--- title: "Coding and AI Classes in South Dakota | Live Online" description: "Live online coding and AI classes for South Dakota students: the 2025 K-8 CS standards, CS in place of a science elective, and a Sioux Falls data project." canonical: https://learn.modernagecoders.com/coding-and-ai-classes-in-south-dakota source: src/pages/coding-and-ai-classes-in-south-dakota.html --- > Live online coding and AI classes for South Dakota students: the 2025 K-8 CS standards, CS in place of a science elective, and a Sioux Falls data project. Skip to contentCourse picks for South Dakota ## Courses that line up with the new SD standards Matched to the K-2, 3-5 and 6-8 bands and to the high school substitution rule. The free first lesson confirms the level. [![Problem Solving and Computational Thinking for Kids course thumbnail](/images/problem-solving-kids.webp)Grades K to 3Problem Solving and Computational Thinking for KidsPatterns, sequences and decomposition, much of it unplugged at first, the way the early grade bands begin.See the syllabus](/courses/problem-solving-and-computational-thinking-for-kids)[![AI Literacy for Kids (Ages 8 to 14) course thumbnail](/images/ai-literacy-for-kids.webp)Grades 3 to 6AI Literacy for Kids (Ages 8 to 14)What AI is, how it learns from examples and where it goes wrong, matching the standards’ explicit focus on AI.See the syllabus](/courses/ai-literacy-for-kids-course)[![Game Development for Kids course thumbnail](/images/game-dev-kids.webp)Grades 5 to 8Game Development for KidsGames designed, coded and debugged by the student, the algorithms and programming work of the 6-8 band.See the syllabus](/courses/game-development-masterclass-for-kids)[![AP Computer Science Principles course thumbnail](/images/ap-computer-science-principles.webp)Grades 10 to 12AP Computer Science PrinciplesSupport for AP Computer Science Principles, one of the courses South Dakota lists as able to replace a science elective.See the syllabus](/courses/ap-computer-science-principles-exam-prep-course) Browse the [course atlas](/course-atlas) for more than one hundred options and use the [coding roadmap](/coding-roadmap) to check prerequisites. The four we are known for ### Python, AI, vibe coding and agentic coding These run underneath everything above. Every one is live and online, placed by ability rather than by age, and the first class is free. [![Vibe Coding for Teens course thumbnail](/images/vibe-coding-teens.webp)Vibe codingAges 13 to 17Vibe Coding for TeensPython, web and AI projects where the learner still owns the thinking.See the syllabus](/courses/vibe-coding-for-teens-python-web-ai-projects-course)[![Python Automation Course course thumbnail](/images/python-college.webp)Python and AICollege and adultPython Automation CourseAutomate the work you already do, then let AI carry part of it.See the syllabus](/courses/python-ai-automation-masterclass-college)[![AI and Machine Learning for Teens course thumbnail](/images/ai-ml-teens.webp)AI and MLAges 14 to 18AI and Machine Learning for TeensTrain a model, read what it learned, and be able to say why it is wrong.See the syllabus](/courses/ai-ml-masterclass-teens)[![Codex & Claude Code course thumbnail](/images/codex-claude-code-adults.webp)Agentic codingProfessionalsCodex & Claude CodeRun AI coding agents on real work without losing control of the codebase.See the syllabus](/courses/codex-and-claude-code-ai-coding-agents-masterclass-for-adults-professionals)New in 2025 ## South Dakota’s first K-8 computer science standards From the standards document published by the South Dakota Department of Education (SD DOE), adopted April 14, 2025, read on 18 October 2026. | Feature | What the document says | | --- | --- | | Adoption | The document is dated Adopted April 14, 2025 | | Who wrote them | A Computer Science Standards Committee the department created in the spring of 2024 | | Grades covered | Kindergarten to grade 8, in bands K-2, 3-5 and 6-8 | | What they drew on | The 2017 CSTA K-12 standards and the 2016 K-12 Computer Science Framework; 11 state standards were referenced, with most adaptations from Montana, Idaho and North Dakota | | Artificial intelligence | One goal is to explicitly indicate where AI is referenced or where skills build toward an understanding of it | | Relationship to technology