They write real code
Python, HTML, CSS and JavaScript, typed out rather than dragged, by the middle of the journey.
Junior Creator · Mississauga South
Coding, Python and AI Classes for Kids Ages 7 to 14 in Mississauga South
In person at our Mississauga South centre, with six students per instructor.
The same thirteen-level Junior Creator journey (Scratch, Python, websites and apps, then their own AI project), taught at our Mississauga South centre by the instructors your child will see every week.
- Ages 7 to 14
- Once, twice or three times a week
- 60-minute sessions
What your child does in Junior Creator
Junior Creator is an in-person coding program for children aged 7 to 14, built as thirteen levels. Students begin with block coding in Scratch, progress to Python, then to websites and web apps, and finish by building a product with a working AI feature they trained and can explain.
What your child walks away with
They debug their own work
Reading an error message and working backwards is a habit here, not a crisis.
They train a model themselves
With data they collected, and they can tell you where it goes wrong and why.
They explain what they built
Every level ends with them presenting it. Explaining it is how we know they understood it.
If AI can write code, why should my child learn to?
It's a fair question, and the honest answer isn't that AI is bad at code. It's often very good at it. What it can't do is decide what should be built, notice that what it produced is subtly wrong, or judge whether the result is any good. Someone has to hold that judgement, and it comes from having built things yourself.
A child who has written a loop, watched it fail and worked out why can read what an AI hands them and say: that part's wrong. A child who has never written one has no way of knowing. Both of them can type a prompt. Only one of them can tell whether the answer is right.
The children who'll struggle are the ones who can only prompt. We're not training those.
Thirteen levels, first block of code to shipped product
Every level is ten 60-minute lessons and ends with a project your child presents, a certificate and a skill badge. Each level carries two names: the level name, and the skill name that appears on your child's badge.
Ages are guidance, not a gate. The instructor places your child where they will be stretched, and a student who is ahead can test out of a level and move up.
Level one starts here.
- 1Ages 7 to 9Intro to ScratchFirst Flight
Block coding · Sequences, motion and animation, their first game, and a robot that speaks four languages.
- 2Ages 8 to 10Scratch BeginnerGame Maker
Block coding · Variables, logic and clones, with enemies and a chatbot that follow rules they wrote.
- 3Ages 8 to 11Scratch IntermediateAI Trainer
Block coding · Functions, lists and generative art, plus a real image model they train and then play at rock, paper, scissors.
- 4Ages 9 to 12Scratch AdvancedMaster Builder
Block coding · Physics, particles and procedural worlds, plus a trainable neuron that learns in front of them.
- 5Ages 9 to 12Intro to PythonPython Playground
Python · Their first typed code, through turtle drawing, games and a text adventure with a talking character.
- 6Ages 10 to 13Python BeginnerArcade Architect
Python · Real 2D arcade games in Pygame Zero, with enemy brains and a boss that predicts their moves.
See all 13 levelsShow fewer levels
- 7Ages 10 to 13Python IntermediateData Detective
Python · Files, data and charts, and a miniature text generator they build themselves from counted patterns.
- 8Ages 11 to 14Python AdvancedThe AI Coder
Python · Machine learning end to end: classifiers, a neuron, hand tracking, and an AI running on the class laptop.
- 9Ages 10 to 13Intro to Web DevelopmentWeb Origins
Websites and apps · HTML, CSS and their first JavaScript, ending in a three-page site published at a real address.
- 10Ages 11 to 13Web Development BeginnerInteractive Designer
Websites and apps · Real interactivity: events, design systems, saved data, and a page controlled by a model they trained.
- 11Ages 11 to 14Web Development IntermediateApp Builder
Websites and apps · Web apps with state and live data, plus neural networks running inside the browser they built.
- 12Ages 12 to 14Web Development AdvancedProduct Studio
Websites and apps · End-to-end products, coding alongside AI responsibly, and shipping something a stranger can use.
