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Hi, I'm Audrey Troutt, and I'm here from Philadelphia today to talk with you. I am a software developer at Artisan Mobile, which is an all-in-one platform for native app analytics, A/B testing, personalization, and marketing automation. However, today I'm not here to discuss Artisan; my focus is on my experience working with kids and teaching them how to code.
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I want to share some tips and resources based on my experience. My hope is to encourage some of you to spend your time working with kids and teaching them to think like programmers. I volunteer with a group called TechGirlz, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Philadelphia. Our mission is to reduce, and hopefully one day eliminate, the gender gap in tech. We achieve this through workshops and entrepreneurial summer camps that provide girls with hands-on experience with various types of technology and introduce them to women who have successful careers in tech.
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Research shows that up until high school, girls and boys have similar interests in STEM fields. Hence, we target girls at this critical age in hopes of convincing them to stick with those geeky interests and influence change in our field and beyond. We've had some success in our efforts; a recent impact survey revealed that 92 percent of girls found their experience with us valuable, and to me, even more importantly, 70 percent of the girls expressed increased interest in tech careers as a result.
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Working with enthusiastic kids is a rewarding experience, and perhaps you know some girls or boys you'd like to work with to teach them programming or circuit hacking. But where do you begin? I want to offer you some advice from my experience running effective workshops.
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I’ve done quite a bit of work, and I found that the Raspberry Pi is an excellent platform to use. It's straightforward, affordable—you can get started for about $30—and it's a fully functioning computer that runs Linux. My favorite aspect is how simply you can connect to the I/O pins on the Raspberry Pi. Once you establish those connections, you're doing more than just coding; you begin hacking the physical world.
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In the class I taught last September, which was my most recent TechGirlz class, we used the Scratch programming language. However, I wanted to demonstrate how easily you can interact with the I/O pins using Ruby. The kids wrote code that, while simple, involved turning a pin on and off, which, when connected to an LED, resulted in a blinking light. We then had them swap that out for a counter chip, allowing them to control a sequence of ten LEDs.
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One technique I’ve learned while helping kids gain new skills is to scaffold activities. This means designing smaller activities that build on each other. Although it requires more effort to craft this experience, it makes learning more inviting for kids who have no prior experience. Rather than throwing them directly into complex tasks, I encourage gradual involvement, which helps ensure they can achieve more in less time. For instance, if you can blink an LED, you can then spin a servo, leading you just steps away from creating a robot or an automated Nerf gun.
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Here are a few more tips based on my experience. I have some student guides from the workshop I created, and one crucial point to remember is not to overwhelm yourself with how much information to deliver during a workshop. Knowledge cannot simply be poured into students' heads. Instead, you should explain what you’re doing, demonstrate how things will work, and spend most of your time in a coaching role. Engaging with the kids allows them to assist each other, showcase their work, and fosters a more collaborative environment.
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Time management is also a challenge. There never seems to be enough time to achieve everything you wish to cover in a workshop, just like in software development projects. That's another reason to have these scaffolded activities—each one can serve as an effective stopping point, making it easier to use any covered materials as bonus content for future workshops. Don't forget to schedule breaks; these moments, much like breaks at a conference, often lead to your best conversations, questions, and ideas.
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Now, when organizing a workshop working with kids using electronic components, one practical tip is to buy plenty of small plastic bags and stay organized in advance. This preparation prevents you from scrambling to find components like 10k resistors during the workshop. Organizational considerations extend to your physical space as well. Just as a successful software development team needs space for group collaboration and individual work, your workshop should be arranged accordingly.
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I find that pairing kids at workstations—like a pair programming approach—works really well. They help each other, don’t get stuck as easily, and come up with twice the ideas. However, be aware that, similar to adult developers, kids may be hesitant to pair up. I recommend finding a great partner to help conduct the course. For example, my co-teacher Andrew Gannom in Philadelphia was instrumental in developing our workshop together. With complementary skills, we divided the pedagogical, technical, and logistical tasks, which was beneficial for our teamwork.
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In closing, if you've considered working with kids, I strongly encourage you to check out TechGirlz's Tech Shops in a Box. These resources provide complete end-to-end lesson plans outlining preparation steps, effective workshop management strategies, and emphasize having a supportive community. Importantly, these resources are not only for girls, and there are many other platforms like code.org, Codecademy, and Khan Academy.
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The planning and preparation phase can be challenging, but once you engage in the workshop, time flies. Witnessing what these kids create and how quickly they learn is immensely rewarding. Watching them grow and continue their journeys in STEM—perhaps even teaching workshops someday—creates a beautiful cycle of mentorship. As the Department of Labor predicts, there will be 1.2 million new tech jobs by 2022, but our education system is not keeping pace. With only five percent of high schools teaching AP Computer Science and only 12 percent of TechGirlz respondents involved in tech-related activities at school, it’s up to us to teach, coach, and inspire the next generation.
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I hope you will join me in this important mission. Thank you!
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You.
