5 tips for resuming in-person sessions

Many of you are planning to run an in-person Dojo session soon — perhaps your first in a long time. We are here to help you! In this blog you will find five useful tips for returning to face-to-face sessions.

1. Check local health authority guidance

Before you schedule a session you will need to check the guidance of your local health authorities and confirm that indoor in-person events can take place. You should check whether there are restrictions regarding the type of activity, as well as any concerning your venue.

2. Speak with venue staff

You should speak with staff of the venue you have previously held your in-person coding club in. Ask them about the measures they currently have in place and their expectations on you and other club participants. You may be required to visit your venue ahead of your first in-person coding club session, so that you can be briefed on the health and safety measures that you will need to take. If this venue is no longer available you should reach out to other suitable spaces in your local area.

3. Reach out to members

The circumstances of some of the volunteers, parents, and young people that previously attended your club may have changed since you last ran in-person sessions. Others will be very excited to return. Check in with your past members and see who is available to attend upcoming sessions. This is a great opportunity to tidy any contact lists you have of volunteers and parents. Remove those who are no longer able to attend so your list is up to date.

As well as this it’s important that those attending know the rules and what to expect. Send details of how your club will run in advance of the session, including any guidelines volunteers and young people will need to follow during the session.

4. Promoting sessions and recruiting mentors

Promoting your Dojo

When promoting your Dojo sessions it is good practice to avoid using jargon and be clear about the types of activities that will be included so both those new to attending and past participants are put at ease. For example: “Beginners will learn how to make a simple game using the drag-and-drop block-based programming language Scratch. Those with more experience will be supported to create a website about something they care about. Those wishing to work more independently can use our step-by-step projects website with mentors supporting alongside.” 

Use our social banner templates, flyers or create your own for free using Canva. You can upload our templates and combine them with text and other elements to create awesome images to promote your upcoming events. 

Update your Dojo profile page if the times of sessions or venue has changed. You can create your ticketed event on the community platform or if your Dojo is currently using Eventbrite you can connect it to your Dojo page, so your Eventbrite ticketed events show up on the CoderDojo Platform.

Recruiting and reconnecting with mentors

You might like to first host a mentor meet up session to reconnect with and recruit mentors. This can also be very helpful to see the skills available and help with planning what tasks different volunteers will do at upcoming sessions.

This handy video can explain to them ‘How to be a Mentor’ and once they have registered on the community platform they can avail of our e-learning modules which go into more detail.

5. Get them excited

Develop learners’ skills, creativity, and independence using our new project paths. You can use Coolest Projects Global as their motivation to complete a project! The online showcase and live-streamed ceremony celebrates all levels of websites, games, apps, hardware, and Scratch projects by creators up to 18 years of age.

Similar to previous years, all creators will receive a certificate of participation and have the opportunity to be selected as a favourite by our VIP judges. But this year, there will also be:

  • Digital and physical swag for participants
  • New project topics such as health, environment, community, art, and more 
  • Direct feedback for all creators about their projects from the judges
  • Celebratory medals for category favourites selected by the VIP judges

Tip: Use these presentation slides to get Ninjas excited about Coolest Projects Global!

 

 

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