A
s the final day closed on his Game Builders’ Club camp, Desi, a 7-year-old Code Ninjas camper, quickly added one more graphic to his Cat in the City game. He raised his hand, ready to share what he had been working on all week. When he presented his game to the other campers, they oohed and aahed in excitement as the cat moved on the screen. “The cat has to eat all the food,” Desi explained. “Then, when I’m done, I like to watch [the cat] bounce around.” Desi had been using a program called Scratch, a visual-programming language and online community geared toward kids. It’s just one of the programs kids use at Code Ninjas, a fast-growing Texas-based education franchise with four new Minnesota locations, offering an array of summer camps as well as year-round programming using a games-based curriculum for ages 7 to 14. While coding might not sound all that exciting to some grownups, many digital-native kids find it incredibly fun and rewarding. After all, some of kids’ favorite games — Scratch, Minecraft and Roblox — are built right into the Code Ninjas curriculum. Camps this year at the Edina location, for example, will include the aforementioned Game Builders’ Club, Beginning JavaScript, Minecraft Create, Code Drones, Roblox Create and, new this year, Snap It Together (using Snap Circuits) and App Builders’ Club, plus four other new offerings. Weeklong summer camps — offered in the morning or afternoon Monday–Friday — last 3.5 hours. Parents can sign up kids for two different sessions to create a full day of camp, which includes lunch. Early drop-offs and late pick-ups are available for an extra charge. On select days year-round, full-day camps are offered and include a variety of coding and STEM activities, plus lunch.
Serving people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds, HOBT collaborates with SCHOOLS and COMMUNITIES on unique, interactive ART RESIDENCIES that nurture the creative spirit and encourage a sense of joy and wonder.
If you are interested in an art residency for your school or organization, visit hobt.org or call 612.721.2535 for more information. In the Heart of the Beast MNP 2016 H4 filler.indd 1
Providence Academy MNP 0319 H4.indd 1
7/6/16 10:21 AM
1/21/19 10:33 AM
mnparent.com • March 2019
43