Every session begins with an energiser. Usually there’s a rota showing who will lead the energiser. We have some favourite games you can play if you are stuck.

Traffic Jam: re-order the cars to unblock yourself
Telephone: draw the words and write the pictures
Popcorn show and tell: popcorn around the room and show one nearby object or something in your pocket or bag and explain what it means to you.

Learning Objectives

Introduce and welcome new volunteers
Nominate a timekeeper
Check the morning day plan and group structures

Planning during the week

🧭 During the week, create a post on Slack and get some people to take on the roles of facilitator and timekeeper. Nominate new people each time.

👣 Steps

If you haven’t done so already, choose someone (volunteer or trainee) to be the facilitator for this morning orientation block. Choose another to be the timekeeper.

🎙️ The Facilitator will:

Assemble the entire group (all volunteers & all trainees) in a circle
Briefly welcome everyone with an announcement, like this:
💬 “Morning everyone, Welcome to CYF {REGION}, this week we are working on {MODULE} {SPRINT} and we’re currently working on {SUMMARISE THE TOPICS OF THE WEEK}”
Ask any newcomers to introduce themselves to the group, and welcome them.
Now check: is it the start of a new module? Is it sprint 1? If so, read out the success criteria for the new module.
Next go through the morning day plan only (typically on the curriculum website) - and check the following things:

Facilitator Checklist

Check the number of volunteers you have for the morning
Check someone is leading each session
Describe how any new activities works for the group
Decide how best to allocate trainees and volunteers for a given block - most blocks will make this clear

⏰ The Timekeeper will:

Announce the start of an activity and how long it will take (check everyone is listening)
Manage any whole class timers that are used in an activity
Give people a 10-minute wrap-up warning before the end of an activity
Announce the end of an activity and what happens next

Learning Objectives

Identify features for a product
Write user stories for a product
Explain the importance of reading and understanding the acceptance criteria

Preparation

Post-its and a collaborative board.

Introduction

When mapping a product, we go from the high to the lowest level to plan our delivery. The reason for that is so that the team and stakeholders all have the same knowledge of the strategy of the product and the main end goal.

However, we cannot deliver everything at once. And we also cannot plan every detail. We can prioritise the must-haves and then focus on them.

Product > Features > User Stories > Tasks

This mapping process is also sometimes called User Journey mapping or Story Mapping. And you can - and should - do it whenever you are starting a new project.

What questions should we ask to identify what needs to be built?

🎯 Goal: To understand the requirements of building a library website. (5 minutes)

Let’s assume we have been asked to build a library website that allows you to borrow books.

Discuss briefly as a class what questions we should ask to understand better what we will build.
Write these questions on post-its and share them on the collaborative board.

Make sure to encourage different people to share their ideas

Focus is on the questions, not the answers!

What features should this website have?

🎯 Goal: To understand the process of breaking down a product into features. (10 minutes)

Let’s assume we got answers to all our questions about the product. (We are not going to actually answer them)

Overall, the goal is to build a website with a catalogue of books that can be borrowed online.

In small groups, identify the main features you would expect to see on this website. In this example, features could be a shopping cart, book search, etc.
One person of each group to share the group’s thoughts with the class.

Breaking features down into user stories

🎯 Goal: To understand the process of breaking down features into user stories. (15 minutes)

Now that we have all the features, we need to break them down into user stories.

In small groups, pick one of the features and break it down into at least 2 user stories. For example, for the shopping cart feature the user stories could be:

As a library user, I want to be able to remove items I have included in my shopping cart so that when I checkout the remaining books are the ones I want to borrow.
As a library user, I want to be able to pay with credit card for the books in my shopping cart so they can be delivered to me

Different group representatives volunteer to share thoughts with the class.

Tasks needed to deliver this user story

🎯 Goal: To understand the process of breaking down user stories into tasks and distributing those tasks among team members. (15 minutes)

Now that we have user stories, it is time to break them down into tasks. Tasks are used to break down user stories into smaller components that can then be assigned to individual team members.

Chose a user story and in the same groups complete the following:

Identify the tasks that need to be completed in order to deliver value to the user, providing the outcome described in the user story.
Identify relationships and dependencies between tasks.
- How does a change in Task A affect other tasks?
- Does Task A need to be completed before we can work on Task B?
Size those tasks taking into account complexity and dependencies.
Answer these questions: when is it the right time to assign tasks to team members, what would be the criteria you would follow when assigning tasks?

Examples of tasks for a user story describing the book search functionality could be Search Box, Text Autocomplete, Database creation and setup. Discuss in small groups.

Again, a different group representative volunteer to share thoughts with the class.

Every Saturday we cook and eat together. We share our food and our stories. We learn about each other and the world. We build community.

This is everyone’s responsibility, so help with what is needed to make this happen, for example, organising the food, setting up the table, washing up, tidying up, etc. You can do something different every week. You don’t need to be constantly responsible for the same task.

Learning Objectives

Resolve blockers in your coursework
Express and resolve problems effectively by writing tickets and asking questions
Give and receive code review
Develop your personal portfolio
Pair programme
Evaluate your progress with peers and mentors

What are we doing now?

You’re going to use this time to work through coursework. Your cohort will collectively self-organise to work through the coursework together in your own way. Sort yourselves into groups that work for you.

Use this time wisely

You will have study time in almost every class day. Don’t waste it. Use it to:

work through the coursework
ask questions and get unblocked
give and receive code review
work on your portfolio
develop your own projects

🛎️ Code waiting for review 🔗

Below are trainee coursework Pull Requests that need to be reviewed by volunteers.

