Code/Interactive's hackathon brings C/I students together to work in groups on real tech products!

Free food all day long from 9:30am - 6pm!

Our event schedule is below -- please listen carefully for announcements that pertain to your team and for opportunities to attend workshops:

9:30am - 10am: Breakfast and Check-In 

All hackers who are chosen by their teachers to attend the hackathon will work with mentors all day long to build a tech products that solve a problem in education.  

Step 1: Identify the Problem: The problem that you choose to solve can be any problem that affects your life and education in any way, including teaching, communicating, learning inside or outside a classroom, factors affecting your home or school environment, issues with friends, or any other problem that you can think of.  Think about problems that affect all age groups, from Pre-K to College.

Step 2: Brainstorm Solutions: Think of tech solutions that you can implement for the problem that you identify.  This can include a new tech product, app, or a modification or addition to an existing tech product.  Think about all of the factors surrounding your problem that are NOT currently addressed using technology and brainstorm how to add technology to that part of your education.

Step 3: Research: Make sure that your idea is original and feasible by researching other technologies and apps that already exist.  If your idea already exists, maybe you can make it better or add an extra feature, or you might need to go back to brainstorming to think of another solution.

Step 4: Validation: Validate your problem by asking students at the hackathon if they experience that problem.  If no one experiences that problem, perhaps you're not solving the right thing!  Validate your solution by asking students at the hackathon if they would use that product.  Be prepared to present this information in your final pitch -- for example "We surveyed 40 students and over 60% said that this was a problem they experienced.  Over 70% said that they would use our solution."

Step 5: Details and Features: What special features will your product have?  How will your users interact with your product?  Answer all of the questions provided in your product submission and do research as you go.  While thinking about your product, evaluate your idea and answer the following questions:

• Will people use your app?
• Would you use your app?
• Is there a better solution?
• Is there a better way to phrase your solution?
• Is your solution too simple (or complex)?

Step 6: Wireframes / Sketches and Websites: You will present at least three wireframes or product sketches on the website that you present at the end of the day.  Deliverables and details are below:

• Written Descriptions: The most valuable part of your submission is a detailed description of your tech product that answers all of the questions presented to you by DevPost about your product.  Please take a lot of time crafting your answers because these will be reviewed in detail by the judges.
• Wireframes or Sketches: Each group must produce, either digitally or by hand, at least three wireframes or sketches of their app or product to show the judges what their tech solution might look like.  Take pictures of your wireframes / sketches (if hand drawn) or take screenshots and put these images on your website.
• Website or Computational Artifact: Each group must produce one website using thimble.mozilla.org or another hosting site to showcase their problem, solution, and the pictures of their wireframes or sketches or working prototype of product.  This website link should be included in the final submission of each group's project.

Step 7: Refine and Improve: Keep improving your product until final submission at 3:30pm!

Step 8: Pitch Practice: Practice what you are going to say in front of the judges!  You only get 2 minutes to present, so you have to make a good impression and stand out!

• Creative Solution
  Did you choose to focus on a major social issue related to safety? Does your tech product have the potential to solve it? Is the idea original & unique, or a just a copy of something that already exists?
• Best Overall
  Design principles, pitch clearly articulates problem & solution, aligns to hackathon's safety theme, and demonstrates knowledge of computer programming or scripting languages.