What's included
5 live meetings
7 hrs 30 mins in-class hoursHomework
This class does not require any out-of-class work. We do offer optional challenges that students can work on as an extension of what is taught in class. We provide guidance and instructions for students who are inspired to delve deeper into the topic. The purpose of these challenges is to give students the opportunity to supplement their learning with additional material that aligns with their passions and goals. Students may then integrate their learnings into their project and showcase their accomplishments to their classmates. With this approach, students can explore the subject on their own. We give students the opportunity to share what they’ve explored independently with the class.Assessment
At Connected Camps, we assess each student’s progress by engaging them in reflection of their own work and the work of their classmates. By building in Roblox and applying concepts taught in class, our students are able to solidify their learnings through hands-on application. Our counselors’ focus is to provide qualitative feedback to further each students’ individual goals and interests, and we do not use letter or number grades. In addition to our in-class reflections, our counselors also provide post-session recaps that offer a summary of what is accomplished each day. Through these summary reflections, students are able to review the material and share with their parents what they did in class. We find this approach allows kids of different interests and abilities to engage with our teachings in a way that is particularly relevant to them.Grading
includedClass Experience
PLATFORM: (Roblox Studio is free and can be obtained here: https://www.roblox.com/create. Mac and Windows ONLY! Not compatible with Ipads, Kindles, Tablets, Phones, and Game Consoles.) SKILL LEVEL: This program is meant for Beginner level players. This program requires Basic reading comprehension, Basic proficiency with computers, and no prior experience with Roblox. Campers would benefit from Basic typing and hotkey skills. PROGRAM OVERVIEW: Have you ever wanted to design your very own videogame filled with challenging enemies, clever puzzles, or a unique world? In this camp, you'll learn the basics of Roblox Studio and apply that knowledge towards an engaging week-long project. Like all Connected Camps programs, this class offers a project-based, exploratory classroom environment that sits at the intersection of learning and playing. After all, kids learn the most when they're having fun! We’ll teach you how to combine Lua coding with Roblox Studio to build a world and customize it with your own individual flair. This camp requires NO prior coding or Roblox experience! We're excited to introduce campers to the world of game design, regardless of where they're starting. During this program, you will: — Learn basic coding in Lua and simple mechanics in Roblox Studio to design your very own game. — Build upon a base template, tweaking it to be completely unique to your interests and vision. — Manipulate 3D parts and terrain tools to construct a world and the objects within it. — Learn how to code object interactions and gameplay, resulting in a fully-functional Roblox game! Each student will start with a template that allows them to easily create a finished game and learn skills that they can continue to use after the program is over. When you complete your game, you’ll get to playtest and share it with other students. This process will give you a ton of feedback so you can continue to improve as you make new games in the future! PARENTS: Our programs are designed for kids who want to explore their passions through a balance of hands-on experience and class discussion with other kids who love Roblox. By combining game design with programming, your child will receive a unique learning experience through a game they love. Students in this camp will be gradually introduced to Roblox Studio and its lightweight coding language, Lua, as they design their own Roblox game. This camp is designed for beginners with no prior coding or Roblox experience, and our counselors are excited to introduce these powerful tools to a group of eager campers! This is a 5-session camp that runs Monday through Friday. During a session, your child will learn from expert Connected Camps counselors in Roblox Studio. Additionally, your child can continue their learning by applying their discoveries made in this class to their future projects. Please note that we will be asking for your camper's in-game username so that we can connect and play together.
Learning Goals
— Day 1 - Set Up and Introduction to Game Design: Our primary goal for this day is to assist students in setting up Roblox Studio and to familiarize kids with our camp’s objectives. After that, we'll dive into some example Roblox games to get the creative juices flowing. We'll discuss what game mechanics are and what makes a game successful!
— Day 2 - Roblox Studio Basics: Today's focus will be on getting campers accustomed to Roblox Studio, the game design tool we'll be using. We'll walk through the most important features that Roblox Studio provides and then get straight to work with editing some terrain, tweaking some variables, and saving our first projects.
— Day 3 - Populating the Game World: It's finally time to dive into designing your game! We will spend most of the day today in Roblox Studio making the projects we're working on unique to our individual interests and creativity. Campers will continue learning about the toolbox in Roblox Studio, and we may even have time to add a music track to our games!
— Day 4 - Polishing your Game: Today is the day where we put our finishing touches on our games. We'll talk about creating a cohesive color palette for the game, environments and lighting, and ensure that everything runs smoothly in preparation for Day 5.
— Day 5 - Playtesting and Feedback: On our final day together, we will have the opportunity to playtest our own and each other's games and provide one another with constructive feedback for what they could do after the camp. Each camper will be walking away from this camp with a fully-functional Roblox game that they can continue to work on after the program ends!
Other Details
Parental Guidance
Internet safety is a top priority for us and our goal is to create a safe, connected community of learners that is moderated by our instructors. Throughout our programs we strive to educate our learners on internet safety and best practices for connecting online.
In our programs, our learners are often making friendships and connections with others in class. While we encourage positive online friendships, we think it’s important to practice these principles of internet safety:
— Do NOT ask others to connect online outside of our programs without first confirming with your parents. Our programs are a safe, moderated space for learners to engage but we can’t moderate connections outside of our classes.
— Do NOT give away personal information which includes but is not limited to: your name, address, phone number, passwords, location, email address, and parental information.
— If an individual asks for personal information, you should inform a counselor or your parent for guidance.
———
Common Sense Media Resources for Parents:
https://www.commonsense.org/education/videos/keeping-games-fun-and-friendly
Keeping Games Fun and Friendly: learn how to keep your child's experiences positive and fun when communicating in online games with others.
https://www.commonsense.org/education/video/modal/4141366#
The Power of Words: help your child learn that words exchanged online are indeed powerful, and offer strategies to use when confronted with cyberbullying.
https://www.commonsense.org/education/videos/private-and-personal-information
Private and Personal Information: learn the difference between what personal things your child can safely share online and private information that should not be shared.
Supply List
For this class you will need a pair of headphones, a microphone, and Roblox Studio. Roblox Studio is free, works on both Mac and Windows and can be obtained here: https://www.roblox.com/create
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
Teacher expertise and credentials
Connected Camps is a not-for-profit organization founded in 2015 with the mission to build a global online community where kids build, code, play, and learn alongside one another. Our programs are designed based on extensive research in the learning sciences. The founders and leaders of Connected Camps, Mimi Ito and Katie Salen, are professors at the University of California, Irvine, who specialize in the design of online learning experiences that are fun, social, and directly tied to academic outcomes. Learn more about the research behind Connected Camps at the Connected Learning Alliance resource site: https://clalliance.org/
One thing that makes our programs unique is our near-peer mentorship model. Our programs are led by young adults and college students, often with the help of high school volunteers. We hire counselors and coaches from top universities in computer science, game development, economics, social studies, and the arts, and train them on how to facilitate project-based learning with younger kids. Our young instructors have the same passion for technology, games, and digital making as our learners, and take on the role of instructors, as well as fellow enthusiasts and relatable role models.
The curriculum for this program was designed by a team of counselors pursuing degrees relevant to the material at hand. The learning experiences in this class are driven by these counselors’ academic expertise in the field, along with their desire to share their passion for the subject with a group of excited learners. All of Connected Camps’ curricula are vetted by the organization’s Product Manager, Matthew, who possesses a Masters in Secondary Education and a deep belief in the power of collaborative virtual learning.
Reviews
Live Group Class
$105
for 5 classes5x per week, 1 week
90 min
Completed by 128 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 10-14
2-10 learners per class
This class is no longer offered
Financial Assistance
Tutoring
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