Oakesdale coding camp project phase II

Oakesdale students Trenton Beardsley, back, Ryan Baljo, front left, and Ryan Henning, right, work as a team to change code and blink an LED light during Coding Camp 1.

Middle schoolers from around Whitman County are getting ready to enter the world of robotics as part of a series of classes offered by Whitman County Library. The newest class, Coding Camp - Part 2: Robotics is being presented to students from Colfax, Steptoe, LaCrosse, Rosalia and Oakesdale during April and May. This class builds upon the skills students learned recently in the library district's first camp where students learned basic programming in the Arduino platform, configuring six LED light sequencing experiments. Coding Camp 1 will soon be presented to students in Colton and Palouse.

The intent of the camps is to introduce younger teens to computer programming. Computer programming, otherwise known as “coding”, is a 21st century job skill that teaches logical reasoning, problem solving, and creative thinking.

The camps were made possible with a $7,500 Digital Literacy grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and administered by Washington State Library. Those interested in bringing Coding Camps to a school or youth group can contact Nichole Kopp, teen librarian at Whitman County Library. 509-397-4366 [email protected].