Did You Code During Coding Week?

As of Wednesday morning, December 11, 2013, almost seven million students, teachers, and administrators had taken part in Computer Science Week’s Hour of Code. If you were too busy with Christmas activities during the week, you can still go to the site and check out the 215,563,747 (and growing by the second) lines of code written by students. Some many unique coding opportunities went on during the week—teaching a robot to play a xylophone, coding BeeBots in Kindergarten, programming with graph paper, developing games, writing songs, creating apps, and practicing with LightBot, Scratch, Python and other programing languages. The hope is that after an introduction to programing/coding, more students will take an interest in continuing on in their field.

Computer Science Resources Recommended by eSchool News

During Computer Science Week or Hour of the Code Week, whichever you want to call it, loads of great ideas were published to help teachers bring computer science understanding into their classrooms. A good example is an article, by Laura Devaney of eSchool News, who compiled a list of ten resources and facts to help with programming. They include Daisy the Dinosaur (free app), Cargo-Bot (puzzle game), MIT Inventor (build apps), Hackety Hack (learn computer science), Codecademy (learn to code site), Computing in the Core (facts), Computer Science Unplugged (learn computer science without a computer), w3schools (examples, quizzes, tutorials, etc), recruiting girls to computing classes (suggestions), and Dot Diva (suggestions for girls). Devaney offers links to the ten resources in her article.

Year of Making & Coding

The BBC has announced that 2015 will be the “Year of Making and Coding”. The idea is to inspire lifelong learning and to encourage the people of the UK to get creative with coding. According to the BBC, there is worry among the leaders of the country and the nation’s tech experts that computer skills that are needed for the future aren’t being covered in the schools. In a blog post, the BBC announced, “From working with children and young people to stimulating a national conversation about digital creativity, the BBC will help audiences embrace technology and get creative.” Watch for more on coding from the BBC as 2014 exits and 2015 begins.

Coding, Apps, and 3-D Models for Kids

Richard Bryne, in The Digital Shift from the Library Journal, discusses helping students “make things” in his article, “Teach Kids How to Code, Make Apps and 3-D Models With These Tools”.  Some of the learning sources he recommends are: Daisy the Dinosaur, which teaches programming basics; Code Monster with lots of coding lessons complete with instant feedback; Blockly, which uses visuals to teach about if-then logic; MIT App Inventor for creating smart phone apps; 123D Design for designing 3-D models; 123 Catch to turn pictures into three dimensional models; and 3DTin that lets students build 3-D models from scratch or with the help of templates.

Letting Go of Control

Control. That was the way of schools and classrooms not long ago. We wanted to have our hand in everything—to know everything and to guide everything. However, the more we use technologies in our schools and classrooms, the less control we seem to have. It is simply impossible to keep up with everything students are doing on their computers and digital devices. Use of technologies has helped students to take responsibility for their learning. School culture is evolving as it recognizes students as important partners in education.  Principal Eric Sheninger, TL Advisory Blog, tells us, “Giving up control and empowering my students to take ownership of their educational experience has been one of the best decisions I have ever made.”

Super Scratch Programming Adventure

Using Super Scratch Programming Adventure, students learn computer programming while creating their own games. The Adventure is available from Super Starch Press in print (under $30) and eBook (under $20) format. Students learn about variables, flow control, subroutines, and more by programming arcade-style video games. With interest in programming increasing, the Adventure is a great way to get students started with a programming experience that they will master and enjoy.

The Hour of Coding Is Coming

Computer Science Education Week is coming up December 9^th to 15^th and during that week CODE.org challenges us to get every student (and teacher) in every school in programming mode for at least an hour. Easy to follow, self-guided tutorials will be offered free of charge. Don’t worry if there aren’t enough computers to go around since CODE will make available “unplugged” tutorials, as well. No experience is needed. On the CODE site, where you can sign up, you’ll also find a “how-to” video, a teacher research kit, and information on “Why Computer Science”. Other events are planned for the week including a birthday celebration for Admiral Grace Murray Hopper, a computing pioneer.

Why Robotics?

In Minnesota, students can join varsity robotics teams, and these teams have become the second (the first is basketball) most popular “sport”.  Minnesota hosts a State Robotics Competition, and schools give varsity letters for playing on robotics teams. Because the cost of robotics kits and keeping teams going comes to about $10,000 a year, teams are often dependent upon corporate sponsors and community donations. School leaders and team advisors praise how much this program has done for team members. One commented, “100% of the kids go professional” with many entering STEM careers. The program generates enthusiasm in schools, thus enhancing the importance of studies in robotics, mathematics, science, and engineering. With the success of high school teams, non-varsity teams are emerging in middle and elementary schools all over Minnesota.

Have You Tried Coursera?

To keep up-to-date with teaching and learning, take a look at the courses offered through Coursera. They’re free, and they’re taught by some of the best professors in the world. You learn at your own pace while watching videos, engaging in interactive practice, self-testing, using feedback, and monitoring your own progress. Some of the courses offered this winter and spring include: E-Learning and Digital Cultures (University of Edinburgh); Fundamentals of Online Education: Planning and Application (Georgia Institute of Technology), General Game Playing (Stanford University), The Ancient Greeks (Wesleyan University), A New History of China (Hong Kong University of Science and Technology), and A Beginner’s Guide to Irrational Behavior (Duke University).

Website Madness

It used to be that a teacher, administrator, or tech person created the school website. Few schools continue that tradition today, because school websites have simply become too large and too complicated. Although, I know of schools with dynamic Websites created by students under the direction of talented and dedicated Webmasters who work in the summers and after school, most often sites are created by district Webmasters or outside companies. Even when the sites are created by others, those in local schools have to take on part of the Web duties themselves. Someone has to keep up the calendars, provide parents with forms, post photos, oversee programs such as Moodle, etc. As parent expectations for school Websites grow, who is going to keep up with supplying and editing the information that must go online?