Why coding?

Congratulations to all the students who participated in the 2018 Christmas Coding Challenge.

This year we challenged our students to develop an Interactive Resume with WOW factor! We achieved a record number of entries from 282 students and the calibre of submissions was absolutely outstanding!

Submissions were judged on creativity, originality, design, coding skills, animation skills and overall WOW factor! Digital literacy skills are critical for children growing up in a world being reshaped by technology and the challenge aims to reinforce the skills and concepts they have learnt in class.

In addition to these skills, the challenge also helped students to express creativity and develop their confidence in presenting to their peers, which is a valuable skill in any context; whether it be in school or in their future careers.

By participating in the CODE4FUN challenges students continue to build on a breadth of important skills with the support and guidance of our teachers. The increasing quality of work that is being submitted each challenge is a testament to the effectiveness of the challenges in motivating our students to explore new ideas and push their skills to new limits.

Thanks to our supporters Officeworks and ASUS, every participant will receive a prize and certificate in recognition of their hard work. Prizes include Laptops, Tablets, Virtual Reality Headsets and other cool gadgets. The Top 3 Winners won an incredible ASUS ROG Strix GL502 laptop!

In addition to the fantastic prizes, the Top 45 students will receive an exclusive invitation to visit MICROSOFT REACTOR SYDNEY where they will meet Annie Parker, Microsoft’s Global Head of Startups, and many other inspirational Microsoft staff members.

Special congratulations to the top six students below who received the main awards for the challenge:

FIRST PLACE:

Cooper – First place & ASUS laptop in Unity 3D category, Pro coding class in Mosman

Project link: https://adiggins.itch.io/cooper-heriot-resume

 

Rafael – First place & ASUS laptop in Java & Processing category, Pro coding class in Bondi Junction

Project link: http://raf-resume.herokuapp.com/

 

Kai – First place & ASUS laptop in Scratch category, Advanced coding class in Glenhaven

Project link: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/247640805/

SECOND PLACE:

Isabella – Second place & laptop in Scratch category, Robotics class in Mosman

Project link: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/256240815/

 

 

Mateo – Second place & laptop in Scratch category, Advanced coding class at Our Lady of Good Counsel

Project link: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/245343358/

 

Bryce – Second place & laptop in Scratch category, Intermediate coding class in Granville

Project link: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/246445884/

Thank you for supporting this challenge and we look forward to announcing details of the 2019 Coding Challenge in the new year.

The 2018 Christmas Coding Challenge is off to a brilliant start and we’re thrilled to see the excitement and enthusiasm from students as they get started on their projects. We hope that your child will be participating in the challenge to reinforce the skills and concepts they’ve learnt in class, win awesome prizes and get the chance to visit a leading tech company! A big thanks to Officeworks and ASUS who are the proud supporters of this challenge. Below are all the details you will need to support your child through the challenge. THE CHALLENGE: MY INTERACTIVE RESUME Develop an Interactive Resume with WOW factor! Students must define the objective of their resume and how they plan to use it in the real-world to achieve their goals. For younger students, they may like to create an interactive story about themselves including their family, friends, pets, hobbies etc. GETTING STARTED: There will be several lessons in Term 3 and Term 4 dedicated to the challenge to help students get started however children will be required to spend time on their projects at home. DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: 4th November, 2018 ​   GOALS OF THE CHALLENGE: Prepare our students for their future by educating them on the importance of a resume and how to create one to stand out from the crowd Enhance Creativity, Design and Coding skills Reinforce Analytics skills: students will need to present different pieces of information in an organised and structured way Learn the basics of User Experience (UX) and User Interface (UI) Develop Presentation skills Experience a real software development cycle to see what an Iterative or Agile software development approach really means SUBMISSIONS: Projects are to be created in Scratch, Processing or Unity (student’s choice) and students will need to present their projects in class. Click here to access the Scratch Challenge studio. HOW CAN PARENTS SUPPORT THEIR CHILD? Help your child brainstorm ideas, be their app tester and early adopter. Every coder needs constructive feedback to help them improve and deliver a fantastic app.   AWESOME PRIZES! Thanks to Officeworks and ASUS, every participant will receive a prize and certificate in recognition of their hard work. Prizes include Laptops, Tablets, Virtual Reality Headsets and other cool gadgets. The Top 3 Winners will win an incredible ASUS ROG Strix GL502 laptop valued at $2,699! The Top 40 students will also receive an exclusive invitation to visit a leading teach company. Previous companies visited include Google (July 2018) and Atlassian (December 2017). Once the details are confirmed we will announce which company our Top 40 students will be visiting. Click here to read about the recent CODE4FUN visit to Google Australia HQ. SUBMISSION RULES: Students must add their first name, class and their teacher’s name to their projects before being submitted. Projects that do not include these details are at risk of not receiving a prize if we cannot determine the creator of the project (especially if students use their own accounts, such as BESTCODER123J). All projects should also be given a project name and include clear instructions for how to navigate through the resume. Please feel free to email us if you have any questions. Thanks for supporting this challenge and furthering your child’s exciting coding journey. Best regards Grigory & The CODE4FUN Team

