The 2024 Hack-her-thon write up

Posted on 3rd April 2024 by Ian Horne

The 2024 Hack-her-thon write up

On Monday 25th March, over 50 students from six Norfolk schools joined together at Norwich High School for Girls for the 2024 ‘Hack-her-thon’ – an exciting day of coding, cyber challenges and creativity.⁠

This is the second year the event has run, which was open to female-identifying students from Years 9-13 across Norfolk. Students of all coding abilities were welcome, with the event aiming to create a safe and welcoming environment for young people to explore computer science and coding. This year’s event was themed around dragons and offered a dynamic platform for students to dive into the world of coding, transcending beyond just learning programming languages. ⁠

Spearheaded by the inspirational keynote speech from Amelia Brackenbury-Read and guided by a team of mentors from Aviva, participants tackled intricate coding puzzles and developed their own ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ code. This challenge not only showcased their technical skills but also their creativity in storytelling, marketing and pitching their projects.⁠

This initiative aligns with our broader educational philosophy: to prepare students not only for the jobs of today but to inspire them to innovate for the challenges of tomorrow.⁠

A huge thank you to all mentors, teachers, and helpers for their commitment to this amazing event. We are planning for Hack-her-thon 2025 already!

“I would like to offer huge congratulations to Head of Computer Science Mr Ian Horne, on a fantastic event yesterday. Every time I popped in the students looked like they were having a great time. Mr Horne and the team of Sixth Former helpers and mentors from Aviva put a huge amount of effort into the event and the success is testament to that. Thank you.”

Alison Sefton, Head of Norwich High School for Girls

Visiting schools feedback

“This is just to say thank you for hosting us today. My girls really loved it and I believe this will serve as a springboard to many of them developing their interest in computing.”
North Walsham High School

“Thank you for organising such a great day, it was really good and the feedback from the girls was great.”
Dereham Neatherd High School

“Thank you so much for organising today’s Hack-her-thon. Pupils loved the event and came home buzzing with their achievements and the new friends they made.”
Wymondham High School

“Thank you for running it again Ian, the students had a fantastic day! Really great to see all the creativity and coding skills displayed by all the fab students.”
Thorpe St Andrew School

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