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South Tampa, FL

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Welcome to theCoderSchool

South Tampa, FL

1730 S Dale Mabry Hwy, Tampa, FL 33629
In Carriage Trade Plaza
Map(813)422-5566southtampa@thecoderschool.com
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(or go straight to our camps)

Hey super-parent! We're happy you're looking for options to get your kids learning to code. It's SUCH an amazing skill to learn and will help your kids in more ways than you can imagine! We're super excited to be bringing Silicon Valley's #1 kids coding program to the area to help your kids get going, so read on and let's get our kids coding!

At theCoderSchool, we want to do more than just teach coding. We want aspiring coders to use their new found passion as a stepping stone to thinking outside the box, as a way to channel their ideas in a creative way and most importantly, to have fun. Interested? Fill out our form and we'll be in touch shortly to tell you more!

Book a free trial now!
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Watch our video on Who We Are

Who is theCoderSchool

As Featured In

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Code Coaching®

Code Coaching® is our core philosophy, and what our school is all about!  We believe that every student is different, and that kids should learn in the way that works best for each child. How? Our Code Coaches® - they're the magic sauce!  Unlike some coding schools, we don't just leave the kids in front of a computer, expecting the software to teach them how to code. Nor do we force all kids to go through the same curriculum or projects, regardless of their skills and interests. Instead, our Code Coaches® customize their lessons for each child, and focus on a 2 on 1 mentee-mentor relationship with our kids so our students can get the focused attention they need.

Code Coaching® works for kids of all ages and skill levels, from novice to advanced. From game development to web apps, Python to Java, or even niche technologies like AI and beyond, our Coaches can help your kids achieve their goals.

Sessions run one or two hours a week (your choice), at the same time every week on a schedule that works for both you and our assigned Coach. Check out our video for more info!

Coding Lessons for Kids in South Tampa, FL

Coding takes practice, and we believe getting kids to code consistently throughout the year is the only way they'll really learn to code. theCoderSchool has a staff of hundreds of Code Coaches all around the country, so we know a thing or two about mentoring students in computer science. That's why our after-school coding classes for kids revolve around this relationship, providing a long-term mentor in a Code Coach to teach kids to code, from someone who's an expert coder themselves.

Programs at theCoderSchool

Our coding school's flagship after-school program, Code Coaching®, combines a super-small 2:1 teaching ratio with individualized curriculum so kids are able to move at their own pace, doing things that interest them most. While Code Coaching is our premium program, we also offer a more traditional Code Class for those looking for either software-driven or static-curriculum teaching in a larger ratio. And during summer and holiday breaks, we offer Coding Camps. When available, programs are offered in both in-person and virtual formats. Contact us to find out more and get a free trial today.

theCoderSchool System

We're part of a nationwide system of passionate owners in over 60 locations around the country, teaching over 6,500 students every week with the brainpower of 1000+ expert Code Coaches®. We're proud of the impact theCoderSchool has had on communities everywhere since our brand was founded way back in August of 2014. In short, we know a thing or two about teaching kids to code - so let's get to it!

What Kids Learn

We believe that every student learns in his or her own way, not only in what they want to work on, but how fast and how much. Our Coder Tree® is a visualization of our students' learning options as they grow and a sampling of some of the topics we teach. Find more details about what kids are learning by checking out our Coder Tree®.

Tracking Progress

Our suite of proprietary tools* chart weekly progress by tracking concepts and apps, and longer term progress by identifying skills to build their individual Coder Tree®. Get an idea of our progress tools by clicking through a Sample Student's Student Portal to see for yourself.

* Used by participating locations, check your location for availability

Apps We Build

Congressional App Challenge

Each year, theCoderSchool partners with the Congressional App Challenge, a nationwide coding contest run by districts of the U.S. Congress. Take a look at some recent winners, or ask about our App Gallery to see more apps!

