FRIENDLY FUNCTIONS: PyCon, the once-a-year mega celebration for all things Python (programming language), saw a fresh injection of young minds at its 2013 conference held in Santa Clara, CA in mid March. Sandwiched somewhere between optimization strategies and signal processing, organizers found room for two days of free tutorials for kids under 16. "The Young Coder: Let's Learn Python" sessions, run by Barbara Shaurette and Katie Cunningham, aimed to introduce the venerable programming language by helping students construct their own simple games. Shaurette has a full recap of her teaching experience here along with curriculum materials for CS educators interested in running a similar course. Each student also received a sweet take-home prize to ensure their coding journey extends beyond PyCon: a brand-new Raspberry Pi.
