In Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9, students follow a broad and varied curriculum spanning Computer Science, Digital Wellbeing and Information and Communication Technology. There are lots of opportunities to explore further, too! Whether you’re interested in coding, cyber security, AI or creative media, there are exciting possibilities for you to explore.
Competitions
There are lots of opportunities to compete nationally in computing, coding and cybersecurity competitions; either as an individual or a team, including the Matrix Challenge, CyberFirst, and the Bebras Challenge. Keep an eye out for invitations to get involved when the competitions open for entries!
Cyber Security
If you would like to become one of the next leaders in cyber security, join the Cyber Discovery Programme. You can explore over 200 challenges where you will have a go at real-world cyber attacks, learning how cyber security experts play a vital role in protecting our hospitals, banks, army, and police services!
Artificial Intelligence
AI is shaping the world. Perhaps you’re interested in shaping AI, and would like to get involved in hackathons: check out Teens in AI, where you can find out about the latest events and sign up to the AI Accelerator Programme.
Coding
If you enjoy coding and would like to learn more, we recommend exploring projects on Hour of Code, Scratch or Tynker.com to develop your skills and creativity. Computing enthusiasts should visit Khan Academy: where you can follow excellent courses on Javascript and HTML, for example.
iDEA award
We love to see students getting a certificate to reward their work, and this award programme is a great opportunity to develop digital, enterprise and employability skills. We will spend some time on this in Year 7-9 ICT classes but you can expand your badge collection and aim for the next level any time. Visit https://idea.org.uk/.
Keyboard Skills
We value the importance of typing quickly and accurately. Putting in some extra practice on Typing Club will help you improve and you can challenge your friends on Typing Games.
Get creative
We run an annual Photoshop competition for Year 9, and there are many amazing Photoshop tutorials available to help you hone your skills. If you are interested in Computer Animation, this online course from Pixar is superb!