IMACS Afterschool Programs

University Computer Science

The IMACS computer science classes have attracted attention from American academia and around the world for their extraordinary effectiveness in teaching computer science to such young students. IMACS introductory classes start by teaching students the programming language, called "Scheme", used at the freshman level at such prestigious establishments as MIT, Yale, Princeton, Johns Hopkins and UC Berkeley. Advanced classes cover material considered difficult by many graduate schools, and yet IMACS students are able to master this material with confidence. As a result of the remarkable success of the IMACS computer science curriculum, IMACS has been privileged to have hosted visits from some of the top academic computer scientists and computer science educators in the United States.

As with other IMACS curricula, the secret to the success of the computer science curriculum is an emphasis on understanding and on logic and logical reasoning. Consequently, IMACS students as young as 6th grade cover concepts in the introductory classes that are usually not dealt with until Advanced Placement courses in high school, and progress to a significant project involving artificial intelligence. In the advanced classes, IMACS students study topics that are usually regarded as being at the upper-undergraduate and graduate school level, such as object-oriented design in C++, parsing, compiler design and virtual machines.

Course Offerings*

Course	Grade Level	Course Number
Introduction to Computer Science An introduction to computer science at the college level. Students learn to program using Scheme, the programming language of choice from the freshman year at the finest universities, including MIT, Yale, Princeton, Johns Hopkins and UC Berkeley. Students use Scheme as a vehicle for exploring topics in modern academic computer science. Based on the college-level book, The Schemer's Guide by Ferguson, Martin and Kaufman, Schemers Inc. Meets two hours per week.	6-12	CS1-4
Advanced Placement Computer Science A sequence of courses for students who have completed the CS1-4 sequence and are planning to sit for the College Board AP Computer Science exam. Having established a foundation in computer science in CS1-4, IMACS students in this course explore the syntax of C++ as well as its implementation of memory allocation and object-oriented programming. The traditional AP curriculum usually takes two years to complete, however IMACS students who have completed The Schemer's Guide are typically able to complete this course in six months or less. Meets two hours per week. Note: The IMACS Introduction to Computer Science course CS1-4 is a prerequisite.	6-12	CS5-6
Computer Graphics A sequence of courses at the college level that introduce geometric extensions for the Scheme programming language to teach three-dimensional modeling concepts such as 3D coordinate systems, 3D-to-2D projections, vector geometry, wire and solid bodies, rendering, and much more. The class meets two hours per week. Note: The IMACS Introduction to Computer Science course CS1-4 is a prerequisite.	8-12	CS7-8
Advanced Computer Science A sequence of advanced courses at the upper undergraduate and graduate school levels for IMACS students who have completed the CS1-4 sequence. These courses familiarize students with the principal themes of current academic computer science, most notably abstract data types, object-oriented design in Scheme and C++, interpreter design, parsing, compiler design, and virtual machines. Meets two hours per week. Note: The IMACS Introduction to Computer Science course CS1-4 is a prerequisite.	6-12	CS9-12

*Note: Certain courses may not be available at all IMACS locations.