- 13Ages 12 to 14AI Project StudioThe Final Project
Their own AI project · One signature AI product of their own invention: specify, build, test, evaluate and pitch it.
What students actually build
Real projects from real classes. Every one runs, and every one was presented by the child who made it.
The four tracks
- 1
Block coding · Levels 1 to 4
Scratch, where the logic is visible. Complete games and simulations, and their first trained AI model.
- 2
Python · Levels 5 to 8
Real code in VS Code, the professional editor. Arcade games, data analysis, machine learning written from scratch.
- 3
Websites and apps · Levels 9 to 12
HTML, CSS and JavaScript. Published sites, web apps with real state, then a product shipped to a real user.
- 4
Their own AI project · Level 13
Their choice of problem and tools. One signature AI product, conceived, engineered, evaluated and launched.
Every tool in the program is free: Scratch, Visual Studio Code, Python, Pygame Zero, Chrome and Teachable Machine. Families buy nothing, and the AI tools run on the classroom laptop rather than the cloud, so no child's camera image, voice or writing leaves the room.
How we teach AI, in five steps
Your child always knows which step they are on, and can tell you the difference between the five.
- 1
Using AI
Their project uses AI someone else built: speech and translation, from Level 1.
- 2
Rule AI
They write every rule the brain follows: enemies that sense, decide and act, and their own chatbot.
- 3
Trained AI
No rules written. The machine learns from examples your child gathered, then shows what the data left out.
- 4
Generative AI
They build the thing that predicts and creates: a miniature text generator, which is how the big ones stop being magic.
- 5
Directing AI
They direct an AI assistant, then verify, test and take responsibility for its work before trusting it.
We never call an if-then block real AI. We teach your child the difference, so that when they say they built an AI, they can tell you exactly what they mean.
Your child will train real AI models, build a text generator that works like ChatGPT in miniature, run a private AI on a laptop, and — most importantly — explain how all of it works.
How classes work
You choose how often your child comes: once, twice or three times a week. Every session is 60 minutes, with up to six students per instructor.
Once a week
One 60-minute session
Best for a child fitting coding around other activities, or trying it properly for the first time. The software levels: Scratch, Python, web development and the AI work.
Robotics and electronics aren't part of this option.
Twice a week
Two 60-minute sessions
Best for most children. Coding and robotics in the same week, so what they build in one class gets used again in the next.
Robotics and electronics included.
Three times a week
Three 60-minute sessions
Best for the child who's already asking for more, and wants bigger projects rather than more of the same. Room for the harder stretch tasks and bigger builds.
Robotics and electronics included.
Robotics and electronics are included from twice a week upward at no extra cost, never a separate purchase. Once-a-week students spend their session on the software levels, because a single 60-minute class doesn't have room for both. Arduino and micro:bit sit in the same block.
Six students per instructor
Mixed ages by design, with three levels of difficulty inside each lesson, so a seven-year-old and a thirteen-year-old are both stretched.
Sixty minutes, ten lessons a level
Every session runs 60 minutes, and every level is ten of them. A child who's ahead can test out of a level and move up. That's true at every location.
Placed in a free trial class
A free 60-minute class. Your child builds something real, and the instructor recommends the level that fits.
Everything is saved
Projects, certificates and skill badges live in their CodeyKids portfolio. Take-home projects are optional, never required.
How this connects to what they learn at school
“solve problems and create computational representations of mathematical situations by writing and executing efficient code, including code that involves conditional statements and other control structures.”
“write and execute code in an investigation of mathematical concepts, and read and alter existing code, including code that involves the analysis of data in order to inform and communicate decisions.”
In Ontario, coding isn't an extra. It runs through the mathematics curriculum from Grade 1 to Grade 8, and the expectations get sharper every year. Junior Creator covers that ground properly, with six students in the room.
Is Junior Creator right for my child?
Right on the line at 7?
