My son is an avid Minecraft builder.  So, I asked him to create a lesson for me on how to build a structure of his choosing in Minecraft.  The video below shows you how to create a Medieval Watchtower.The experience of creating the video was great for my son because he had to apply his [...]

Creativity is one of the most important skills in today’s world. However, creativity doesn’t come naturally to all children. Fortunately, there are several things that parents can do to foster their child’s creativity. One: Encourage and Support their Interests One of the most important things parents can do to foster their child’s creativity is to [...]

Kodu Game Lab is an amazing aplication that I have used for many years with young students (Ages 7-10) to introduce them to coding and video game design. Kodu allows students to easily create a world, add characters, and code. Students use a visual-based language in Kodu to add coding blocks to the characters to [...]

The holidays are a great time for kids to practice their coding skills and apply them to some fun activities with family. Below are some holiday-themed activities for the budding coder(s) in your family. Holiday Algorithms Blimey Box – This website includes printable activity sheets that require students to find the correct algorithms to move [...]

When a tragedy strikes, it often brings out the best in humanity.  Health care workers, first-responders, grocery-store workers, food-pantry volunteers, truck drivers, teachers and many more are on the front-lines helping us get through this pandemic.  What is talked about less are the behind the scenes coders, IT professionals, and creative problem-solvers using their skills [...]

As a parent, I worry about preparing my children for the future.  What opportunities will be available to them and what skills will they need to take advantage of them?  I have decided that I need to change my perspective. We should be excited about what future careers will look like for our kids because [...]

One of the reasons kids love Minecraft so much is the open sandbox nature of the game. They can spend their time building the ultimate home for their character, battling spiders and zombies, exploring the world, or dozens of other things. Despite this, I have found kids also enjoy when we as parents add a [...]

Roblox is an amazing program that allows players to create, share, and play games.  Participating in the Roblox community can help kids learn about game design, coding, entrepreneurship and more.  I use Roblox in my game design classes to introduce students to the Lua coding language. It motivates students to overcome challenges because they want [...]

In my coding classes, creativity is a big focus.  Students improve their ability to be creative by learning how to create video games and Minecraft mods. I have also found that the kids that come into my classes with strong creative skills have an easier time solving problems and creating code.  Their ability to come [...]