For Children and Families

We’re throwing a birthday party! Join the DevTech Research Group at from 12-3 PM EST on Sunday, March 16th, 2025 to celebrate 10 years of ScratchJr! For this free, in-person event at the DevTech lab on Boston College’s campus, children (of all ages!), families, educators, and more are invited to learn about and play with ScratchJr. The event will include tutorials, arts and crafts, games, storytelling, educator and family resources, all designed for ScratchJr. Attendees will leave with a ScratchJr project they love, some ScratchJr swag, and a smile on their face. Light refreshments will be provided.

Complete this google form to officially register for the event.

All registrants will be sent an email about parking and finding the DevTech space one week prior to the event. Additionally, stay tuned to our socials for sneak peaks at some brand new ScratchJr activities!

This year, we are celebrating the 10th birthday of ScratchJr! With over 50 million users worldwide, ScratchJr is a free programming environment developed for children ages 5-7. With ScratchJr, children can learn the powerful ideas of computer science and literacy through programming and customizing their own animations, stories, and games.

ScratchJr was created by the DevTech Research Group in partnership with Lifelong Kindergarten and the Playful Invention Company and now generously supported by the Scratch Foundation. In the past decade, DevTech created copious learning and teaching resources, researched learning outcomes with ScratchJr and its curricula, and worked with the global community to support the use of ScratchJr. Now, we’d like to celebrate with you! 

Please join us Monday, September 16th from 4-6 PM for a special virtual birthday celebration with the DevTech team and our learning community. Join Professor Marina Bers and her DevTech research group at Boston College to hear about 10 years worth of research, design and development. In this session, you will be introduced to a wide variety of topics including international partnerships, neuroscience studies, new ScratchJr prototypes, curricular resources, free professional development and more! 

Please register here or use this link: bit.ly/ScratchJr10th.

The DevTech Research Group will be hosting the Coding Playgrounds Summer Camp for children entering Kindergarten, First Grade and Second Grade interested in exploring programming and robotics during summer vacation. 

The Summer Camp will run two types of sessions: ScratchJr, a visual, block-based programming app for young children, and KIBO, a screen-free, block based programming and robotics kit. Both sessions will teach these technologies using the Coding as Another Language curriculum developed by the DevTech Research Group. 

The Summer Camps will be hosted in person at DevTech’s early childhood makerspace located in Carney Hall Room 306 on the Boston College Campus. We will run two – one week sessions, Monday to Friday, from July 15th-19th 2024 (Session 1: 9:00AM to 12:00PM) and July 22nd-July 26th 2024 (Session 2: 9AM to 3PM).

Children are welcome to sign up for one or both sessions. Please complete one sign up form per child. If you would like to enroll in both sessions, you will need to complete the sign up form for each child for each session. The price of enrollment is $100/session. We are unable to provide refunds. If you have questions: please email Caleb Weinstock, DevTech lab manager, at caleb.weinstock@bc.edu.

Join the DevTech Research Group at the CreatedBy Festival (hosted by Boston Children’s Museum) for a series of Fun Sessions with ScratchJr! ScratchJr is a free programming language for children ages 5-7 which utilizes block programming to allow children to create their own interactive stories and games. Fun Sessions will consist of a one hour engaging activity and testing of a new adaptive game designed by the DevTech Research Group. Visit their website for tickets and more!

Join the DevTech Research Group at the Discovery Museum on Sunday, October 15th 2023 for a series of Fun Sessions with ScratchJr! ScratchJr is a free programming language for children ages 5-7 which utilizes block programming to allow children to create their own interactive stories and games. Fun Sessions will consist of a one hour engaging activity and testing of a new adaptive game designed by the DevTech Research Group. Visit their website for tickets and more!

Join the DevTech Research Group at the Museum of Science to celebrate Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Month on Saturday October 14th 2023 for fun science and cultural offerings in English and Spanish! Programming will include featured speakers, family activities, enlightening live presentations, a special community storytelling event, and Boston-area performance and community groups. Check out their website for tickets and details!

The DevTech Research Group will be hosting the Coding Playgrounds Summer Series for children entering Kindergarten, First Grade and Second Grade interested in exploring programming and robotics during summer vacation. 

The Summer Series will run two types of sessions: ScratchJr, a visual, block-based programming app for young children, and KIBO, a screen-free, block based programming and robotics kit. Both sessions will teach these technologies using the Coding as Another Language curriculum developed by the DevTech Research Group. 

The Summer Series will be hosted in person at DevTech’s early childhood makerspace located in Carney Hall Room 306 on the Boston College Campus. 

Spots are limited. Children are welcome to sign up for one or both sessions. Please complete one sign up form per child. If you would like to enroll in both sessions you will need to complete the sign up form for each child for each session.

Enrollment Fee: $100/per child for one session.

An hour and a half lesson on ScratchJr using beginner to intermediate coding skills to create a One Sentence Story. ScratchJr is a visual programming language using block based coding designed for children ages 5-8. In this workshop, children will create more complex programs and construct One Sentence Stories. Children will work independently and in collaboration to create unique coding projects while learning important concepts of literacy and computer science! 

An hour and a half lesson on ScratchJr using intermediate coding skills. ScratchJr is a visual programming language using block based coding designed for children ages 5-8, we are recommending this intermediate session to children in 1st and 2nd grade. In this workshop, children will create more complex programs and construct One Sentence Stories. Children will work independently and in collaboration to create unique coding projects while learning important concepts of literacy and computer science! 

In addition to ScratchJr and KIBO, DevTech houses many other programming and robotic tools for young children. In this hour and a half long session, children ages 5-8 will have the opportunity to try out new tools and activities such as Botley, Code-a-Pillar, Artie 3000, 3Doodler, and Snap Circuits.

An hour and a half introductory lesson to KIBO Robotics. KIBO is a tangible, block based programming language and robotics kit for children ages 5-8. In this introductory lesson, children will not only learn the basics of how to use KIBO through the Coding as a Playground and Coding as Another Language pedagogies, they will also explore important concepts of robotics, computer science, and STEAM.

An hour and a half introductory lesson to ScratchJr. ScratchJr is a visual programming language using block based coding designed for children ages 5-8. In this introductory workshop, children will learn the basics of how to use ScratchJr through the Coding as a Playground and Coding as Another Language pedagogies. Children will work independently and in collaboration to create unique ScratchJr projects while learning important concepts of literacy and computer science!

In addition to ScratchJr and KIBO, DevTech houses many other programming and robotic tools for young children. In this hour and a half long session, children ages 5-8 will have the opportunity to try out new tools and activities such as Botley, Code-a-Pillar, Artie 3000, 3Doodler, and Snap Circuits.

“The Coding Brain” three day workshop is a special offering being held during Massachusetts Schools February Vacation week. This opportunity is specifically for first graders (ages 6-7). Over the three days, children will be introduced to the basics of neuroscience and computer programming, using the ScratchJr programming app. On the last day of the session, we will hold a showcase for family and friends to see children’s final projects: a ScratchJr project about how the brain works! Following this workshop, children will also be given the opportunity to participate in the Coding Brain research study, where we will investigate their brain activation while using ScratchJr!

There will be two sessions of this workshop: Session 1 will run from Monday to Wednesday from 2:00-3:30 PM and Session 2 will be run from Wednesday to Friday from 9:30-11:00 AM. All sessions will be held at the DevTech workshop space on the Boston College campus.

In order to participate, we ask that children attend all three lessons of the workshop.