standards | Overlap slightly with the Educational Technology Standards adopted in 2021, which focus more on using computers appropriately and safely | ### Not a curriculum SD DOE says content standards do not mandate a specific curriculum and are reviewed every five to seven years. Districts decide how to teach them. ### Concepts and practices Following CSTA, each standard pairs a concept, such as algorithms and programming or data and analysis, with a practice, such as computational thinking. ### From unplugged to code The document describes kindergarten work as simple sequencing, often without a device, rising by eighth grade to designing algorithms and beginning to write code. High school ## Swapping a science elective for advanced computer science South Dakota’s graduation requirements were passed by the Board of Education Standards on July 16, 2018, under South Dakota Administrative Rule 24:43:11. They include one specific route for computer science. | Course code | Course title | | --- | --- | | 10101 | Networking Technologies | | 10152 | Computer Programming I and II | | 10015 | PLTW Computer Science Principles | | 10157 | PLTW Computer Science A or AP Computer Science A | | 10016 | PLTW Cybersecurity | | 10019 | AP Computer Science Principles | ### What it replaces One unit of a science elective, for the base High School Diploma and the Advanced Career Endorsement. ### What it cannot replace Biology. The substitution also does not count for the Advanced or Advanced Honors Endorsements. ### Robotics Robotics is reviewed case by case, on an application from the school, to decide whether it qualifies. ### Where outside classes fit Only the school’s own approved course earns the substitution. A student who has already built projects in Python or studied for AP outside school simply walks into that course better prepared. Signature project ## Binning five years of Sioux Falls recreation programs The City of Sioux Falls publishes its Parks and Recreation activity points under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Each record is a program, from toddler sports to the municipal band, with a season, a year and a number in a field called Frequency. | Frequency value | Records (our count) | | --- | --- | | 0 | 3 | | 1 | 1,380 | | 2 to 4 | 286 | | 5 to 9 | 81 | | 10 to 19 | 32 | | 20 or more | 19 | ### 1. Choose the bins Students pick bin edges, count records in each, and draw a histogram. Then they try other edges and see how the picture changes, which is the whole art of binning. ### 2. Mean against median The median Frequency is 1 but the mean is 2.11, because a walking program reaches 65. One long tail drags the average, a lesson that applies to every skewed dataset a student will meet. ### 3. Clean the labels Seven records say Weeday Morning, and 126 have a blank category. Students fix the typo, decide what to do with blanks, and record each choice. | Year | Records | | --- | --- | | 2018 | 352 | | 2019 | 357 | | 2020 | 221 | | 2021 | 412 | | 2022 | 459 | ### Our counts, and what we do not know All figures here are our own, from one download. The city does not define the Frequency field in the published layer, so students describe it only as a count and list what they would need to know before calling it anything more. The year totals show more records in some years than others; the data does not say why, and neither do we. Published figures ## How many South Dakota high schools offer CS Code.org and College Board values for South Dakota, quoted as published. Where the source has no value, nothing is printed. | Year | South Dakota | | --- | --- | | 2018 to 2019 | No value | | 2019 to 2020 | 38% | | 2020 to 2021 | 39% | | 2021 to 2022 | 42% | | 2022 to 2023 | 51.4% | | 2023 to 2024 | 55% in the trend tab; 97 of 178 high schools in the latest count | | 2024 to 2025 | No value | ### Enrollment The Code.org sheet publishes no South Dakota figure for how many high school students take computer science, in any year. We do not estimate one. ### AP schools The College Board counts South Dakota schools with any AP exam at 51 in 2023 and 67 in 2024: public schools 43 then 57, non-public 8 then 10. ### The trend Access rose in every year with data, from 38% to roughly 55%, so a little over half of high schools offered CS in 2023 to 2024. Source line for the access figures: Code.org (2025). 