordinators to match students with mentors. All students must still RSVP for each session. Students who register using our Advanced Student Signup form but do not RSVP for a session using our Meetup site may not be able to attend the session they want.
Please see our Students getting started and online learning guide . In it, you'll find lots of great free resources that you should study and practice with in your own time on the following learning tracks:
- Scratch
- HTML/CSS
- JavaScript
You should start on one or more of these tracks so that you'll have good questions and ideas for what you'd like to learn more about when you visit the dojo in person.
We highly encourage you to utilize the free lessons and projects on Codecademy and Learnstreet, and other online resources.
We want you to have fun and learn lots of new things! We also love your feedback and want to know what kinds of ideas you have and what you want to learn, so let us know when you visit! Thanks!