Computer Science Asyncronous Syllabus
Quarter 1: History, Hardware, & Thinking Like a Computer (Weeks 1–10)
Objective: Understand how computers were invented, how they "think" in binary, and how to write step-by-step instructions (algorithms).
Week 1: Welcome to Computer Science! (What is CS? Tech safety and digital citizenship)
Week 2: Ancient Computing (The Abacus, the Antikythera mechanism, and counting tools)
Week 3: The Pioneers (Ada Lovelace, Charles Babbage, and Alan Turing)
Week 4: Giant Monsters to Pockets (From room-sized ENIAC to the modern smartphone)
Activity : Create a massive, illustrated Computing History Timeline.
Week 5: The Brain of the Machine (CPU, RAM, and Hard Drives—what do they actually do?)
Week 6: Input vs. Output (Keyboards and mice vs. screens and printers)
Week 7: Speaking in 1s and 0s (Introduction to Binary code)
Activity: Write your name in binary bead bracelets or pixel art grid drawings.
Week 8: Hardware vs. Software (The physical machine vs. the ghost in the machine)
Week 9: What is an Algorithm? (Breaking real-world tasks into logical steps)
Week 10: Real-world Algorithms (How maps find routes, how Netflix recommends shows)
Activity: "Robot Parent" (Kids write a strict algorithm to teach a parent how to make a PB&J sandwich or walk through a blind maze).
Quarter 2: Introduction to Coding with Scratch (Weeks 11–21)
Objective: Master core programming logic (variables, loops, conditionals) using visual, drag-and-drop block coding.
Week 11: Getting Started with Scratch (Creating an account, exploring the interface, making a sprite move)
Week 12: Saying Hello (Using speech bubbles, sounds, and changing backdrops)
Week 13: Variables & Data (What is a variable? Creating scorekeepers and timers)
Mini-Project: Build a digital interactive greeting card or an animated story.
Week 14: Making Choices: Conditionals (Introduction to if-then and if-then-else blocks)
Week 15: Forever and Ever: Loops (Using repeat and forever blocks to automate movement)
Week 16: Sensing and Logic (Making sprites react when they touch colors, edges, or the mouse pointer)
Mini-Project: Build a "Catching Game" (e.g., catching falling apples to score points).
Week 17: Broadcasters & Receivers (How sprites talk to each other using broadcast messages)
Week 18: Game Physics Basics (Simulating jumping, gravity, and basic walls)
Week 19: Clone Wars (Using cloning to make multiple enemies or projectiles)
Week 20 & 21: Quarter Milestone: Design, build, and playtest a complete Arcade Game in Scratch (e.g., Pong, a maze game, or a platformer).
Quarter 3: Text Coding & Web Development (Weeks 22–33)
Objective: Transition from blocks to text. Younger students can continue advanced Scratch/Scratch Jr, while older students (11+) dive into Python and web design fundamentals.
Week 22: Welcome to Text Coding (Setting up VSCode or a text editor; how syntax works)
Week 23: Introduction to Python (Printing text, basic math, and fixing errors/bugs)
Week 24: Python Variables & Inputs (Asking the user questions and storing their answers)
Week 25: Python Conditionals (Writing if, elif, and else statements in code)
Mini-Project: Build a text-based "Choose Your Own Adventure" game in Python.
Week 26: Introduction to Web Development (How the Internet works: Servers, Clients, and Browsers)
Week 27: HTML Basics (Building the skeleton of a webpage: Headings, paragraphs, and links)
Week 28: HTML Media (Adding images, videos, and lists to a webpage)
Week 29: Mini-Project: Create a basic, unstyled HTML profile page about a favorite hobby.
Week 30: CSS Basics (Adding color, changing fonts, and making the webpage look cool)
Week 31: CSS Layouts (Aligning items, borders, margins, and padding)
Week 32: Intro to JavaScript (Making a button on a webpage do something when clicked)
Week 33: Quarter Milestone: Build a personalized multi-page website using HTML and CSS.
Quarter 4: Data, Future Tech, & Capstone Project (Weeks 34–42)
Objective: Explore how data is organized, look toward the future of technology, and build a major final project.
Week 34: What are Data Structures? (How computers organize massive amounts of information)
Week 35: Lists and Arrays (Storing a collection of items, like a shopping list or high scores)
Week 36: Dictionaries and Key-Value Pairs (How contacts are stored in a phone)
Week 37: Mini-Project: Build a digital "To-Do List" application.
Week 38: What is Artificial Intelligence? (How machine learning works and neural networks)
Week 39: AI Ethics & Future Tech (Generative AI, Quantum computing, and staying safe with AI tools)
Week 40: Careers in Tech (What does a software engineer, game developer, or data scientist actually do?)
Capstone Kickoff: Brainstorming, planning, and sketching out the final project.
Capstone Development: Building the core functionality (coding day).
Capstone Development: Adding design, assets, and graphics.
Capstone Development: Debugging, testing, and getting feedback from peers/parents.
Week 41: Preparing the Presentation (How to explain how your code works and show off features).
Week 42: The Showcase: Final project presentations and graduation ceremony!
FAQ
Because this is a 42-week asynchronous program designed for maximum flexibility, the structure is a bit different from the standard Tue/Thur drop-in classes. Here is a clear, concise FAQ so families can get locked in.
1. Is this class being offered as hybrid or remote?
It is asynchronous. Students can access the curriculum, coding environments, and video modules from anywhere with an internet connection. There are no mandatory live logging-in times, making it incredibly flexible for homeschool schedules. The STEM delivery is in-class at the arena and there will be homework assignments making this a very hybrid course much mike a collegiate level experience, but for kids.
3. Can they pick random weeks/topics without falling behind?
No, they should follow the sequence. Because this is a true Computer Science curriculum, the material is scaffolding—meaning Week 5 builds directly on the logic, syntax, and debugging skills taught in Weeks 1 through 4. Skipping around to random topics will likely lead to frustration because they'll miss the foundational concepts required for the advanced weeks.
4. Can they pay monthly?
Yes, absolutely. We can invoice via stripe if you want to do that but must pay up front for the month, not afterwards.
7. What is the real difference between Tuesday/Thursday and Wednesday?
Wednesday Track (The Asynchronous CS Course): This is your deep-dive coding and computer science pathway. It focuses heavily on software engineering logic, syntax, and computational thinking (like learning Python or structured game engineering). If you want the most coding classes possible, Wednesday is exactly where you need to be.
Tuesday/Thursday Track: This focuses more on broader STEM, tech integration, and is more geared towards lighter fare of general STEM concepts
The Approach for "That Day" (Wednesday)
When Wednesday rolls around, here is how the day looks for a student:
The Unlock: The student logs into the Learning Management System (LMS) to find the fresh week's module open.
The Concept: They watch a short, highly visual concept video breaking down the week's goal.
The Lab: They jump into the environment to build the project, write the scripts, and test their work.
The Check-In: They submit deliverables or code for review.
Even though it's asynchronous, they aren't alone, their instructor reviews the code to provide feedback and help them debug if they get stuck.