2025 State of AI + CS Education. The AP counts cover every AP subject, not computer science alone. Both sets of figures predate the first school year taught under the 2025 K-8 standards. Two time zones ## Central or Mountain: which clock your class uses The IANA time zone database lists eastern South Dakota under US central time (America/Chicago) and western South Dakota under US mountain time (America/Denver). | Period | Central (east) | Mountain (west) | | --- | --- | --- | | To November 1, 2026 | 10 hours 30 minutes | 11 hours 30 minutes | | November 1, 2026 to March 14, 2027 | 11 hours 30 minutes | 12 hours 30 minutes | | From March 14, 2027 | 10 hours 30 minutes | 11 hours 30 minutes | When you book, tell us whether your town keeps Central or Mountain time and we confirm every lesson in that zone. A batch that suits an after-school slot on Central time starts an hour earlier on the Mountain clock, so a family in the west may prefer a different batch. Step by step ## Following the K-2, 3-5 and 6-8 bands, then high school Bands are a guide only; placement after the free lesson sets the level. Grades K to 2 ### Sequence and pattern Unplugged puzzles, then blocks: instructions in order and simple loops. [Problem Solving and Computational Thinking for Kids](/courses/problem-solving-and-computational-thinking-for-kids)[Coding for Kids](/courses/kids-coding-blocks-masterclass)Grades 3 to 5 ### Build and meet AI Block games, first ideas about how AI learns, and debugging habits. [Scratch Coding for Kids](/courses/scratch-programming-complete-course)[AI Literacy for Kids (Ages 8 to 14)](/courses/ai-literacy-for-kids-course)Grades 6 to 8 ### Real code Typed Python and game projects, the step from blocks to text the 6-8 band describes. [Python and AI for Kids](/courses/python-ai-kids-masterclass)[Game Development for Kids](/courses/game-development-masterclass-for-kids)Grades 9 to 12 ### Advanced CS Python in depth and AP Computer Science Principles, ready for the science-elective route. [Python for Teens](/courses/python-complete-masterclass-teens)[AP Computer Science Principles](/courses/ap-computer-science-principles-exam-prep-course)Coding and AI ## South Dakota wrote AI into its CS standards. Here is why that needs coding. The standards say AI leverages core computer science ideas such as algorithms and data structures. Understanding those ideas is what lets a student judge an AI answer. Ask an AI tool for the typical number of sessions in a Sioux Falls recreation program and it may answer with the mean, 2.11, which describes almost no actual program. The median is 1. A student who binned the data knows which number to trust and can explain why. That is the habit we build: compute it yourself first, then use AI to speed up work you understand and can check. Students under 18 use only AI tools whose terms allow their age, and school work is always their own. Standards that name AI from kindergarten up are a signal that judgment, not just tool use, is the skill that lasts. The longer argument is in [why coding is still worth it](/blog/is-coding-worth-learning-2026). Online, live ## One class for prairie towns and Black Hills towns alike South Dakota’s distances make a weekly drive to a coding class hard for many families. A live online class needs only a connection. ### Live with a teacher Students code while a teacher watches, asks and corrects in the moment, rather than following a recording alone. ### Fits SD school life We work in US grade levels and the school calendar, and can align projects with the new K-8 bands. Anything graded at school stays the student’s own work. ### Scheduling Weekdays or weekends, flexible: choose your batch, or for a very personalised plan choose 1-on-1 at your convenience, weekend mornings or weekdays. ### Level groups Batches of fifteen to twenty learners placed by skill, including students from both South Dakota time zones and other states. ### Private option One teacher, one student, for faster progress, AP preparation or a self-chosen project. ### Free placement A full first lesson at no charge, ending with a recommended course and time. We do not ask for payment details. No South Dakota building Modern Age Coders has no center anywhere in South Dakota and claims