BetaKids
Programming is educational and fun. Especially for children! That is why we launched this initiative to help schools provide programming lessons for kids.
BetaKids is Betabit’s initiative to help primary schools set up programming lessons for groups 5 through 8. Over the years, we have already taught more than 3,000 children. We bring our own software developers and testers to the school, teach the first lessons together with the teacher and ensure that the school can continue independently afterwards. The lessons are accessible: children work in an online environment, on the school’s existing devices (laptops, Chromebooks, tablets), and do not need to install any complex software.
Our goal is always the same: to show that programming is not “difficult tech” but a creative way of thinking and solving. For children, it feels like a game; meanwhile, they practice logical reasoning, perseverance, collaboration and creative problem solving.
Children really enjoy programming. It feels like one big game, and meanwhile they learn many valuable skills. Highly recommended to do in the classroom!
From consumer to creator
Children grow up in a digital world, but in school they often mainly learn how to use a computer, not what happens behind the scenes. BetaKids shows that you don’t have to be just a consumer of technology you can be a creator as well.
We want children to feel: “Hey, I can do this too!” whether they become programmers later or not. The skills they develop (problem analysis, logical thinking, debugging, collaboration) are valuable in every further education and every profession.
Supporting teachers
Many teachers see the importance of digital literacy and programming, but find it daunting to get started:
- “I can’t program myself, so how do I teach it?”
- “Where do I find good lesson materials?”
- “How do I organize this for a whole class?”
BetaKids removes that barrier. We bring the subject matter expertise in programming; schools bring their pedagogical experience and knowledge of the class. Together, we teach the first lessons; after that, the teacher takes the lead, with us in the background as support and a point of contact.
Social responsibility
BetaKids is free for participating schools. Betabit intentionally invests time and the expertise of its professionals in this program because we believe that a new generation that understands how software works is essential for the future of the Netherlands.
With BetaKids you can learn a lot about programming! I will definitely do this more often! At first I thought it wouldn’t be that much fun. But it’s really amazing!!! And my class and I have come a long way!
Teaching materials
The BetaKids initiative uses existing teaching materials. There is plenty available, and this ensures that schools can continue independently with the same material once we leave. We help create context and clarity around these materials.
We apply specific requirements to the teaching materials. The answer to the following questions must be “yes.”
- Is the privacy of the children guaranteed?
- Can the lesson be taught without installing software?
- Is the lesson possible without expensive equipment?
- Is there a curriculum and educational foundation?
- Is it available in Dutch?
We extensively researched several alternatives, including Lego Mindstorms, Kodu, Scratch, Lego WeDo and Code.org. In the end, we chose Code.org.
Sustainable impact
BetaKids is not a one-off project. For ten years, we have been teaching programming lessons in primary schools and, together with teachers, we have discovered what truly works: which learning environment fits, how long a lesson should be and what excites children. This has allowed BetaKids to grow into an approach that fits naturally into everyday teaching practice.
We visit all kinds of schools large and small, urban and rural, schools already familiar with digital tools and schools for whom this is one of the first steps. Everywhere we see the same thing: the first minutes feel a bit tense, then the barrier drops, and soon you hear: “Oh, this is actually quite logical” or “can I do another level?”.
We deliberately focus on strengthening the school itself, which is why we always actively involve the classroom teacher in the lessons. This allows them to gain experience and take over whenever they feel ready. Schools we supported years ago now teach programming independently and mainly use us as a sounding board.
Along the way, sustainable regional partnerships have emerged, for example with the IT Campus Rotterdam. In this way, BetaKids has grown into a mature initiative that still remains accessible and playful.
In year 6, I took part in the first BetaKids lessons. That’s where I discovered that programming is really just logical thinking. I carried that with me into secondary school, and now in my studies I notice that this way of thinking still helps me.
How does a BetaKids lesson work?
Use of proven teaching materials
We deliberately chose to work with existing, well founded teaching materials. We apply strict criteria:
- children’s privacy must be properly protected
- no software installation required
- no expensive equipment needed
- a thoughtful curriculum with educational grounding
- materials available in Dutch
After comparing several options (such as Scratch, Lego based alternatives and other platforms), we now use Code.org as our standard in the classroom. It is clear, visual, Dutch language and easy to understand for children from group 5 onward who can read and write reasonably well.
This also ensures that schools can continue independently with exactly the same material after our visit: whatever children worked on during the lesson, they can simply continue in the classroom or at home later.
Wow, this was really exciting to do with BetaKids, but now I can teach these basic programming lessons myself. How cool is that?!
Getting started – you as the teacher in the lead
We support schools, teachers and classes with our knowledge of software development and our enthusiasm for programming. In practice, this means: we come to your school, organize introductory lessons in Code.org for the participating groups and teach those lessons together with you.
Are you an enthusiastic teacher who wants to:
- get serious about programming and creative computer use in your classroom?
- use the devices already available at school (with an internet connection)?
- learn enough about programming to teach these lessons yourself in the future without us?
Is the answer basically “yes” to all of these?
Great. Then it’s mainly a matter of coordinating together when we will visit.
At first I thought: programming is boring! But it was actually really fun. I learned a lot from it and now I want to learn even more.
For your school or class too? Marjolein is happy to help you!
