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This spring Computing For All is once again organizing a computer science competition for elementary and middle school students in the evergreen state of Washington. The organizers of this competition believe in challenging young students to collaborate with one another and apply their rapidly evolving intellectual abilities towards solving problems that require computational thinking. CFA believes that like reading, writing and arithmetic, computational thinking is a fundamental skill for everyone, and not just for computer scientists.
DATE
8:00 AM to 2:30 PM, Saturday, May 12, 2018
LOCATION
The Mixer Building @ the Commons, Microsoft Redmond Campus
Complete address: 15255 NE 40th Street, Redmond, WA 98052
ELIGIBILITY
Students from all Washington State elementary and middle schools, 5th - 8th grades, are invited to participate in the competition, which is designed to test their skills in computer programming and basic problem solving, as well as their general knowledge of computer science.
FORMAT
The competition is comprised of three separate events: the Individual Test, Team Test, and the Original Design Project contest. Individual and team tests will be judged in two separate age divisions: 5th/6th grade and 7th/8th grade.
- Individual Contest: This is a paper-based 30 min. test including approximately 36 questions. The questions will test the student’s knowledge of Scratch, basic problem solving skills and logic using computer science methodology (computational thinking).
- Team Contest: This is 90 min. test including teams of 2-3 students. The test will challenge students to recreate a popular game on the computer. Students will receive points for each feature of the game they successfully recreate.
- Original Design Project (ODP) Contest: Individuals or teams will have the option to participate by registering their projects as part of the registration process. At check-in, these contestants must hand in 6 copies of a single-sided 8.5" x 11" flyer describing their project. The contest includes two phases, in Phase I, contestants will present their project to a panel of judges. Projects will be judged on originality, technical merit, good programming practice, presentation, and aesthetic and entertainment appeal. Contestants should be prepared to answer technical questions about their project. In Phase II, the top 4 or 5 contestants will be selected for a final 3-min. presentation in front of all attendees.
Plaques or medals will be awarded to the top three contestants scoring the highest points in the individual test competition and to the top three teams in the team competition category. Additionally, prizes will be awarded in the Original Design Project category. All students will receive a certificate for participating in this event.
PREPARATORY WORKSHOPS
To help students prepare for the competition and in the process, learn a few important computer science concepts, CFA has organized four 3-hour workshops at the following locations:
- 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM, Saturday, April 21, 2018 (Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart, Bellevue)
- 4:30 PM – 7:30 PM, Wednesday, April 25, 2018 (Chinook Middle School, Bellevue)
- 4:30 PM – 7:30 PM, Friday, April 27, 2018 (Kimball Elementary School, Seattle)
- 4:30 PM – 7:30 PM, Wednesday, May 2, 2018 (McClure Middle School, Seattle)
REGISTRATION FEE
- Individual (includes ODP): $20
- Team (includes Individual Test & ODP): $45 (2 to 3 students)
- Workshop: $15 / student
REGISTRATION DEADLINE
Registration closes at 5:00 PM PT on Friday, May 4, 2018.. (due to space constraints we may not be able to accommodate all registration requests, first-come, first- serve will apply. Please register as soon as possible.)
KEYNOTE SPEAKER this page
VOLUNTEERS
We need your help, please get involved and help us plan and run the competition. Sign-up as a CFA volunteer by filling this form
Some companies like Microsoft will match your volunteer hours with a donation to the non-profit organization. Such donations help ensure that bright students from families of limited financial means can participate in our programs – learn, grow, achieve their dreams and have a chance to change the world. If you would like to donate directory please click here