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Event aims to spark kids’ interest in computer science

Posted at 10:17 PM, Dec 14, 2013
and last updated 2013-12-15 00:17:03-05

LEHI, Utah – The halls of the Adobe building were filled with thousands of people who were looking to learn a little bit more about technology earlier this week.

One of those in attendance at the WIT (Wasatch Institute of Technology) Hour of Code was a 14-year-old boy named Owen, who wants to be a game programmer when he grows up.

"Technology has been around for many, many years but doesn't exactly always have to deal with electricity, technology is everywhere,” he said.

Isaac Strack is on the board of directors for the Wasatch Institute of Technology, and he said the event offered a variety of learning opportunities for kids like Owen, and he said their goal is to get kids interested in the field of computer science.

“We pretty much have a smorgasbord of different activities that are going on to teach the kids the computer science principle,” he said.

Dozens of companies participated in the event, and they provided activities that helped kids see that a variety of companies utilize technology. Javier Alegre of the Utah Animal Adoption Center provided one such example.

“Ten years ago, the majority of people had pets with the collars with the name tag, and if the pet got loose and the collar got lost, you had no way to know who the owners were,” he said. “Now, with the technology that we have, we have that ability anywhere in the world our pets can be identified."

Event organizers said kids who get an early start when it comes to learning about technology are more productive and more competitive once they get to the workforce.