Last semester, as part of a module at HTW, I had the opportunity to become part of the CoderDojo team. My goal was to support the association as best I could and to show children and young people the fascinating world of IT. Even though nobody knew me beforehand, I was welcomed warmly into the team right away and felt included from the start. It quickly became clear how much heart and dedication go into the whole organization and its workshops. There is always an effort to come up with something enjoyable for the children and young people, something that lets them learn while also having plenty of fun.
The first workshop I helped with involved making greeting cards with glowing LEDs. I was a bit nervous, since I didn’t have much experience building circuits myself. But thanks to the instructor’s clear introduction, it turned out not to be a problem at all. It was impressive and inspiring to see just how differently the children designed their cards.
At first, it was hard to judge when to ask a child whether they needed help, since some were too shy to ask themselves. But over time, I developed a good sense for it. Whenever a problem came up and I was able to help, it was a wonderful feeling. I also worried at times that I might not be able to find a mistake. But when that happened, I could simply ask other team members for help, so that the children could still go home happy with their cards.
I also took part in a workshop where kids built their own websites. At first, I thought it might be quite challenging for them. But everything was explained very well and step by step, resulting in genuinely cool, individual websites on all kinds of topics. At the same time, it gave me a chance to refresh my own knowledge.
I’m very grateful to have had these experiences, even though there’s still room for me to grow in my role as a mentor. I noticed that I sometimes tend to give away the solution to a problem right away, instead of taking a more passive approach and supporting the child in finding the solution themselves. I also learned just how many different ways there are to get children and young people excited about IT topics.
As a child, I could never have imagined how websites, apps, or other things actually work, and at CoderDojo it’s possible to learn exactly that in a hands-on, individual way and at a young age. I think it’s wonderful that these workshops exist, and I can wholeheartedly recommend them to everyone.