  • Interactive mental health website
    2022 Winner - Pleasanton CA
    Interactive mental health website
  • Scheduling software for busy high schoolers
    2022 Winner - Henderson NV
    Scheduling software for busy high schoolers
  • Website+game to educate on carbon footprint
    2022 Winner - Yorba Linda CA
    Website+game to educate on carbon footprint
  • Help health care workers with code blue
    2021 Winner - Sarasota FL
    Help health care workers with code blue
  • Chat room with built-in AI
    2021 Winner - Buffalo NY
    Chat room with built-in AI
  • Gem collection game in Python
    2021 Winner - Folsom CA
    Gem collection game in Python
  • Education resource for all communities
    2021 Winner - Syosset NY
    Education resource for all communities
  • Drone/AI social distance detection
    2020 Winner - Buffalo NY
    Drone/AI social distance detection
  • Teen job/volunteer matching
    2020 Winner - St Louis MO
    Teen job/volunteer matching
  • 3D Max Game in HTML
    2020 Winner - Folsom CA
    3D Max Game in HTML
  • Note taking for online learning
    2020 Winner - Las Vegas NV
    Note taking for online learning
  • Help make food decisions for health
    2020 Winner - Buffalo, NY
    Help make food decisions for health
  • Distribute restaurant leftovers
    2020 Winner - Syosset NY
    Distribute restaurant leftovers
Summer-Camps-Website-Image

(Looking for more details? You can also read more about our main camps.)

