From July 23 to August 8, 2026, Digital Kodomo BASE held 6 events during summer vacation: 3 Minecraft programming sessions, 2 free laptop giveaways, and 1 AI certification course. All were held for elementary and junior high school students at our base in Ota City, Tokyo. The laptop giveaways put a laptop in the hands of 16 children, and all 8 participants in the AI certification course passed.
The series was held with a subsidy from Ota City's program for creating places for children during long school holidays. Designed to combine learning support with hands-on experience, each session ran from 10:00 to 15:00 and included lunch.
Learning to Program with Minecraft (July 23, 26, and August 8)
We held 3 sessions where children experienced the basics of programming by playing with Minecraft. What they would build stayed a surprise until the day itself. Each session had 8 spots, was free of charge, and welcomed younger elementary students too. The August 8 session was originally planned as an AI certification session, but we changed the schedule and ran it as a Minecraft session as well.
Free Laptop Giveaway: "Learn Computers by Receiving One" (July 30 and August 1)
We refurbished donated used laptops and gave them away for free, while teaching basic knowledge and how to use them. With a parent's consent, children could take the laptops home. Across the 2 sessions, 16 children received a laptop. Using their new laptops, the children also tried building the latest kind of game with Claude Code, an AI coding tool. Learn more about our laptop distribution program on the Kids PC Bank page.
On July 30, Ota City Council member Takahiro Shojima visited the session. According to his report, 7 elementary and 1 junior high school students took part, helped by one junior high, one high school, and one adult volunteer. In the morning the children learned mouse and keyboard skills through games; in the afternoon they went over safety points for social media and LINE, then built games with Claude Code. He wrote that "making games with AI is also a kind of art."
→ Council member Shojima's visit report (note, in Japanese)
NPO Certification Challenge: AI Certification Course + Certification (August 6)
We offered our normally paid AI certification course for free, covering the study portion, the exam itself, and issuing certificates to those who passed, all in a single day. All 8 participants passed and received their certificates. After the exam, they also built the latest kind of game with Claude Code, an AI coding tool. This certification is our NPO's official certification that launched in August 2026; more details are available on the certification site.
Thank you to all the children and parents who joined us. Digital Kodomo BASE will keep creating opportunities for children to enjoy exploring digital technology and AI. We'll announce our next events through our events page and official LINE account.
Digital Kodomo BASE's events will continue.
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