One unexpected side effect of raising money on Indiegogo is the addition of marketing to our “curriculum.” The first several months of the Mesa Code Club were spent honing our craft and making cool things. The intrinsic joy of creation is a powerful motivator, and we’ve had a lot of fun.
But now that we are reaching out to the world asking for help expanding our Club, the kids are finding a different type of motivator. It’s the thrill (terror?) of pushing your creations out into Internet-land, with the reaction far from predictable.
Of interest to me has been the relative fearlessness of these kids. I personally tremble every time I click “share.” But they are happy to do it, and then they anxiously monitor the number of views and likes on their projects. It was particularly exciting when our first Indiegogo contribution came through just a few minutes after we launched. One of the kids noticed it and a cheer rose up through the group.
We decided to spend our “launch party” making celebration-themed animations and games. Here are some of the creations:
These are just a few examples. But we had a lot of fun launching our campaign and celebrating it with the programming skills we learn together.