Inside Sandhills Elementary School, a group of fourth graders are diving into the world of coding thanks to a unique partnership with the University of Pennsylvania.

The program is called Fife-Penn STEM and CS Academy (Fife Academy). Here, the university student instructors teach coding and STEM to students in kindergarten through eighth grade.

Sandhills Elementary is the only school outside of Pennsylvania that has been provided this opportunity.

This partnership, now in its first year, aims to provide students with enrichment opportunities. The club is open to students who met or exceeded expectations on the S.C. Ready exams. Administrators divide participants into cohorts with the second group starting in early February and the third beginning in April. 

The students meet to learn coding by creating games or animations from scratch, guided by student instructors from the university. Participants design their own characters or animations, called sprites, and control their actions within the game.

In the games these students create, they administer their own codes and instruct characters to complete specific actions. The codes that the students create describe what they want their sprites to do, generating a visual and making them perform a task.

Many students from Sandhills Elementary said creating sprites was their favorite part of coding. Students can either choose one from the library, import an image or draw their own. While some enjoyed making games or adding sound effects, others enjoyed creating characters with sound or understanding the functions of different codes.

Many of these young participants expressed interest in pursuing careers that involve coding, having found the experience valuable for gaining new skills.

According to Statista, there were 23 million programmers worldwide in 2018, a number that grew to 27.7 million by 2023. Experts project a 22% growth in job opportunities for coders between 2023 and 2033, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Coding is an essential skill in today’s tech-driven world. From building websites to creating apps and games, coding powers technologies we use daily. As the demand for tech-savvy professionals grows, learning to code is becoming more important in future careers.

The University of Pennsylvania student instructors have played a key role in helping these Lexington County elementary students understand coding concepts and build the game. One student said meeting the instructors was exciting because he had never met college students before, especially those from another state.

Lianna Veerasamy, one of the student instructors, shared her excitement about teaching the Sandhills students.

“My favorite part of teaching was seeing how quickly they picked up on new concepts and how excited they were to start new projects," she said. "Watching them create animations and games, such as Pac-Man, was amazing.

“What I found most heartwarming, however, was how willing they were to help each other. Whether it was sharing ideas or solving technical difficulties together, their teamwork and support for one another were incredible to see. There were definitely challenges, but seeing their determination and how proud they were when they accomplished something made it worth it. This showed me just how much potential young students have when they’re encouraged and given the right tools. It was such an honor to be a part of this learning journey!”

Students shared why they enjoy the club with some describing coding as fun, while others liked sharing their games with friends. Many expressed how in the future, they can apply their new skills outside the classroom for a job or to share with friends and family.

Beyond gaming, students discussed how coding could help them in future jobs or community projects. Kristin Spearman, a teacher at Sandhills Elementary, noted that some students are using their skills learned in the club in other activities, such as BETA Club or robotics.

Many universities offer degrees with heavy-coding involvement. Computer science is the most common degree for aspiring coders, providing a foundation in principles and algorithms. Information technology (IT) includes coding skills for system management and data analysis. Meanwhile, computer engineering combines hardware design with coding. These are just some degrees that focus on coding available to students.

As former Apple CEO Steve Jobs once said, “I think everybody in this country should learn how to program a computer, should learn a computer language, because it teaches you how to think.” Jobs further stated that computer programming teaches individuals to think in a different way with a different perspective. 

Coding teaches critical thinking skills—a valuable tool in any field.

Similarly, Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder of Facebook, said, “Programming is one of the only things in the world where you sit down and make something completely new from scratch, something that nobody has ever thought about.”

Coding requires creativity because individuals create their own games, websites and applications for others to use and enjoy.

Ali Partovi, an Iranian American entrepreneur, said that coding can teach everybody how to think, imagine, create and provide a better understanding of the world.  

Slowly, coding is becoming a vital part of schools, either being in the curriculum or being in clubs helping students become more creative by creating their own games, developing critical thinking skills and more.

Through the program, Sandhills students are gaining hands-on experience with coding and collaborating with others, helping them develop skills in a technology-driven world.