Volunteer for Hour of Code

I recently had a proud-parent moment and must share! Our family was flying home last weekend and I felt pure joy as I looked over and saw my 16-year-old son Garrett coding while on the plane. He could have chosen many other ways to pass the time, but he genuinely has fun coding.  It all began in fifth grade with the Hour of Code.

Hour of Code Volunteering Opportunity | I have a great passion for breaking down barriers and sharing ways technology can impact and inspire young people. When I heard about the Hour of Code a few years back, I knew it was important to get involved. The first exposure I had to coding was in 1984 – 4th grade on the Southside of Chicago. It was challenging, fun and addicting! It started my journey toward what would become a career in technology. Fast forward to today and it is astonishing that most schools in the US have less instruction in programming than I had 35 years ago. Code.org strives to change this with a simple yet powerful mission “Every student in every school should have the opportunity to learn computer science”.  

Hour of Code is a global initiative by non-profit Code.org to demystify computer science by providing free one-hour coding tutorials and teacher trainings. Anyone can volunteer for Hour of Code – it isn’t just for technical people. The program aims to evangelize that truly anyone can learn the basics of coding, through drag and drop modules. It introduces students to coding, helping them build skills that will open future opportunities.

Making it Real with Minecraft | This year, in conjunction with Computer Science Education Week (Dec 9-15), the Minecraft: Education Edition team has declared this year’s Hour of Code theme: “AI for Good”. This will introduce students to beginner concepts of Artificial Intelligence, as well as block-based coding in their quest to learn about preventing forest fires. For a sneak peek at what you’d get to help teach, check out the AI for Good video.

For the past five years, Minecraft has partnered with Code.org to offer Minecraft-themed coding tutorials. There have been than 130 million Minecraft Hour of Code sessions, across 180 countries since 2015, which is incredible! For those not privy to the Minecraft craze, it is a game about breaking and placing blocks, where players work together to create wonderful, imaginative worlds.

Dedicate One-Hour in December | While Computer Science Education Week is Dec 9-15th, I’m encouraging my team and others I know, to dedicate just one hour during the month of December to Hour of Code. I have signed up and am looking forward to the time! To learn more go to: https://code.org/minecraft and to sign-up to participate or run Hour of Code at a school near you visit code.org/volunteer.