LAKE JACKSON
Game design might seem intimidating to some, but not for the girls at Code Camp.
The weeklong camp for girls ages 9 to 18 interested in coding wrapped up Friday and nurtured the girls’ Science, Technology, Engineering and Math skills, or STEM. They did this with the online game called Roblox Studio and building an adventure game from scratch.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee hosted the camp.
“I think this camp is really cool because it’s taking a game that they already like and are interested in, and also getting to learn stuff with it,” iCode Lead Technical Instructor Camille Edwards said. “They’re getting to be creative. It gets them really into coding.”
iCode teaches children more than game design. They work with virtual reality programs, Minecraft, robotics and drones.
For Code Camp, the main takeaway is game development and programming.
But the camp wouldn’t have been possible without a $9,500 STEM grant from the Global African Affinity Network, or GAAN, employee group at Dow Chemical.
“GAAN creates opportunities for employees to develop mentoring and networking relationships that enhance their career potential,” Dow Regional Emissions Manager and Dow sponsor Prentice C. James said.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee applied for the grant to introduce the tech field to children, specifically young girls, because there is a lower percentage of women than men in STEM-focused occupations.
“We felt that this is such an impressionable age to lightly introduce them to the tech field with something fun,” MLKCC President Dorothy Thomas said.
However, the committee received additional help from EMI Global, Chevron Phillips, CHN, The Eye Contact with Dr. William Jackson and Gulf Coast Gastroenterology with Dr. William H. Sweatt.
“The other thing that really played a major role in doing this camp is we were given some surplus computers from the State of Texas,” Thomas said. “What bigger way to get those computers out there to someone who needs them is offer something like this.”
All 30 girls participating in the camp left Friday with a refurbished Dell touchscreen laptop provided by the Texas Facilities Commission for State Surplus Property. The Angleton Walmart also provided backpacks for each girl.
“We want to make sure each child continues learning,” Thomas said.
The girls were excited to receive their laptops and use the skills they learned from the camp.
In Roblox, campers learned about design with an Obby, which is a template people use to make an obstacle course.
Some quickly got the hang of designing while others took a little more time, with campers helping one another when stuck or playing with different possibilities to make it more difficult. Variables they could use in designing their course included platform distance, size and shapes.
Nevaen Hall, 10, started her design with two courses. The first had the avatar jump from one of the four spheres to another before landing at a checkpoint.
She put a long, flat surface template underneath the checkpoint for her second course, making an illusion that the template was farther than it seemed when jumping below.
Another simple design was by 10-year-old Sophie Marlon.
“Something I find challenging on the Obby is getting it leveled because I want to make sure I have the right perspective of the blocks,” Sophie said.
She decided on five flat square templates scattered in a row from one end of the course to another.
To make the design more appealing, she used a purple ombre, making the distant colors darker.
“I’m going to color my checkpoint a different color so that the person who plays my game can know where the checkpoint is,” Sophie said.
Beyond the purple squares, she was still deciding on a plan.
Ally Garcia and Camila Goh, both 11, used unique template designs in their Obby.
Camila found a template where the platform disappears when the avatar stays on it for a few seconds. Ally used a trampoline template that takes the avatar to higher levels; she plans to build up instead of down.
Ten-year-old Joanna Olutade made a more complex course with different shapes and colors depending on checkpoints and distance.
The design consists of a long course that gets trickier after each checkpoint.
“I’m going to make it harder along the way,” Olutade said.
Roblox design was a small part of the camp as campers transitioned into learning about how they could use coding for additional features.
One trick they learned is for Pickaxe Mining. When coded correctly, gamers can earn more items, such as gold.
“Sometimes they can set up how many players they can allow in a game and then have a system that continues to check how many players join a game,” iCode Director Melissa Peng said.
Roblox games are designed by others, so having the chance to make their own games can expand their experience.
“All things in our everyday life involve coding,” Edwards said.
Lindsey Kinane is a reporter with The Facts. Contact her at 979-237-0162.
