My kids have returned over the years to join Code Ninjas for coding, Minecraft camp, mobile app creation camp and the annual El Segundo great puzzle hunts.
The summer camps are great! It's a balance of brain exercises and fun. My boys have said each year that these are the best camps
all summer. Being snarky pre-teens, my boys are pretty hard to impress on a daily basis - take it from me, this is high praise.
I expected my boys to have rated coding above chess, biology, chemistry and sewing camp. I make them do those camps to learn and prevent the summer slide.
But, guess what, my boys rated Code Ninjas above surfing (!), karate, tennis, beach play, and soccer summer camps. They are avid soccer players and have friends in those team sports. I just assumed my boys would rank those camps the highest. Year over year, my kids say Code Ninjas hosts the best camps and they beg to return.
Code Ninjas offers a range of courses and camps. They accept a broad age range - younger than I imagined. Youngest kids can start with Scratch-based activities. The after school program, I hear, is rigorous and more academically oriented.
Facilities are well lit, colorful and filled with new technology. There are areas with good games for brain breaks. Teachers are attentive and caring. Owner is involved in the day-to-day operations. The owner's dad takes all the pictures as a proud dad and social media king. :) It's a nice family owned business.
I like that Code Ninjas hosts events to inspire and challenge kids:
- speaker events from entrepreneurs
- show and tell events with high school robotics teams
- community building events like the great annual El Segundo Puzzle Hunt -- it's fantastic (and tricky) screen-free fun for the whole family all around town
- service events like making meal kits with Rise Against Hunger with the local Rotary Club
- STEM events like visiting the local water treatment facility
Coding is pretty hot right now. This was a nice place to let the boys try their hand at it read more