Codelets introducing coding, circuiting, and tinkering to young children

Codelets founder Marlena Sfetcu was inspired to bring coding, robotics, and engineering activities to young children from her career as a software engineer and her experience as a mother.” (Contributed Photo)

Emily Stewart, Echo Correspondent

After recognizing the need for opportunities to learn coding, circuits, and other aspects of engineering in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) in Oxford County, Marlena Sfectu founded Codelets.

Sfectu, a software engineer by-training, held a soft launch of Codelets in June. After having children and figuring out the next stage of her career, she considered teaching. Then, Sfectu realized the lack of STEM opportunities in Oxford County.

"There's not a lot of coding, robotics, circuits and sort of the engineering side of STEM in this area and I thought I could do that,” she said. “I love to work with my own children, I love to come up with curriculum, I love to come up with activities, I'm very passionate about technology and the role that technology can play in giving people a better understanding of the world and how things work."

Codelets offers drop-in sessions known as test labs where children three-years-old and older, accompanied by their parents, learn coding, circuiting, robotics, and physical computing like tinkering with computer interfaces. Summer classes known as STEM samplers spend a week each on each of the strands over the course of four weeks.

Children between five to seven-years-old work independently and those between three-to-five-years-old work with their parents in a “parents and tots” style class.

In the fall, Codelets will offer a membership model and a LEGO club. Along with offering hands-on learning, Sfectu said that STEM teaches kids necessary soft skills to overcome obstacles.

“It's resiliency, it's troubleshooting, it's problem solving, it's creative thinking, it's expanding your understanding of how things work,” she explained. “A lot of people don't, I think, if you haven't written any computer code, it can be very easy to have absolutely no idea what the supplemental benefits of that are."

Sfectu tests all of Codelets programming and activities with her own children first, who are engaged like kids older than them. She also likes to introduce young kids to the coding, robotics, and engineering side of STEM for the feeling of magic.

"It's also a bit magical for younger kids, right? It’s seeing if you touch two balls of Play-Doh together, you can turn on a light and there's a bit of magic in that. It's appealing to young kids it's very engaging for that young age group.”

More information can be found online by visiting the Codelets Facebook page.