Many parents and guardians turn to sports, dance, or music when looking for after-school activities. During summer break, parents are usually looking to break the cycle of constant screens — not seek out more screen time.
But Bill Marsland, Director of Education and Learning for Code Ninjas, makes a compelling argument for exposing kids and young teens to computer science:
“At Code Ninjas our focus is on creating with technology, not the passive consumption of technology. Parents think of screen time as idly scrolling TikTok, or endlessly watching YouTube videos. But coding is about being about active with what you’re doing with technology. Not just consuming — but creating, and creating things that other people can see and interact with, based on your passions and interests.
“To know your kid isn’t just coding, but they’re working on their problem solving skills, they’re becoming a better communicator, they’re learning to give and receive feedback, and how to be part of a team. Everything we do supports kids creating with technology.”
Code Ninjas is a kid-focused coding franchise with regular after-school programs and week-long summer camps. The company has been around for seven years, and successfully grown to 400 locations around the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
“Kids often make up their mind about what they like by the time they make it to high school,” says Marsland. “If if a kid hasn’t had any exposure to coding, or even a negative impression, they’re not going to take computer science courses in high school. And most high schools don’t have that as a requirement. We help fill in that space.”
The CREATE program is designed for kids age 8-14, and uses belt progression a la karate dojos. Kids can comfortably remain at their own skill level for as long as they want (including different levels or areas within each belt), or progress as they learn, all the way up to Black Belt.
Kids can explore their coding interests without the rigid structure of a classroom. Some may want to spend all their time creating pixel art, while others want to move quickly to learn more advanced programming. There’s no time crunch, and no grading. Whatever their interest, they come away learning new skills.
They begin with Microsoft’s MakeCode Arcade to learn the fundamentals of coding and game programming, and utilize Code Ninja’s special IMPACT learning platform. “We have a strong partnership [with Microsoft], and MakeCode Arcade is a pixelated retro gaming platform that looks really cool,” says Marsland. “Kids start small but build pretty impressive games. As they progress they gain so much knowledge about game design and coding, what makes a good game, and how to play test and use feedback.”
As they progress, kids will also learn to code in JavaScript, and even develop their own original video game using professional game engine Unity upon reaching Black Belt.
“They literally build their game from the ground up: planning, prototyping, and moving through the development phases,” says Marsland. “They send the game to a committee for project review and final feedback. Then we publish it to our site.” To date, Code Ninjas has published over 250 games from Black Belt-level kids.
“We are an education company, not just a coding company.”
Parents with younger kids can look at the JR program, tailored for ages 5-7. While CREATE is much more free-form and individualized, JR has more of a traditional classroom structure, including opening circle for discussion, and interactive STEM stations.
Code Ninjas JR uses Scratch JR to teach kids a left-right programming style using visual building blocks, which is more intuitive for early readers. Many kids move from JR all the way to Black Belt.
Code Ninjas also offers summer camps. Code Ninjas Camps are one week long, three hours a day, and feature a different topic or theme, such as developing mods for Minecraft, creating game worlds in Roblox, or even designing stop-motion animation with LEGO minifigs.
“We have some parents looking to show up and get a bootcamp primer on Python, but Code Ninjas is more about exposing kids to coding opportunities,” says Marsland. “It’s helping kids see early on that coding is something for them. We move away from stereotypes that coders work alone in dark rooms toiling away for hours. And it’s not just for a certain population of kids, or the ‘geeks,’ or kids of a certain background, ethnicity, or gender. Coding is collaborative. It’s fun. It can be social, but maybe some kids struggle with social skills — that’s okay too. We have a space for you. We strive hard to make our dojos as inclusive as possible — and that’s reflected in our staffing.”
According to Marsland, Code Ninjas boasts a sensei-to-ninja ratio of about 1:4, and primarily seeks educators with some programming experience to help run the dojos:
“Especially with younger kids, we want teachers who are really excited. Once a kid gets to a more sophisticated level of Code Ninjas curriculum, it helps if an adult in the room has programming experience. We’ve had success bringing in local university students who are studying coding, and maybe they were a camp councilor and have experience with kids. With older kids and teaching Unity, it’s nice to have that structure and someone with Unity experience and knowledge.
“We are an education company, not just a coding company.”
Computer science jobs are in high-demand, and game design is a great way to get kids interested in coding, even if they choose different fields. “When they finish Code Ninjas, they can move into high school game development classes, or pursue courses in college,” says Marsland. “For some kids it’s a career path, for others it’s just a cool hobby.”
As for any professionals who have grown up with Code Ninjas who can look back fondly on the program: “We’re still a few years out from that, but they’re definitely coming, and I look forward to those experiences.”
Find a Code Ninjas location near you at CodeNinjas.com.