Reading is the deciding factor, not the birthday. If they read comfortably and want to type, start here. If reading is still effortful, another term in Junior Thinker is the kinder route, and moving up part-way through is easy.
Right on the line at 14?
A beginner at thirteen or fourteen still starts here, usually around Level 5, and moves quickly. If they have coded before and want university-facing work, Ultimate Innovator is the better fit.
Junior Thinker, Junior Creator and Ultimate Innovator compared
- Age
- 5 to 7
- What they use
- ScratchJr, codeSpark, Dash robots, Snap Circuits
- What they build
- Simple games, talking stories, robot routes
- Typical starting point
- Cannot read fluently yet; has never coded
Junior Creator
This page- Age
- 7 to 14
- What they use
- Scratch, Python, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, VS Code
- What they build
- Playable games, live websites, apps, trained AI models
- Typical starting point
- Reads and types; ready to move past pictures
- Age
- 14 to 18
- What they use
- Python, Java, C, C++, C#, React, SQL
- What they build
- Portfolio projects for university and work
- Typical starting point
- Has coded before; wants something serious
Seven-year-olds fit either program. What decides it is whether your child is reading confidently and ready to type. The same is true at fourteen, where a beginner still starts here.
Other ways to learn with us
- Coding camps · PA days, March break and summer, at your local centre.
- Learn from Home · Live online classes, for families who aren't near a centre.
Hear From Parents
What Parents Say About Ultimate Coders
Visit us in Mississauga South
Not nearby?
The three closest centres to Mississauga South, in a straight line from here.
- Oakville (Glen Abbey)about 10 km away
- Mississauga West (Meadowvale)about 10 km away
- Mississauga City Centreabout 12 km away
Questions parents ask us
If AI can write code, why should my child learn to?
Because AI produces code but can't judge it. Deciding what to build, spotting what is subtly wrong and knowing what good looks like all come from having built things. Children who code end up directing AI; children who don't are left trusting it.
Does my child need coding experience to start?
No. Level 1 assumes nothing: no coding, no typing speed, no mathematics beyond counting. An older beginner may start at Level 5 or Level 9 and move faster, and a practical exam lets any student skip a level they have outgrown.
How is my child placed at the right level?
During the free trial class. Your child builds something in a real session and the instructor watches how they handle it, then recommends a level and explains why.
How long does the whole journey take?
Every level is ten 60-minute lessons, so it depends on how often your child comes: once, twice or three times a week. There's no requirement to complete all thirteen, and a student who's ahead can test out of a level and move up.
Can my child move up a level early?
Yes, and this runs at every location. A student who has outgrown their level sits a 30-minute practical build plus a short conversation explaining their code. Passing earns the certificate and badge for that level and moves them straight up.
Is the AI work real, or is it a marketing word?
Real, and deliberately honest. Students train models on data they collect, write a classifier and a neuron themselves, build a miniature text generator, and in Level 8 run a large language model on the classroom laptop and check it for bias. We never call an if-then rule real AI, and we teach the difference explicitly.
What programming languages will they learn?
Scratch first, then Python in VS Code, then HTML, CSS and JavaScript. Level 13 is their own choice of tools. Robotics and electronics add Arduino and micro:bit from twice a week upward. Every tool is free, and nothing needs buying at home.
Do we need to bring a laptop?
No. Everything is provided at the centre. Projects are saved to their CodeyKids portfolio so they can carry on at home on any computer if they want to.
Is this just more screen time?
It's creative screen time. Every lesson ships something your child made, and every level ends with them presenting it. They're designing, debugging and explaining rather than watching.
Does this help with school?
Coding sits in the Ontario mathematics curriculum from Grade 1 through Grade 8 under Strand C. Students here meet that work already knowing how to write, read and alter code.
What happens after Level 13?
Most students move into Ultimate Innovator, where the work turns towards Java, C, React and portfolio projects for university applications.
Start at the right level. The first class is free.
One free class at your local centre. Your child builds something, and the instructor tells you honestly which level fits.