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Online Scratch Class · Minneapolis · Ages 8 to 10

Online Scratch class
for kids in Minneapolis.

A one-month online Scratch class for Minneapolis kids ages 8 to 10. An indoor project with four finished games at the end of it, each one reviewed on video by the teacher who set it.

$99 one time. No subscription, learn from home.

How it works

One call, then they are off.

There is no class to attend and nothing to install. Scratch runs in any browser, so your child in Minneapolis works on their own schedule.

Start with a meet and greet

Your $99 month begins with a meet and greet with Matt. He helps set up your Hackingtons and Scratch accounts and gives your child their first assignment. If your child is not excited after the meeting, you have 48 hours to ask for a full refund, no questions asked.

Lessons that fit your child

Matt sends your child personalized lessons throughout the month, tailored to their age and ability level.

Personalized video reviews

Matt plays each finished game, then sends your child a personalized video review: what worked, and what to try next. Yes, he really plays it.

A weekly email for you

Every week you get a summary of the lessons Matt sent, the games your child built, and the feedback he gave. You stay in the loop without having to sit next to them.

Why Minneapolis parents look online

The case for doing this from home.

A Minnesota winter is long enough that indoor projects stop being a consolation prize and start being the main event. Building a game is a good one. It is not passive, it produces something finished, and a child can work on it in short stretches without losing the thread. By the time the snow goes there are four playable games with their name on them.

Key facts about the Hackingtons Online Scratch Class
Ages8 to 10, no prior coding experience needed
Price$99 USD, charged once. No subscription.
LengthOne month from the meet and greet
FormatSelf-paced at home, plus one live meet and greet
ServingMinneapolis, MN and the surrounding area, online
InstructorMatt Highland, licensed California elementary school teacher, author of Coding for Kids: Scratch
SoftwareScratch, free and browser-based. Nothing to install.
What you needA computer with a web browser and an internet connection
RefundFull refund for 48 hours after the meet and greet

The 1 month curriculum

Four games they can actually play.

Each one is a real, playable program, not an exercise. Your child in Minneapolis can send the link to a grandparent anywhere and it works in their browser.

Game 1

Butterfly Clicker

Click the butterflies and score as many points as you can.

Game 2

Shark Escape

A diver, a shark, and the first game you can lose.

Game 3

Maze Escape

Draw a maze, fill it with enemies, find the way out.

Game 4

Flappy Bird

The one they have played a hundred times, built from nothing.

If your child is more advanced, they can work on more challenging games. More about the curriculum.

A note from Matt

“Wow, I built that.”

I started Hackingtons in 2014 in the Bay Area, and we have taught thousands of kids to code since. The part I care about most is still the first month, the moment a kid sits back and says wow, I built that.

I play every finished game myself and record a video about it, for your child in Minneapolis the same as for a kid in our own classroom. Not an assistant, and not generated. That is the part a video tutorial cannot do.

Matt Highland at his desk with a microphone.

Matt Highland

Co-founder, Hackingtons

  • Licensed California public elementary school teacher
  • Author of Coding for Kids: Scratch
  • Teaching kids to code since 2014

Questions from Minneapolis

The practical answers

It is the most popular time to start in cold-weather metros, for the obvious reason. There is no term or cohort to wait for, so you can start any week of the year.

No. Our in-person locations are in Northern California, so for Twin Cities families this class is fully online.

Short enough for a school night. Most of it is your child building rather than watching, and they can stop and come back without losing their place. There is no minimum and nothing to keep up with.

The meet and greet, every lesson, and Matt’s personal video reviews for thirty days. Charged once when you book. No subscription, no second charge, nothing to cancel. Your month starts on the day of the meet and greet, not the day you pay.

Full refund for 48 hours after the meet and greet, no questions asked. By then you will have met Matt and seen exactly what your child is getting. And if they run out of steam partway through, their account and all the lessons stay open for good.

No experience at all. The first lesson assumes they have never opened Scratch. Eight is the sweet spot: they need to read well enough to follow a video and be comfortable with a mouse, and that is the whole requirement.

Eight more answers, including what you need and what happens after the month, are on the main class page. Questions before booking? Email [email protected].

Ready to meet Matt, Minneapolis?

Start in Minneapolis whenever suits, including the middle of January. There is no term to wait for, and a dark winter week is a perfectly good one to build a video game in.

Book the meet and greet, $99

Full refund for 48 hours after the meet and greet, no questions asked.

Book the meet and greet, $99