North Park Elementary students explore the world of Tech this summer at Cal State San Bernardino

Students from North Park Elementary took part in an exclusive tech camp for kids at Cal State San Bernardino this past week sponsored by the Tesoro Foundation in collaboration with the Arrowhead United Way. About thirty students from North Park Elementary ranging from grades 3rd through 6th grade participated in the camp taught by instructors from Kids That Code, Inc.

At the camp, students enjoyed a variety of activities including creating video games, computer programming, music creation, and building with electronics. Students learn how to build Neopixels which basically are a series of lights set upon a small board. After the completion of the project, Ian Pavao says “I liked programming the lights and building projects. I feel like I am learning a lot.” One of the main programs used during the camp is Scratch. Kids use Scratch to code their own games. One of the students, Sean Macdonell said,“ My favorite thing about the camp is programming with Scratch.” Students also code electronics using the language C++ and Arduino. Another student, Ariyah Casas: “It’s fun, my favorite thing to do is programming with Arduino.”

The Tesoro Foundation is committed to supporting the community and provides grants and sponsorships. According to the Tesoro website about community investment, Chief Executive Officer Greg Hoff, stated, “We value the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others and are committed to collaborating with our stakeholders to create cleaner, safer, well-educated communities where we operate.”

Arrowhead United Way focuses on helping communities and are set on making a difference in people’s lives. President and CEO of Arrowhead United Way, Doug Rowand, was on hand to personally congratulate both students and parents for their participation. Rowand said, “Arrowhead United Way has been involved in local communities for about 145 years. We really focus on the people of the community and fighting for their education, health and financial stability.”

Kids That Code has worked in the past with North Park Elementary by providing a STEM afterschool program in computer programming. One of the instructors, Aidan Lawrence, describes his experiences working with the North Park kids,“ Honestly, whenever you have kids that connect with the things you are teaching and learn something new, and you see them going back to the software that you showed them because they are having fun with it genuinely, it’s a great experience. I’m here to inspire them, to be interested in the things that I like, like electronics and programming, and to see that the majority of kids pick up on that, it’s super cool.”

For more information about programs offered by Kids That Code visit www.KidsThatCode.org. Kids That Code is an education company created by a student team from Cal State San Bernardino. They specialize in teaching young children computer programming, game design, mobile app creation and more.