Pembroke alumna, Liane Katz, co-founder and CEO of MAMA.codes, is on a mission to get children as young as three coding literate in a digital age

Pembroke alumna, Liane Katz (History and French, 1995) co-founder and CEO of MAMA.codes, teaches children aged 3-7 to code in a creative, fun and accessible way.

MAMA.codes was established in 2015 by Liane, a former Guardian executive producer, and two other London mothers with digital backgrounds. Describing coding as the 21st century’s ‘new literacy’, Liane and her co-founders decided that they wanted their daughters (then aged 4-6) to engage with code in their early years, in preparation of an ever-evolving digital world. This shared ambition drove Liane and her partners to approach their business model with the determination that teaching children to code should be fun, relaxed and imaginative; nurturing an environment for children to learn coding in an age appropriate way.

The team use ScratchJr, an app developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston, that introduces children as young as three to interact with basic programming that is developmentally accessible.

MAMA.codes provides online learn-to-code projects, kids’ coding clubs and holiday workshops, as well as running their ‘parent hacks,’ a programme designed for parents to get to grips with the coding curriculum and learn ways to support their child’s learning. Liane believes that by learning to code as a family, children and parents can benefit from a healthy approach to screen time.

Liane notes the similarities between learning to code and learning a language, in which sequences of sound ‘can easily be transposed into a visual coding language’. She notes that MAMA.codes ‘provides an accessible approach to learning code through song, rhyme and storytelling’, allowing pre-reading children to become comfortable and confident with the language of code.

MAMA.codes relaxed ethos isn’t just directed at their clients, Liane and her team pride themselves on providing a flexible work environment, allowing employees to work remotely and flexibly around their children and studies.

With around 47 classes a week in London and Herefordshire, and recently expanding to Belfast, Northern Ireland, it’s clear that MAMA.codes success is rapidly growing. The team are currently working alongside NOVA New Opportunities, running free classes for children from the Grenfell community.

For more information on MAMA.codes please click here.

To keep up to date with MAMA.codes on social media:

Twitter: @MamaCodes

Facebook: Mama.codes