It’s one thing to know how to navigate social media, it’s quite another to know what goes into building such a site.
While many kids and teens tend to be able to operate digital media well, not many actually know how to create it and how to create with it.
North Vancouver City Library is offering a few different options for teens and tweens to become more familiar with the inner workings of computers.
Teen services librarian Kate Longley explains that the library is rolling out more hands-on programs and workshops this year that will focus on coding and electronics to let kids explore the field in an interesting and fun way and consider if they might want to pursue it.
Kids Code HTML workshop for kids ages nine to 15, on Saturday, Jan. 23, 1:30-3:30, will focus on HTML coding. Participants will learn about how coding is used for computers and the Internet, and they will also learn how to build their own webpage using HTML.
Longley says teens in particular have shown an interest in learning more about coding, and it’s a popular subject for tweens as well. She wasn’t surprised that game design was also a popular topic among teens, but she was surprised to hear from parents that they wanted a beginner computer workshop for pre-teens.
“I was really surprised to see how much interest we got in that basic computing workshop,” says Longley. She notes there is an impression that all kids are techies because they can use smartphones and computers in general, but many kids don’t have access to computers on a regular basis, so they only know basic navigation.
Another successful program that was held recently was a month-long (one session a week) 3D animation workshop led by Emily Carr University students, and using Maya animation software.
“It was fun because they got to design a 3D animation,” says Longley. And it was the first time many kids got to use professional-level software.
DIY Wednesdays are another unique program offered by the library that serves as an introduction to electronics for kids in grades 7 to 12. In the upcoming workshop on Jan. 20, participants will learn how to make smartphone holograms using various materials, including old CD cases. The workshop is meant to pique curiosity in the field of electronics, and Longley explains that the ongoing DIY Wednesday program features tools that participants can play with, such as an Arduino kit for robotics (a step-by-step kit with basic electronics instruction), and tools that combine robotics, electronics, and 3D printing. Longley calls it very tactile.
“It’s about building, creating, and making,” she says.
Part of the DIY program involves combining crafts with electronics, such as making bracelets with LED lights. Throughout the year, participants have the opportunity to work on their own projects and to join workshops to learn about specific projects, such as the phone holograms. A workshop in December featured making Christmas cards with a working light inside.
DIY Wednesdays encourage kids to learn more about basic electronics while creating crafts, and since there is an overall push in schools and industry to try to attract more girls and women into coding and engineering, this is a great introduction, notes Longley.
Along with its upcoming workshops, the library also has a new program for students in grades 7 to 12 that allows them to use iPads after school that are loaded with creative apps and other programs, such as Office, that they might want to explore.
On Thursdays, there are also special laptops available in the library’s mini digital lab that are loaded with more software than their regular library computers.
