Clever Computing for Children – A Workshop for Educators
Culver City Julian Dixon Library
4975 Overland Ave
Culver City, CA 90230
2:30 – 5:30 PM • December 4, 2025
This pay-what-you-choose hands-on workshop for educators shares a constructionist approach to the teaching of computation, computer science, and robotics to young children. It is rooted in the vision of Seymour Papert, the Reggio Emilia Approach, and learner-centered traditions.
Although intended for PreK – 2nd grade educators, this workshop’s ideas are applicable at any age.
This workshop not only explores learning possibilities and pedagogical approaches, but justifies the role of computation in developmentally appropriate early childhood contexts.
This brief workshop will address the following:
- Programming and young children
- Microworlds – making powerful ideas accessible to learners of various ages and abilities
- Physical computing
- Artificial intelligence (AI) as a learner’s apprentice
- The case for computation
Cost
Although this workshop would commonly cost $150 and there are room rental costs, we are experimenting with a pay-what-you-wish option. Space is limited, so please only register if you intend to participate.
About the presenter
In addition to being a popular keynote speaker at some of the world’s most prestigious education conferences, Gary Stager is a journalist, teacher educator, consultant, professor, software developer, publisher, and school administrator. An elementary teacher by training, he has taught students from preschool through doctoral studies. In 1990, Dr. Stager led professional development in the world’s first laptop schools and played a major role in the early days of online education. Gary is the founder of the Constructing Modern Knowledge summer institute for educators, established in 2008.
Dr. Stager is co-author of Invent To Learn – Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom, called the “bible of the maker movement in schools,” by Larry Magid of CBS and The San Jose Mercury News. Invent To Learn has been translated into nine languages. Dr. Stager’s most recent book is Twenty Things to Do with a Computer Forward 50: Future Visions of Education Inspired by Seymour Papert and Cynthia Solomon’s Seminal Work.
Dr. Stager’s work has earned a Ph.D. in Science and Mathematics Education and he collaborated on a project that won a Grammy Award. Recently, Gary was invited by Fondazione Reggio Children to lead public seminars, and even teach children, in Reggio Emilia, Italy. In April 2005, Gary led The Language of Computation — Constructing Modern Knowledge in Reggio Emilia.
He is a licensed preschool through eighth grade teacher and a longtime collaborator of Seymour Papert, the father of educational computing. His conference presentations have included NAEYC and NAIS. In Los Angeles, Gary worked at The Willows Community School, the Oaks School, and with LAUSD. He recently worked with the Santa Cruz County Department of Education.
In addition to being the Publisher at Constructing Modern Knowledge Press, a company dedicated to disseminating the wisdom of creative educators, Dr. Stager is the Publisher at Cymbal Press, an award-winning publisher of jazz books.
Gary was also on the advisory board of the NSF-funded project, BJC4NYC: Bringing a Rigorous Computer Science Principles Course to the Largest School System in the US. Dr. Stager also maintains the world’s largest archive of text and multimedia by Seymour Papert at The Daily Papert.
Bring a laptop and your imagination!
