Steps for an Amazing Hour of Code

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     As we approach the holidays, I will take a break from this blog and return in January. I however wanted to share with you a series of steps to have an Amazing Hour of Code to close out the year.
    The Hour of Code is a yearly event putting schools focus on computer science education, and this year it’s December 5-11. The basic idea is that schools take the time to have kids try code to build interest and understanding. It’s basically many schools' solution to get kids coding while they try and figure out how to get it embedded in the curriculum. 
    The Hour of Code was started by code.org, and code.org has several steps you can take to get things going. It’s a good pathway to take so with this blog posting right before the 5th I thought this would be a great time to share.
Steps to an Amazing Hour of Code

• Explore Activities and Tutorials
  
  • The Hour of Code is all about smaller coding activities to get students engaged. If you're looking for some good ones, including a collaborative soccer game called the Byjus Coding Cup go to hoc.tynker.com
    
• Create Your Plan for the Week / Day
  
  • The Hour of Code should be an amazing celebration of coding in your school which may take some logistics. You could have one or two teachers running the coding part and have to make a plan for students to move through. You could also have some community involvement with speakers and more, and you will need to plan for that too.
    
• Promote Your Hour of Code
  
  • You want to get folks excited! What can you do creatively to not only get your students involved, but how do you get your community involved?
    
• Start the Hour of Code Strong
  
  • If coding is really important to you, why not have a pep rally to build the excitement right out of the gate. Maybe a speaker? What can you do to start the week strong?
    
• Get Coding
  
  • Now it's time to get down to business. Find the things that get the kids engaged and let them have fun!
    
• Celebrate Success
  
  • Most coding platforms have some great certificates and ways to share. How are you going to use it?