Code Clubs are free, welcoming spaces designed to introduce young people to the exciting world of programming and digital skills. Today, I had the pleasure of taking my son—an absolute coding enthusiast—to one of these sessions, held at Leeds Central Library.
The club was hosted in a cozy room on the top floor of the library. Walking in, I expected rows of computers set up for traditional coding exercises. Instead, we found mysterious white lines taped onto the floor. Curious to find out what they were for, we soon learned they were meant to guide robots that the children would be programming. The instructor handed out iPads and small spherical robots known as Spheros, and the children were tasked with programming the robots to follow the lines.
The iPads were preloaded with easy-to-use software that felt familiar to those who’ve used Scratch, a popular block-based coding language. By simply dragging and dropping blocks of code, the kids controlled the robots’ movements. Each “move” block had three variables—direction, speed, and duration—that the children could adjust to guide the robot along the lines.
It was a great hands-on learning experience. My son and I faced a bit of trial and error to figure out which way the robot saw as “forward,” but soon enough, our Sphero was gliding smoothly along the first line. As we went along, we added “pause” blocks between movements, which made the robot stop before changing direction, adding a nice rhythm to its journey along the lines.
Once the main task was completed, there was time for the kids to explore other features. We experimented with different commands, making a smile or frown appear on the robot’s LED display, while others programmed their Spheros to zip around the room, flashing lights and making playful noises.
The club meets every two weeks, and both my son and I left feeling thrilled with the experience. We’re already looking forward to the next session!
If you’re interested in finding a Code Club near you check out https://codeclub.org/en/find , alternatively, https://codeclub.org has lots of resources to explain what code clubs are all about.