On October 23, the Aylus Marlboro Branch launched its first ever hackathon for elementary and middle schoolers. The Hackathon started with an opening ceremony, in which the branch highlighted the specifics of the hackathon and the themes the participants could follow. These themes were fall/halloween and current world issues. Participants were given the rest of October 23rd, all of October 24th, and the majority of October 25th to code their projects. The closing ceremony of the hackathon was held on the evening of October 25th, after the participants submitted their projects. The executives highlighted the different projects and pointed out the strengths of each one. They also gave detailed feedback to help the kids understand what they could have done better. Submissions ranged from halloween-themed games to coronavirus symptom checkers. Prizes were given for different categories, including Most Visually Appealing, Most Creative, Most Beneficial, and Best Overall.
The success of this hackathon was vehemently voiced by a majority of the parents that sent emails after the hackathon was over. One parent called the participating members of the Marlboro branch “role models” for her son. Others affirmed this, calling the event “extremely helpful” and “informative” for beginner programmers. All parties seem to agree that this hackathon was extremely beneficial.
Participants:
Ayush Bobra – 2 hours
Haley Deng – 2 hours
Emily Luo – 2 hours
Emma Luo – 2 hours
