Coding camp keeps kids learning during the summer

Kids shouldn't stop learning just because its summer and they've become "too cool for school."

That was the premise of the recent Coding and Activity Camp that brought 23 school-aged computer enthusiasts to the Henderson Hall portion of Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall earlier this month.

Hosted by Marine Corps Community Services, the camp was designed for youth aged 10 to 15 and was held July 18 through July 22 at Bldg. 29. During the week-long session, participants used the popular game Minecraft as a tool to learn the mechanics of computer science from CodeVA, a Richmond, Virginia based non-profit that promotes computer science and programming across the commonwealth.

"What we're providing for these kids is basic concepts so that they are set up to learn more," said Maggie Smith, children's programming director for CodeVa's Eureka Workshop.

Campers programmed a turtle character within the game, she continued.

"Students start off by programming the turtles by dragging and dropping tiles that command the turtle's movements," she explained. "Once the student is comfortable with the tiles, we move forward to a language based system, where the students type out a game-specific language to program the turtles."

Instructors provided the campers with tutorials in HTML and JAVAScript programming, helping them to design computer games and more.

"It's really been hands-on," said MCCS School Liason Chanel Sharp as she observed camp participants working on their coding skills.

Camper Sean Vine was enthusiastic as he talked about his programming efforts.

"I'm learning how to build a program that will make a game run," he explained.

For camper Josh Clark, learning to design a game he loves to play was the perfect way to spend his summer vacation.

"This is cool," he said with a wide smile.

The first three days of the camp focused on computer coding, while the last two days saw the campers touring the Pentagon and visiting various sites in Washington, D.C.