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Scroll table to see all 16 camps
Week Format Camp Ages Price
6/5-6/9 Full Day Roblox Camp: Launch Your Own Obby Game Using Roblox Studio, your child will create and animate a Roblox Obby (obstacle course) game. Campers will use their creativity to customize their own Obby that they can publish and allow the world to play! Newbie coders will love this camp. Ages 7-10 Ages 7-10 $599 $499
6/5-6/9 Full Day Roblox Entrepreneur: Lua Coding and Game Scripting Roblox is one of the fastest-growing game creation platforms on the planet, with more than 100 million players per month and top developers making over $1 million a year. Use Roblox’s built-in editor with Lua—a powerful and fast programming language—to design challenging levels and code intuitive gameplay mechanics. Then, publish, share, and play games with your friends on any platform, from console to mobile. Ages 10-14 Ages 10-14 $699 $599
6/12-6/16 Full Day Games are Awesome: Build a game with Scratch by MIT We'll use the coolest drag n' drop language Scratch from MIT to create an awesome game! The camp is perfect for newbies and novice young coders. Ages 7-10 Ages 7-10 $599 $499
6/12-6/16 Full Day Roblox Entrepreneur: Imaginative Game Design Roblox is one of the fastest-growing game creation platforms on the planet, with more than 100 million players per month and top developers making over $1 million a year! In this imaginative game design course, you’ll use Roblox’s built-in editor to create 3D worlds, then publish, share, and play games with your friends on any platform, from console to mobile. You’ll have a blast studying games that have been runaway hits and learning how to implement the same gameplay and monetization strategies in your own games. Ages 10-14 Ages 10-14 $699 $599
6/19-6/23 Full Day Robotics with Scratch and mBot Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto! If you’re excited about coding/programming and controlling physical robots, look no further than our Robotics camp. The camp is perfect for newbies. Ages 7-10 Ages 7-10 $599 $499
6/19-6/23 Full Day VR Design with Unity and Meta Quest 2 The best game makers are the ones who play them. Step directly into your game with virtual reality and the Meta Quest 2—an all-in-one wireless VR system. You’ll pair it with Unity, an industry-standard game engine, to learn the basics of coding and create your own interactive experience. Bring incredible worlds to life that you can see, hear, and lose yourself in through the immersion of 360 audio and video. Bring your Meta Quest 2 or purchase one for an additional $450. Your game models, designs, and levels will go home with you so you can continue building an immersive, imaginative virtual realm. Ages 10-14 Ages 10-14 $699 $599
6/26-6/30 Full Day WebRox Everything's about the web these days, and that's why Web Rocks! Code with all the base web technologies like HTML/CSS and Javascript and get an actual live website going! The camp is perfect for newbies and novice young coders. Ages 7-10 Ages 7-10 $599 $499
6/26-6/30 Full Day Battle Royale Game Design with Unity Go from game player to game creator with Unity, a powerful industry-standard game design engine. Games bring friends together, and Unity bridges the fields of art, code, and design all to one central location. You'll connect game elements from level platforms to customizing your own Battle Royale levels like the ones you'd find in Fortnite, Apex Legends, or Fall Guys. Using built-in visual code, you'll add rules and structure, showing players how to interact with your creation. With Unity, you'll learn to design incredible experiences for players and join a community of millions of developers! Ages 10-14 Ages 10-14 $699 $599
7/3-7/7 Full Day Virtual Robotics with Scratch Build your own interactive and imaginative programs using Scratch, a drag n' drop language by MIT. With Scratch and VEX VR (Virtual Reality), you'll design, code, program a virtual robot to play games such as navigate mazes on its own with sensors and adaptive variables. As you explore math and science concepts, your pathway to learning Python and other languages begins here—switch to the code editor in VEX VR to see behind the scenes and tweak your work. There's no better way to dive into the exciting world of STEM! Ages 7-10 Ages 7-10 $599 $499
7/3-7/7 Full Day Roblox Entrepreneur: Lua Coding and Game Scripting Roblox is one of the fastest-growing game creation platforms on the planet, with more than 100 million players per month and top developers making over $1 million a year. Use Roblox’s built-in editor with Lua—a powerful and fast programming language—to design challenging levels and code intuitive gameplay mechanics. Then, publish, share, and play games with your friends on any platform, from console to mobile. Ages 10-14 Ages 10-14 $699 $599
7/10-7/14 Full Day Robotics with Scratch and mBot Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto! If you’re excited about coding/programming and controlling physical robots, look no further than our Robotics camp. The camp is perfect for newbies. Ages 7-10 Ages 7-10 $599 $499
7/10-7/14 Full Day Roblox Entrepreneur: Imaginative Game Design Roblox is one of the fastest-growing game creation platforms on the planet, with more than 100 million players per month and top developers making over $1 million a year! In this imaginative game design course, you’ll use Roblox’s built-in editor to create 3D worlds, then publish, share, and play games with your friends on any platform, from console to mobile. You’ll have a blast studying games that have been runaway hits and learning how to implement the same gameplay and monetization strategies in your own games. Ages 10-14 Ages 10-14 $699 $599
7/17-7/21 Full Day Games are Awesome: Build a game with Scratch by MIT We'll use the coolest drag n' drop language Scratch from MIT to create an awesome game! The camp is perfect for newbies and novice young coders. Ages 7-10 Ages 7-10 $599 $499
7/17-7/21 Full Day VR Design with Unity and Meta Quest 2 The best game makers are the ones who play them. Step directly into your game with virtual reality and the Meta Quest 2—an all-in-one wireless VR system. You’ll pair it with Unity, an industry-standard game engine, to learn the basics of coding and create your own interactive experience. Bring incredible worlds to life that you can see, hear, and lose yourself in through the immersion of 360 audio and video. Bring your Meta Quest 2 or purchase one for an additional $450. Your game models, designs, and levels will go home with you so you can continue building an immersive, imaginative virtual realm. Ages 10-14 Ages 10-14 $699 $599
7/24-7/28 Full Day Roblox Camp: Launch Your Own Obby Game Using Roblox Studio, your child will create and animate a Roblox Obby (obstacle course) game. Campers will use their creativity to customize their own Obby that they can publish and allow the world to play! Newbie coders will love this camp. Ages 7-10 Ages 7-10 $599 $499
7/24-7/28 Full Day Battle Royale Game Design with Unity Go from game player to game creator with Unity, a powerful industry-standard game design engine. Games bring friends together, and Unity bridges the fields of art, code, and design all to one central location. You'll connect game elements from level platforms to customizing your own Battle Royale levels like the ones you'd find in Fortnite, Apex Legends, or Fall Guys. Using built-in visual code, you'll add rules and structure, showing players how to interact with your creation. With Unity, you'll learn to design incredible experiences for players and join a community of millions of developers! Ages 10-14 Ages 10-14 $699 $599

