Mentor Young Coders with Bold Idea
Current Mentor opportunities:
ideaSpark Online
Mentor young coders with Bold Idea in ideaSpark Coding Clubs Online. Sign up for a weekly coding camp that takes place online via Zoom. Students work on projects in Scratch, HTML/CSS, and JavaScript. See full list of camps
Clubs are held once a week on Weekdays (Mon -Thurs) at either 4 - 6 pm (cst) , 5 - 7 pm (cst), or Saturday Mornings at 10am-12pm (cst)
Timeframe: September - Early May 2024 (you may also opt for a single semester)
ideaSpark at Dallas College
Mentor young coders with Bold Idea in ideaSpark Coding Clubs Online. Sign up for a weekly coding camp that takes place at a Dallas College Campus In-Person. Students work on projects in Scratch, HTML/CSS, and JavaScript. See full list of camps
Clubs are held once a week on Saturday Mornings at 10am-12pm (cst)
Timeframe: September - Early May 2024 (you may also opt for a single semester)
Locations currently at Dallas College Eastfield (Mesquite) and Dallas College Brookhaven (Farmers Branch)
ideaSpark Coding Clubs at Dallas ISD
ideaSpark Coding Clubs are available at select Dallas ISD schools as an after-school program. Volunteer to mentor in-person at a DISD campus.
Clubs are held once a week (Mon.-Thursday.) at either 4 - 6 pm (cst) , or 5 - 7 pm (cst)
In-Person and Virtual Opportunities Available
Mentor Requirements
Be 18 years of age or older
Computer with Wi-Fi Access (no tablets), Camera, and Microphone
Complete and pass a background check annually ($19) *
Attend mentor training before start of camps (2 hours virtual or in-person) as well as additional touch points during session timeframe
A passion for computer science education and patience for the learning process
NO previous coding experience is required
*This may not apply to Dallas ISD employees
We will depend on mentors to:
Support a team of 15 students each week, alongside other mentors, offering encouragement, guidance, and new ideas
Prepare for each session in advance by reviewing pre-planned activities, practicing them yourself, and anticipating any student questions
Get excited about student achievement and invested in their development during the semester-long course
Coordinate with the Team Captain to track student progress
Demonstrate behavior and a positive attitude that others should model
Note on coding experience: While we don’t require mentors to have a background in coding, we encourage volunteers to learn the material as the students are learning and complete the coding activities before working with students. You may even find that diving into the computer science concepts and programming languages in your own time makes you are a stronger mentor - and programmer.
What Does Bold Idea Provide Our Mentors?
Volunteer Support:
Required training videos and semester kick-off training events
Team Captain and Program Coordinator leadership
Volunteer Portal, access to all course materials and resources
Connection with Bold Idea Staff and other volunteer mentors & other tech professionals through Bold Idea’s Slack channel
Benefits of volunteering:
Develop skillset in education, programming, and leadership to support career goals
Learn computer programming by teaching it
Support the delivery of Bold Idea’s mission to develop and empower young minds to execute bold ideas as a team through the power of technology
University students can acquire service hours