Apple launches free coding education program 'Hour of Code' for students

**Apple** said 26 November it will offer new resources to open thousands of free “Hour of Code” sessions at its Apple Store facilities across the world to bring coding education to students. The Cupertino, California-based company said customers can register for coding education, made available through the Everyone Can Code programme, at the Apple Store locations from 1 to 14 December, Xinhua news agency reported. For the sixth year, Apple said it will host Hour of Code daily coding sessions through Today at Apple, which will provide opportunities for people at a variety of skill levels to learn coding. [caption id=“attachment_5466821” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”] Apple’s logo is seen outside flagship store downtown Milan. Image: Reuters[/caption] Kids Hour sessions will help children aged six to 12 explore coding with robots, while those aged 12 and above can attend sessions using Swift Playgrounds and iPad to learn coding concepts, Apple said. The sessions are part of Apple’s several programmes being unveiled to help more people learn coding skills both inside and outside the classroom. Also on 26 November, Apple encouraged teachers to attend its Computer Science Education Week, an educational campaign scheduled for early December to introduce computer science and coding to K-12 students. Apple created a new Hour of Code Facilitator Guide to help teachers conduct in-classroom education by using Swift Playgrounds and other iPad apps. For coding education outside of the classroom, Apple’s new Swift Coding Club kit gives teachers, students and club mentors the tools they need to start their own coding clubs. The kit, designed for students aged eight years or old, will build their ability to collaborate, prototype apps and how to code an app.