Parent Testimonials

"My 9-year-old daughter started taking coding lessons before the pandemic. She has been able to continue weekly lessons virtually without missing a beat. She loves working with [the coach] and has had lots of fun while working hard on creating a game." - Kim H.
"To give you an idea of how much he is liking it ...he told me this morning that the whole online camp day felt like only an hour yesterday because it was so much fun."
- Hisham R.
"What you have brought [here] is simply amazing! Your coaches are fantastic and I couldn't ask for a better learning environment for my son to do his thing and expand his knowledge!" - Bonnie D.
"My son was really getting into things! It was neat to see him and his reactions as the coaches helped him along. The coaches are great at working with students virtually." - Lyndsey M.
"Staff is great. They have managed to turn my son's technology obsession into a creative (instead of just observing you tube videos) outlet. Now instead of just watching videos or playing games...he is creating his games." - Russell H.
"Excellent staff, reasonable prices, and most important they make it fun for kids to learn coding. My son is always excited to go back and work on his game." - Mathew J.

Hey parents, love our school? Give us a review!
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School Info

theCoderSchool Logo
1730 S Dale Mabry Hwy, Tampa, FL 33629
In Carriage Trade Plaza
(813)422-5566
southtampa@thecoderschool.com
Monday: 3:00 – 8:00 PM
Tuesday: 3:00 – 8:00 PM
Wednesday: Closed
Thursday: 3:00 – 8:00 PM
Friday: 3:00 – 8:00 PM
Saturday: 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Sunday: Closed
Or Choose a Nearby Location
  • Sarasota, FL
  • New Tampa, FL
  • Carrollwood, FL
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Our Schools

Meet Our Owner

Lesly Ramirez

Hi, my name is Lesly Ramirez-Olavarria. I'm a proud mom of 5, and I am the Owner of theCoderSchools in the Tampa Area! I was born and raised in Peru until the age of 12 and lived in New York until three years ago. We have made Tampa our home, and we could not be any happier to be bringing you Silicon Valley's #1 Coding School.

I was introduced to coding early in my IT career by my now loving husband. I went from being a passive participant in the digital world to an active player in the field of technology, and I loved every minute of it!

We are so excited to be part of the tech-education movement that teaches kids to code in a fun and exciting way. If you'd like to learn more about what we do or how you can get started, feel free to reach me at lesly@thecoderschool.com with any questions.

Meet the Owner and Senior Advisor

Mike Olavarria

Hi, my name is Michael Olavarria. I'm a proud father and a Senior Advisor for The Coder School New Tampa and South Tampa! Full disclosure: I am a geek. I love computers. I love everything about them. I spend hours coding, debugging, and discussing coding practices with other coders. When I am not coding, I teach coding and write about computers as part of my professional career.

My passion grows as I see students who learn to program early in life gain a deeper and more complete understanding of the logic and advanced thinking behind coding. Like learning a language early in life, learning and practicing this type of thinking early in development influences a child's brain as it is still developing. This is why early learners have experienced such boundless success in this field (think Gates, Zuckerberg, Jobs,…the list goes on and on). If you'd like to learn more about what we do or how you can get started, feel free to reach me at molavarria@thecoderschool.com with any questions.

We're always looking for great Code Coaches. Shoot us an email with resumé to see if we're a fit!

Frequently Asked Questions

How can coding help kids?

Many folks might think learning to code is so kids can actually code an app. Honestly, that's not usually the case! Coding real-life apps is tough. Despite what the media says, your kid is not writing some million dollar app by themselves in a month. Instead, coding helps kid *solve problems*. Coding is all about debugging and logically thinking through the fix. Breaking a large problem into smaller parts, logical sequencing, these are all important problem solving skills for any kid (or adult!). A second benefit is confidence and passion in technology. There's plenty of time for kids to learn the latest real tech (which changes all the time), but the time to build passion for technology (and a foundational knowledge base) is when they're young!