none. Teaching is live online from India; a laptop or desktop, sound and a steady connection are enough. Fees ## Fees for South Dakota families The same three figures, east river or west river. First class**USD 0** An entire first lesson free, ending with a suggested level, course and time slot. Group tuition**USD 100** One month of live lessons in a batch of fifteen to twenty students placed by level. Private tuition**USD 150** One month on the same pattern with a teacher working with one student. South Dakota families pay a single rate in US dollars. We start billing only after the free lesson, once you have agreed the course and time, and the pricing page explains how holidays and missed lessons work. Request placement[Check availability](https://wa.me/919123366161?text=Hello%20Modern%20Age%20Coders%2C%20I%20would%20like%20a%20free%20coding%20or%20AI%20class%20for%20a%20student%20in%20South%20Dakota.)Reviews ## Reviews on Google from families and learners Rated 4.9 across 547 Google reviews. These are real reviews, reproduced as written. ★★★★★ "The one step solution for my son. Modern Age Coders make learning coding so simple that kids love it. The teachers explain complex concepts clearly with practical exercises and interactive content." Ria Mukherjee Parent ★★★★★ "Modern Age Coders has been a game-changer for me. I struggled to grasp IT concepts and coding before joining, but their classes transformed everything. I can now confidently write complex programs with ease." Samriddha Mondal Student ★★★★★ "One of the most wonderful education centres out there. Education is not limited to school syllabus but focuses on skill development." Vansh Agarwal Student ★★★★★ "My child Dhairya is really enjoying the Modern Age Coders classes. This is his first online class and he eagerly looks forward to it. I can already see his improvement, and the teachers are very cooperative." Sonam Oswal Parent of Dhairya ★★★★★ "Modern Age Coders have wonderful teachers who teach in a clear, easy and practical way. The teacher boosts students' confidence and inspires them to learn without hesitation." Sonu Goyal Parent ★★★★★ "I highly recommend this computer coding class! The teachers are incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about coding." Ritu Kedia Parent Free placement class ## Book a free lesson in South Dakota Tell us the grade, the goal and your time zone. A first grader might start with pattern puzzles, a seventh grader with a game, and a junior with the Sioux Falls recreation data. ### Want a class sooner? Book a priority demo A priority demo is a full class of about 45 to 60 minutes. After the class the mentor sends a written skill report and a personal learning roadmap on WhatsApp. If you enrol, the demo fee is adjusted against your first month's fee. Share your demo Order ID with us on WhatsApp and we take it off. [Book a priority demo](/book-demo) ### Contact the team directly WhatsApp or call [+91 91233 66161](tel:+919123366161), or email [connect@modernagecoders.com](mailto:connect@modernagecoders.com). This is Modern Age Coders' actual contact, an Indian number, and not an invented South Dakota one. [WhatsApp Modern Age Coders](https://wa.me/919123366161?text=Hello%20Modern%20Age%20Coders%2C%20I%20would%20like%20a%20free%20coding%20or%20AI%20class%20for%20a%20student%20in%20South%20Dakota.) Submitted details are used for placement and follow-up. FAQ ## South Dakota coding and AI questions Answers from SD DOE, Code.org and the College Board. Our own suggestions say so. ### Does South Dakota have computer science standards? Yes. SD DOE published K-8 computer science standards adopted April 14, 2025, in bands for grades K-2, 3-5 and 6-8. ### Can computer science count toward a South Dakota diploma? Yes, in one way. A state-approved advanced computer science course may replace one unit of a science elective for the base diploma and the Advanced Career Endorsement. It may not replace Biology. ### Which courses can replace a science elective? SD DOE lists Networking Technologies, Computer Programming I and II, PLTW Computer Science Principles, PLTW Computer Science A or AP Computer Science A, PLTW Cybersecurity, and AP Computer Science Principles. Robotics is reviewed case by case. ### Does the substitution count for the Advanced Honors