Teaching Coding through Game Creation - by Sarah Kepple (Paperback)

About the Book

This engaging guide demonstrates how easy, fun, and rewarding it can be to teach and learn coding at the library.
In our technology-obsessed society, computer coding is a highly valued and in-demand skill, but many people consider it an activity only for technology geeks and educated professionals--even more so to teach coding. Not so, says author Sarah Kepple. In this accessible guide, she explains why you don't have to be an expert to lead coding, shows how easy and rewarding learning and teaching coding can be, and provides step-by-step instructions to help you and your community get started.

The book shows how to engage students quickly with learning activities that springboard off of the powerful appeal of video games. The author takes users through activities that introduce popular programming languages--including GameMaker, JavaScript, Python, and Scratch--to create video games, and in the process, to learn coding. These activities, themed around classic and popular stories, appeal to a broad age range--from elementary-age youth through high school and beyond to adults and seniors. Readers will see why school and public libraries are venues ideally suited for coding classes, workshops, clubs, or camps, and they will understand why teaching coding not only meets an important need but also serves to highlight the library's relevance to its community.

• Helps librarians--even those without prior experience and training--launch highly successful programs in computer coding that engage both traditional literacy and technology literacy
• Builds on the library's role as technology hub in the school and/or community
• Enables librarians to cultivate practical and valued skills among students and patrons--all while they have fun learning
• Offers insight from an instructor who leads coding clubs and classes in multiple libraries

Book Synopsis

This engaging guide demonstrates how easy, fun, and rewarding it can be to teach and learn coding at the library.

In our technology-obsessed society, computer coding is a highly valued and in-demand skill, but many people consider it an activity only for technology geeks and educated professionals--even more so to teach coding. Not so, says author Sarah Kepple. In this accessible guide, she explains why you don't have to be an expert to lead coding, shows how easy and rewarding learning and teaching coding can be, and provides step-by-step instructions to help you and your community get started.

The book shows how to engage students quickly with learning activities that springboard off of the powerful appeal of video games. The author takes users through activities that introduce popular programming languages--including GameMaker, JavaScript, Python, and Scratch--to create video games, and in the process, to learn coding. These activities, themed around classic and popular stories, appeal to a broad age range--from elementary-age youth through high school and beyond to adults and seniors. Readers will see why school and public libraries are venues ideally suited for coding classes, workshops, clubs, or camps, and they will understand why teaching coding not only meets an important need but also serves to highlight the library's relevance to its community.

Review Quotes

"Coding newbies and computer-programming experts alike will benefit from this text. . . . An essential purchase for librarians who are serious about teaching coding to kids." --Booklist Online, Starred Review

"An easy-to-understand book filled with clear instructions on how to share coding with people of all ages... highly recommended to any librarian considering expanding their skills to teach coding in their library as well as every public library that is currently or is planning to offer coding classes to their community." --Public Library Quarterly

About the Author