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Coding: “We know what’s in the future. And this is it.”

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In a second grade class room at District 7 Elementary School in Wade, the mission of a national nonprofit, Code.org, plays out as a diverse group of students learns to code.

Principal Rhonda Hill says, “We know what’s in the future. And this is it.”

According to its website, Code.org launched in 2013, and it is a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to computer science and increasing participation by women and underrepresented students of color. The vision is that every student in every school should have the opportunity to learn computer science. Schools across the state and nation are incorporating coding into learning as increasingly it is being seen as foundational and fundamental.

Karen Streubing has been teaching for 12 years. This year, she has been taking classes after school to learn to code from 4-6:00 pm. Her second grade students can’t get enough of it, even choosing on Fun Fridays to stay in and code. She says, “Funny thing is they don’t think they are problem solving. They just think they are playing a game.”

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Students working with teacher Karen Streubing on a computer programming problem.

Though the kids interact with it as if it were a game, Streubing is quick to show me how they are learning to go in and look at the actual code they are creating.

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This window shows the code that was assembled by the students through their “game.”

Two teachers at District 7 have learned to teach coding, and at the next staff meeting, they will share their new knowledge with the rest of the staff.

Code.org has developed curricula for elementary, middle, and high school classes. Let us know in the comments if you are using Code.org in your class!