19-23 July 2021: Face to Face in Kensington
Is your child an enthusiastic gamer? Interested in coding? Or wants to understand the wider powers of computing? This camp is designed to turn gamers into programmers, take coders to the next level and provide a broad understanding of computing.
Game design and development requires skilled programming, an imaginative mind and the determination to create a compelling online environment to draw in gaming enthusiasts. This camp is designed to offer enthusiastic gamers, coders or any child more broadly interested in computing, with the essential foundation knowledge and skills to become a programmer. For those with an existing knowledge of coding, this camp will build on those skills to take programming to the next level.
In Programming, Technology and Electronics, depending on each child’s previous experience and knowledge, children will discover how to design and build a gaming joystick. They will then create the game that will be controlled by it. The project has two parts:
- hands on hardware construction where pupils will build the joystick based on an Arduino controller. Children will learn about the basics of signal processing and serial communication between external devices and computer
- the second part is software-oriented. Pupils will use the Java-like programming language, Processing, to develop a computer game. They will also learn how to establish the connection from the game to the joystick inputs. To make this part work, pupils will practice with conditional operators and boolean logic, functions and loops, and the basics of Object-Oriented programming. To make the game character move, pupils will apply the knowledge they acquire about geometrical vectors that are represented as instances of the PVector class.
In Maths, all year groups will have a maths mastery class each day which relates to games and how to devise winning strategies using mathematics. Participants can also join an additional olympiad maths problem solving class each morning from 9am to 10am when children will tackle different levels of UKMT challenges from the Primary Maths Challenge and International Kangaroo up to more senior levels looking at Senior UKMT challenges.
Here are more details of what will be studied by each Year group during the camp:
Years 3-4
Game design: mathematical games are an excellent example of tasks that combine serious learning with enjoyment. We will examine a wide variety of games that our pupils can play through which they will gain a good understanding of what a winning strategy is. Participants will analyse a series of games using important mathematical tools and concepts including graphs, invariants and symmetry.
Years 5-6
Game design: pupils will study the mathematics of games and symmetries, including how to find winning strategies and finding and learning about algorithms that can help.
Years 7-9
Game design: pupils will study the mathematics of games and symmetries, including how to find winning strategies and finding and learning about algorithms that can help.
Years 10-11
Game design: pupils will study games that rely upon randomness and learn all about Markov chains. Pupils will also study Game Theory and its application in business and in times of war.
Format and fees for the senior face to face camp:
- pupil to teacher ratio of 6:1 for maths, 5:1 for programming and 4:1 for robotics
- classes comprise small groups of pupils of similar age and ability
- camp times: 10am to 3pm
- fees are £585 for five days. It is not possible to join for a shorter period
- your child can also join us from 9am for an extra hour of olympiad style maths or additional coding, or continue from 3pm to 4pm with our chess class. There is a supplement of £25 for each additional session booked
Places are limited, please register your interest HERE.