Are you thinking about doing the Hour of Code this year? Do you know someone who you know would make a brilliant coder? Love playing on your computer, iPad, tablet, Kindle, smart phone, Xbox, and/or Play Station but all you know how to do is consume technology? Now is the time to be a creator, an inventor, a game maker, or app designer. This is your opportunity to play, learn, explore, and create for one whole hour! If this sounds easy to you, great you’re going to be just fine. If it doesn’t here are some tips to get you started:
Slightly More Difficult, and Slightly Longer Courses:
Slightly More Difficult and Longer Courses:
Let us know what you’re doing for the Hour of Code this year. Are you volunteering in your local school? Trying to get your neighbors to participate or pitching it to your boss?
- HARDWARE: A desktop or laptop computer is my recommendation, however tablets work well too.
- FRIEND OR GROUP: Everything’s better with friends! Working with a friend will help you stick to a schedule and will be the first person you lean on when you need help. He/She will also be the first person you brag to when you’ve made something awesome, like an alert box that say’s “Hello World.” Or find a group on Meet Up. Meet ups are great ways to find an instant coding community that will help you work through difficult problems. Attend your meet up like you would attend a class that cost a million dollar. Find a meet up that works for you and make it a habit every week. If you miss a week, try and make up the time before the next meet up.
- TUTORIAL VIDEOS: Don’t beat yourself up over not knowing how to code, there are great online resources and tools available! Start simply and you’ll be able to work up to building an app or a website in no time. Also check out the Treehouse Show for 8+ minute distractions… or motivation, whichever you need at the time.
- TIMER: Set for one hour.
- GLASSES: Not required and not necessary, but they can make you feel smart. Look the part.
- HEADPHONES: Also not necessary, unless at a meet up, crowded room, or cafe. However, under the right conditions they act like horse blinders, allowing you to focus on the task at hand.
- SENSE OF HUMOR: Try and remind yourself that this is fun. Also, don’t worry about what you make, just do whatever makes you feel good. The Hour of Code is all about testing the waters to see if coding is for you.
Slightly More Difficult, and Slightly Longer Courses:
- PHP Functions (66 minutes)
- Object-Oriented Python (70 minutes)
- Writing better Python (70 minutes)
- Ruby Loops (73 minutes)
- HTML Email Design (74 minutes)
Slightly More Difficult and Longer Courses:
- CSS Layout Techniques (2 hours)
- Build a Simple Website (2 hours)
- Build a iPhone App with Swift (2 hours)
- Java Basics (2 hours)
- Introduction to Programming (114 minutes)
- PHP Basics (2 hours)
- Build a Todo List Application with Rails 4 (2 hours)
Let us know what you’re doing for the Hour of Code this year. Are you volunteering in your local school? Trying to get your neighbors to participate or pitching it to your boss?
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