This was before computers took over the world. There were just toy computers such as the Apple II and great big computers that cost a fortune. So computing was viewed as an interesting but inessential elective, like art or drama. I'm sure I wouldn't get away with it today! But it was paradise. Every so often we'd just all, whoever was in the computer center at the end of the day, go out for Chinese food. (I'd never get away with that today either.) I'm still friends with a bunch of those kids, who are now in their 40s or 50s with kids of their own. And apart from just being fun and empowering, it meant I could on occasion tell a kid "this code sucks" and the kid didn't hear it as "you're failing." (I would of course only say things like that to kids whose code was generally terrific and who were confident about it.)
PS And I hustled a PDP 11/70 running Unix for the lab, so when Unix and its cousins took over the world, my kids were ready. :~)