Endorsement? No. SD DOE says the advanced CS substitution may not count for the Advanced or Advanced Honors Endorsements. ### Do the SD standards mention AI? Yes. The 2025 standards document says one goal is to explicitly indicate where artificial intelligence is referenced or where skills build toward understanding it. ### How many South Dakota high schools offer computer science? Code.org (2025) reports 97 of 178 South Dakota high schools, about 54.5%, offering foundational CS in 2023 to 2024. ### Which time zone are South Dakota classes in? Whichever your town keeps. IANA places eastern South Dakota on Central time and western South Dakota on Mountain time, and we confirm lessons in your zone. ### When can South Dakota students take classes? Weekdays or weekends, flexible: choose your batch, or for a very personalised plan choose 1-on-1 at your convenience, weekend mornings or weekdays. ### Is there a South Dakota center? No. There is no Modern Age Coders center in South Dakota. Every lesson is live and online, taught from India. ### Do your classes earn the science-elective substitution? No. Only a state-approved school course does. Our classes build the skills and projects that make that course easier, and graded school work stays the student's own. Read on ## Next for South Dakota learners Students on the AP route can see [AP Computer Science Principles coaching](/ap-computer-science-principles-online-coaching). Younger builders can start with [how to make a Roblox game](/how-to-make-a-roblox-game), and parents comparing states can read the [North Carolina page](/coding-and-ai-classes-in-north-carolina), where a CS course is now required. Book the free class[Book a priority demo](/book-demo)[Message us on WhatsApp](https://wa.me/919123366161?text=Hello%20Modern%20Age%20Coders%2C%20I%20would%20like%20a%20free%20coding%20or%20AI%20class%20for%20a%20student%20in%20South%20Dakota.)Free class[Priority demo](/book-demo)[Call us](tel:+919123366161) ## Keep exploring Modern Age Coders ### Coding classes in nearby places - [Coding and AI Classes in South East England](/coding-and-ai-classes-in-south-east-england) - [Coding and AI Classes in South Carolina](/coding-and-ai-classes-in-south-carolina) - [Coding and AI Classes in South West England](/coding-and-ai-classes-in-south-west-england) - [Coding and AI Classes in Scotland](/coding-and-ai-classes-in-scotland) - [Coding and AI Classes in Tasmania](/coding-and-ai-classes-in-tasmania) - [Coding and AI Classes in Rhode Island](/coding-and-ai-classes-in-rhode-island) - [Coding & Maths Classes near Hiland Willows](/coding-classes-in-hiland-willows) - [Coding Classes in Haarlemmermeer, Hoofddorp](/coding-classes-in-haarlemmermeer) - [Coding Classes in Assen](/coding-classes-in-assen) - [Online Coding Classes in Kuwait](/coding-classes-in-kuwait) ### Learn more - [Online Coding and AI Classes in Los Angeles](/online-coding-and-ai-classes-in-los-angeles) - [Best AI & Machine Learning Course in India](/best-ai-and-machine-learning-course-in-india) - [AI and Programming Classes in Wentworthville, Sydney](/ai-and-programming-classes-in-wentworthville-sydney) - [AI Literacy for Elementary Students: A K-5 Guide](/ai-literacy-for-elementary-students) ### Free resources - [AI & Machine Learning Tutorial: Basics to Deep Learning](/resources/ai-and-machine-learning) - [Python for AI](/resources/ai-and-machine-learning/python-for-ai-essentials) - [Transformers and Attention Mechanism](/resources/ai-and-machine-learning/transformers-and-attention) - [Data Preprocessing and Exploratory Data Analysis](/resources/ai-and-machine-learning/data-preprocessing-and-eda) ### From the blog - [AI & Machine Learning Guides](/blog/topic/ai) - [How to Get a 5 in AP Computer Science A (2026)](/blog/how-to-get-a-5-in-ap-computer-science-a) - [Career Transition Guide: Moving from Non-Tech to Tech Roles](/blog/career-transition-guide-moving-non-tech-to-tech-roles) - [How Data Analytics and Math Help Businesses Make Better Decisions](/blog/data-analytics-math-help-businesses-better-decisions) ### Start here - [Modern Age Coders pricing, one honest price per plan](/pricing) - [How Modern Age Coders teaches, small batches and real projects](/how-we-teach) --- *Canonical: https://learn.modernagecoders.com/coding-and-ai-classes-in-south-dakota*