What is the best coding language to learn as a beginner?

The truth is, Scratch is amazing for a beginner at ANY AGE. If someone is truly a beginner, a platform like Scratch can allow them to create and engage much more quickly. Older kids (say 11 and up) can soon move to a language like Python or Javascript. Just remember that it takes a LOT MORE work to get Python/Javascript to do the same thing as Scratch - so the kids will need some patience. No matter what anyone tells you please DO NOT start learning with Java or C++! Those languages are too advanced to start with, and we've seen it too often - kids will give up because it's so hard! Definition of backfiring!

What is the best age to start coding?

It depends - we think the best age is the age they want to do it! Listen, there's plenty of time to *really* learn to code - there's a reason Comp Sci is a really tough college degree. The important thing in the younger years is to bring out the desire and passion to learn more - that's why at theCoderSchool we customize our projects based on the student's interests and really focus on engagement before learning.

What are the benefits of kids learning to code?

Children of all ages can benefit from learning coding skills, and students who get hands-on experience with computer programming go on to excel in other subjects Coding helps students gain computer proficiency and build real-world problem-solving skills. Exploring technology is essential for computer literacy. Building fundamental coding skills encourages creativity, promotes teamwork, and enhances spatial intelligence and logical thinking skills. Kids of all ages can learn computer science. For teenagers, learning how to code leads to the development of transferable skills that can be applied in future careers or workplaces. If your student is interested in data science or machine learning, a self-paced course in computer programming can help pave their path.

As you and your family consider coding programs, it helps to keep in mind:

  • The age of the student (we can teach kids as young as six)
  • Their individual interests (such as Lego, Roblox, robotics, video game design, or artificial intelligence)
  • Any previous hands-on experience with coding (even exposure to mobile apps or playing with Minecraft counts)
  • Preferred learning style (we offer both flexible and structured curricula and support self-paced learning)
  • Social skills (some students learn best in one-on-one lessons, while others favor teamwork)

    Whether the student wants to explore Minecraft modding in Minecraft camp, is interested in HTML, or wants to learn block-based coding like CSS, our interactive classes provide a great coding experience.

    Can a 6 year old do coding?

    Sure! Kids this young are just developing their sense of logic. While some advanced 6 year olds are ready to dive into learning Scratch, many are better off with fun learning apps like Kodable or Scratch Jr..

    How do kids learn to code?

    Same way adults do! The best way to learn something is to just DO it. It's not about all the theory and fancy words, it's about just doing it over and over again. If you're a parent with a college degree, think back. How much of that theoretical curriculum did you really use in your job? Or did you really learn your job by DOING your job? It's the same with kids, we'll mentor and guide them, but most importantly, we'll get them to code something custom that they want to code!

    Does coding require reading?

    It definitely requires a little bit of reading and comprehension. Even coding with blocks requires some reading, albeit not as much. More importantly when kids move on to typed languages like Python or Javascript - they have to know how to type! If they can't type, coding typed languages is more than frustrating, often causing kids to quit.

    Where is the best place to learn coding for kids?

    We're a little bit biased, but we think it's theCoderSchool! There's no better way to learn anything, including coding, than just doing it with a mentor to guide you. Online or in person, our Code Coaches will give you that low-ratio full attention that every kid deserves!
  • Private+Semi-Private Coaching

    Virtual Learning

    Coding Classes

    Robotics

    Python

    Scratch

    Video Game Coding



    What is theCoderSchool? We are an after-school drop-off (and virtual) program for kids learning to code - a coding school! There's after-school kung fu. There's after-school music lessons, sports, art, tutoring, Chinese, you name it, it's out there. But coding for kids? We're among the first of many, and the largest in Silicon Valley with more locations on the way around the country. The future will be ever more dependent on technology so let's get our young generation ready. Learn to Code, Change the World®.

    Got a question? Email us at southtampa@thecoderschool.com!

    copyright 2014-2022, the Coder School San Francisco, LLC. All Rights, Alright? Don't forget our privacy policy. Find out who we are or like us on facebook.