London | 25-ITP-May | Halimatou Saddiyaa | Sprint 3 | Todo list 🔗

Learners, PR Template

Self checklist

I have committed my files one by one, on purpose, and for a reason
I have titled my PR with Region | Cohort | FirstName LastName | Sprint | Assignment Title
I have tested my changes
My changes follow the style guide
My changes meet the requirements of this task

Changelist

I’ve implemented the Todo list app with the following requirements:

display the initial list of todos
each todo has a delete and tick icon
can add a new todo to the list
can strike through a todo when it is completed
can undo a strikethrough on a todo
can delete a todo from the list
can remove all completed todos

Please review my PR.

Questions

Ask any questions you have for your reviewer.

Start a review

EMIN AKTURK | BIRMINGHAM | MODULE-DATA-GROUPS - SPRINT 3 🔗

Learners, PR Template

Self checklist

I have committed my files one by one, on purpose, and for a reason
I have titled my PR with Region | Cohort | FirstName LastName | Sprint | Assignment Title
I have tested my changes
My changes follow the style guide
My changes meet the requirements of this task

Changelist

I am aware of the indented coursework where you could see sprint 1 and sprint 2 fixes as well as sprint 3, I’m aware of the situation I will be fixing it with my next module PR.

Questions

Ask any questions you have for your reviewer.

Start a review

EMIN AKTURK | BIRMINGHAM | MODULE-DATA-GROUPS - SPRINT 2 🔗

Learners, PR Template

Self checklist

I have committed my files one by one, on purpose, and for a reason
I have titled my PR with Region | Cohort | FirstName LastName | Sprint | Assignment Title
I have tested my changes
My changes follow the style guide
My changes meet the requirements of this task

Changelist

Briefly explain your PR.

Questions

I am aware of the indented coursework where you could see sprint 1 fixes as well, I’m aware of the situation I will be fixing it with my next module PR.

Start a review

ZA | 25-ITP-May | Malusi Skunyana | Sprint 3 | To-do List 🔗

Learners, PR Template

Self checklist

I have committed my files one by one, on purpose, and for a reason
I have titled my PR with Region | Cohort | FirstName LastName | Sprint | Assignment Title
I have tested my changes
My changes follow the style guide
My changes meet the requirements of this task

Changelist

This pull request implements a fully functional Todo-List web app with support for adding, completing, and deleting todos. Initial todos are dynamically rendered, and each todo includes icons for toggling completion and deleting. Users can add new todos via a text input, optionally set a deadline using a date picker, and remove all completed todos with a dedicated button. Todos with deadlines display a countdown, with visual cues: red for overdue, orange for due today, and gray for future dates. The app includes clean, responsive styling, and all provided Jest tests for mandatory and advanced functionality pass successfully.

Questions

Ask any questions you have for your reviewer.

Start a review

ZA | 25-ITP-May | Malusi Skunyana | Sprint 3 | Slideshow 🔗

Learners, PR Template

Self checklist

I have committed my files one by one, on purpose, and for a reason
I have titled my PR with Region | Cohort | FirstName LastName | Sprint | Assignment Title
I have tested my changes
My changes follow the style guide
My changes meet the requirements of this task

Changelist

Summary This PR implements the Image Carousel project with full Level 1 and Level 2 functionality as per the requirements. The carousel now supports both manual and automatic image navigation, with a clean and responsive layout.

Changes Made

HTML (index.html):

Updated title to “Image carousel”.
Added auto-forward, auto-backward, and stop buttons for automatic navigation.
Grouped buttons into two neatly spaced rows for manual and auto controls.
Linked new style.css file for styling.

JavaScript (slideshow.js):

Implemented manual navigation (forward-btn, backward-btn) with wrap-around behavior.
Added automatic navigation (auto-forward and auto-backward) using setInterval.
Disabled auto buttons while slideshow is running and re-enabled on stop.
Stop button clears the interval without changing the current image.

CSS (style.css):

Centered carousel image with rounded corners and drop shadow.
Created evenly spaced, centered button rows with flex layout.
Added consistent button styling with hover effects and disabled states.
Ensured layout is presentation-ready and works across different screen sizes.

Testing

Passes all Level 1 & Level 2 tests from slideshow.test.js.
Verified wrap-around logic for both forward and backward navigation.
Confirmed timer interval is 2000ms and behaves correctly on stop.

Questions

Ask any questions you have for your reviewer.

Start a review

See more pull requests

Please feel comfortable and welcome to pray at this time if this is part of your religion.

If you are breastfeeding and would like a private space, please let us know.

Learning Objectives

Resolve blockers in your coursework
Express and resolve problems effectively by writing tickets and asking questions
Give and receive code review
Develop your personal portfolio
Pair programme
Evaluate your progress with peers and mentors

What are we doing now?

You’re going to use this time to work through coursework. Your cohort will collectively self-organise to work through the coursework together in your own way. Sort yourselves into groups that work for you.

Use this time wisely

You will have study time in almost every class day. Don’t waste it. Use it to:

work through the coursework
ask questions and get unblocked
give and receive code review
work on your portfolio
develop your own projects

🕹️Retro (20 minutes)

A retro is a chance to reflect. You can do this on RetroTool (create a free anonymous retro and share the link with the class) or on sticky notes on a wall.

Set a timer for 5 minutes. There’s one on the RetroTool too.
Write down as many things as you can think of that you’d like to start, stop, and continue doing next sprint.
Write one point per note and keep it short.
When the timer goes off, one person should set a timer for 1 minute and group the notes into themes.
Next, set a timer for 2 minutes and all vote on the most important themes by adding a dot or a +1 to the note.
Finally, set a timer for 8 minutes and all discuss the top three themes.