Chase Lake Community School sixth-grader Bailey Gilbert says she wants to be a pastry chef someday. But that didn’t stop the 11-year-old from participating in the “hour of code” event at the Edmonds elementary school Monday afternoon.

“My friend wants to make video games when she grows up, so maybe I’ll help her,” Gilbert said.

Gilbert was one of 28 Chase Lake students who sat in front of computers in the library after school Monday, trying their hand at writing a simple code for a video game. The hour-long computer coding lesson, hosted by the Snohomish STEM Network, was timed to coincide with Computer Science Education Week and featured the Hour of Code tutorial aimed at teaching those of any age the basics of computer coding. (You can try your hand at the program here.)

The goal is to motivate students to continue to learn more about coding and computer science, said Cindy Sackett, a Chase Lake parent overseeing the program in her role as program manager for the Washington Alliance for Better Schools. A total of 11 Puget Sound school districts belong to the Alliance, which sponsors a variety of college- and career-readiness initiatives, including an after-school STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) Academy in the Edmonds School District, as well as professional development for teachers.