Kids from as young as six have started shaping our world with technology,
and they’re loving it.

The 2018 CODE4FUN Winter Coding Challenge proves the next generation
of children are leading the way out of the classroom and creating their own
bright future.

This year’s coding challenge was My First Business App Prototype, a challenge
designed to introduce students to the world of startups, and encourage them to
think as entrepreneurs and change-makers. After months of hard work, 212
students from 26 schools across Sydney submitted their business app
prototypes. This year’s impressive creations included virtual retail stores,
games, time management apps and even a digital wallet to manage cryptocurrency.

The challenge was won by three students – Ava McCann from Wenona School
in North Sydney won with her time management app. Sophia Gionis from
Maroubra Junction Public School won for her virtual cupcake store, and Oliver
Bone from Birchgrove Public School also won for his gaming app. The three
winners each took home a laptop and the top 30 coding students were invited for
an exclusive tour of Australia’s Google Headquarters.

“I love the freedom of coding,” says 11-year-old Ava, who has been attending
CODE4FUN Programming School for three years. “You can do whatever you
like, make whatever you like, be whoever you like!”
“Coding is the most important skill you can have at the moment,” Ava says. “Just
about every job in the future is going to involve coding.”

Coding is increasingly being seen as the ‘4th literacy’ that can be applied to any
industry. As Australia transitions to a knowledge and ideas economy, giving kids
confidence and knowledge through programs like CODE4FUN is an essential
and important part of equipping them with the skills they need for the jobs of the
future. According to the Digital Careers organisation, students need experience
and skills in computational thinking and computer programming (coding), to be
successful in their future careers.

“I’d love to work with tech and software when I’m older, or maybe become an
architect,” says 12-year-old Sophia. “The things I learn through coding classes
can help me in whatever job I decide to do.”

Co-Founder and Director of CODE4FUN, Grigory Punanov says, “CODE4FUN
challenges are designed to get the kids thinking differently. They test their ability
to be creative and inventive, to build business ideas that solve real-world
problems. We are so proud of the prototypes submitted by our students and
would love to see even more kids channelling their passion and energy for
technology into ideas that can change the world!”

About CODE4FUN
One of Sydney’s first coding schools for kids, CODE4FUN has been giving kids
from as young as six the opportunity to express innovative thinking and creativity
by building games, stories and apps. Working with schools and education centres,
CODE4FUN offers coding courses in over 28 locations across Sydney.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last Thursday the top 30 students of the CODE4FUN Winter Coding Challenge went on an exclusive tour of one of the world’s most innovative companies – Google. Google was founded in 1998 and from the beginning, their goal has been to develop services that significantly improve the lives of as many people as possible. Not just some. For everyone. Google’s Mission Statement: Organise the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. With their Australian headquarters located in Pyrmont, we started the day with a fun group photo and were then taken inside their office for an engaging Q&A session with some Google employees (known as “Googlers”). Students were given the opportunity to ask lots of questions to the Googlers who shared their passion and excitement for tackling the hard problems in technology. The students were then taken on a guided tour across three incredible levels of Google HQ. The space is edgy, fun and colourful, and designed to foster a culture of creativity and collaboration. We took an eye-opening look inside the Google Makers Space where Googlers can experiment with gadgets and tools and possibly invent the next Google product used by millions of people around the world! With cafes, free food, chill-out zones, gaming rooms, a Lego play area and even a rock-climbing wall, it’s easy to see why Google is regarded as one of the best places to work in the world. Congratulations once again to the top 30 students. We hope you enjoyed the visit and were inspired to continue exploring the wonderful world of coding and technology. Check out some of the photos from the day below. We will be announcing the details of the Christmas Coding Challenge in early September. We invite all our students to participate in the next challenge for their chance to win fantastic prizes, visit a leading technology company and of course, learn and have lots of fun along the way!