HARLINGEN — Evan Compean clicked away on the mouse, turning the man in the blue suit around and then bringing him to his feet.
“I am trying to get a character and put it to the screen so I can make it go walk in the park,” said Evan, 10, a fifth grader at Treasure Hills Elementary.
The computer lab in Room 33 was alive with the sounds of clicking and gasping and sharp sighing. The young computer aficionados, all 40 of them, were creating dialogue, movement and scenery through coding.
“The kids are really excited about it,” said Julie Guerra, a third-grade teacher.
“This is what they are interested in,” she said.
Treasure Hills is one of eight elementary schools in the Harlingen school district participating in Club Code UTRGV. Teams of 25 to 40 students meet at least once a week after school to practice coding.
“These are activities that help students think creatively, reason systematically and work collaboratively,” said Monica Alvarado, teaching and learning specialist.
Such skills, Alvarado added, are crucial for performing well in the 21st century workplace or the classroom, or anywhere else.
The program is being conducted through a partnership between Club Code UTRGV and the Harlingen school district. Children receive free challenges from Google’s CS First Curriculum. Challenges are categorized according to level of difficulty. The program is new to the children so they’re beginning with challenges in the Easier category, which includes High Seas Activity, Gumball’s Coding Adventure and Storytelling.
Danica Elizarde, 11, was connecting very well with the activity.
“I want to make games, so we’re learning how to code games and getting them to work,” said Danica, a fifth grader.
“I’m trying to figure out how to make it rain,” she said. “It’s telling me how to do it. I’m using the coding blocks. I’m getting better and better.”
Meanwhile, a character called Sprite cat was asking a young girl what was wrong, explained Emma Macias, 9. Joy lit up her eyes as she enjoyed this new way of telling a story. She moved her cursor to a coding block with words.
“I’m going to put ‘What’s wrong,’” she said. Once she inserted the words into her story, she stopped to consider.
“I need to go get some more characters,” she said.
An entirely new screen appeared for a moment, and then she returned to her story where another girl appeared.
“That’s Abby,” she said with a smile.
She reflected on her new adventure and then said, “I enjoy how we get to create our own stories,” she said. And so it is with so many young minds not only in her club but those throughout the district.
Alvarado said that as the children become more adept at coding they’ll progress through more challenges, which will present greater difficulties.
Elementary schools with Club Code Teams
Austin
Dr. Rodriguez
Ben Milam
Treasure Hills
Jefferson Elementary
Zavala
Dishman
Long
CHALLENGES
Activities in CS FIRST introduce students to computer science and the programming language Scratch. Different themes attract and engage students of varying backgrounds and interests.
EASIER
Create Your Own Google logo
High Seas Activity
Gumball’s Coding Adventure
Storytelling
MODERATE
Friends
Fashion and Design
Art
CHALLENGING
Social Media
Sports
Game Design
Challenges come with Student Activities, Lesson Plans and Digital Materials
The Storytelling challenge includes dialogue, setting, premise, characterization, interactive storytelling and personal narrative.
