Children try their hand at programming with Hour of Code

Saturday dozens of children tried their hand at coding to see if they might be interested in pursuing it further.

Fab lab El Paso, Girls Who Code, and Microsoft set up an Hour of Code to expose children to computer science. They used the videogame Minecraft to make characters go through different actions.

It wasn’t writing the raw lines of command, these kids were given blocks of actions to stack and influence each other, showing them the basic problem solving skills needed in all aspects of life.

At the same time, the exercises helped build a fundamental understanding of computing principles

Exposing them to coding could interest them now and give them a chance to chase a computer science job in the future.

“There’s 42 thousand open computing jobs in the state of Texas right now and those are being unmet because students don’t have the skills to match them. Twenty two percent of Texas high schools that offer computer science, when it’s a mandate to be offered. So, we’re just trying to give our students as much opportunity to gain the skills necessary to succeed in a 21st century economy,” said J. J. Childress, Microsoft Community Engagement Manager in El Paso.

Fab Lab has more coding events planned like a robotics workshop next Saturday.

You can also follow this link for more information about Girls Who Code.