Did you know kids can learn to code with other kids for free? In my previous post I explained why it is important for children to learn about programming early on. In order to help you achieve this with your children I would like to introduce you to CoderDojo.

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You might want to read my earlier post first:
Teach Your Children To Code! Are They Prepared
For The Black Box, Digital and Creative Society?

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CoderDojo?

The name is based on a asian martial arts conventions. If you want to learn Karate or Judo you’ll have to go to a “dojo” where you can be taught the skills. Only in this case we are learning to code, hence CODERDOJO! A dojo within CoderDojo has a similar way of “training” in which you are taught by peers and sparring partners.

Within a dojo there is always a Sensei, more commonly known as a champion. This is the key person who is responsible for running the dojo. There are also mentors, the volunteers who help run the dojo and who actually teach the children. These will mostly be technical people who often have programming jobs themselves, but can also be parents helping out. And last but not least the ninja’s! This is what the children are called within CoderDojo.

Throughout the CoderDojo community you will come across a lot more references to martial arts / Asian terminology like Kata, Sushi, Zen, etc. Each of which has their own meaning within the CoderDojo realm.

The CoderDojo movement operates globally and fully depends on volunteers. Children aged 7 through 17 can come together at a dojo and be taught to code by mentors and their peers. Children learn in a very explorative and adventurous way which means there is no curriculum. They can get started with simple small assignments (sushi cards) which teach them the basics, after which they are free to explore on their own or start on a slightly harder task. On some cases the volunteers will also provide a workshop in which the children will be taught in a more group like manor.

Every dojo operates independently (decentralized organisation) and adheres to a few simple principles called “ECHO”. Because of this open source and decentralized setup the community has grown blazingly fast. Anybody in the world can start a dojo, as long as they adhere to this ethos. The 2 most important rules for any dojo are to be:

• Open to anybody
• Free to attend

A look inside a dojo

Most dojo’s run once a month and have a capacity of 20 to 30 kids. Sometimes they will be working individually, sometimes in pairs en other times in group workshops. Some dojo’s like to connect a certain theme or programming language to each edition, while other like to just open their doors and see what happens. To give you an idea of what a dojo looks like you can check out a short video of the dojo in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. English subtitles are available.

Yes that's me with the long red hair!

Join a dojo as participant or volunteer

Worldwide there are now almost 1400 locations. Mostly Europe, Asia and the US are very densely populated with the rest of the world following very fast. If you are looking to join a dojo, either for your kids to participate or to help out as a volunteer, you can find the closest one on https://coderdojo.com/attend-a-dojo/.

If you can’t find one nearby, you can also commit to starting up your own dojo! If you have a few hours a week and one weekend a month to spare, you can very easily get started. In five easy steps you will have a dojo up and running in no time.

What do you think of CoderDojo as an alternative to coding education?
Would you bring your kids along to a dojo or even volunteer at one?
Let me know in the comments!

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In case you are wondering who I am, feel free to give my #introduceyourself a read :).