Introduction to Hour of Code

This free, online, self-directed course prepares teachers to facilitate computer programming activities (such as hourofcode.com) in their classroom by introducing the basics of computer programming and computer science pedagogy. The course gives teachers computer science confidence through a hands-on introduction to programming using the Python language, no experience or extra software required! Teachers will learn to instruct computers to manipulate data, make decisions, repeat actions and define custom functions, unlocking the full capability of the machines we use every day. The course will also give some guidelines and best practices for facilitating an Hour of Code event in the classroom, and tips for productive debugging with students.

Learning Together

To learn more about our learning objectives and the course requirements, please review the Course Overview. If at any time during your learning experience you find you need help, feel free to contact us using the About Your Facilitators page, post to the Question Board, or contact Canvas Support.

Continuing Education Credits

Teachers completing all Quizzes and Individual Project Challenges with an overall average of 70% or more will be eligible for an 8-hour Professional Development Certificate issued by Arizona State University. For more details, see the Course Overview.

Timeline Overview

In addition to the information shared in the modules, please note the following important dates:

Beginning of course: 3/11/19
Conclusion of Course: 8/19/19

While individual learners may progress at different rates, you should expect this course to take significant time and effort to complete and pass. Our general recommendation is that you should expect to spend several (3 to 6) hours per week over the course of several (4 to 8) weeks. We do not recommend that you try to complete this course in just a few days or even a week, because we believe that real success takes both exposure to the concepts and ample time to reflect on what you are learning.