How to Run Code Clubs for Neurodiverse Children

Code Clubs offer an amazing opportunity to introduce our next generation to coding, with simple brightly colored drag-and-drop tooling to get them started, we are successfully inspiring many to join the tech industry.

However, what about those children who do not feel comfortable walking into an unfamiliar setting, surrounded by strangers, in a very noisy environment? What about those who wouldn’t even think a career in tech would be suited to them? What I am describing is often the neurodiverse children, those with Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia. To them a typical Code Club environment can be very intimidating, and sadly, this is effectively excluding a large group of talented young people, many of whom have great potential to work in tech.

Code Clubs are invaluable, and are definitely doing a great job to attract children from different minorities into the industry, but unfortunately, not necessarily those who are neurodiverse. When this became apparent to me, I joined forces with a local Code Club, and a charity for children with special needs, and together we have set up a monthly Code Club that offers a safe, comfortable environment for neurodiverse children.

In this session I want to talk you through my journey setting up a Code Club for neurodiverse children, what I found worked, and what doesn’t. I hope that from this session you will be inspired to follow the same path I have, using your amazing tech experience to empower some of the most vulnerable children, enabling them to become inspired not just by coding, but the tech industry itself.