Sometimes a student needs to practice coding with blocks. This Notebook software lesson on the smart board helped this student prepare for the real thing on code.org.
Practicing Block Coding
17 Nov 2021 Leave a comment
in 36K, code Tags: code.org, smart board; notebook software;
And Away We Go(de)
17 Nov 2021 Leave a comment
in 36K, code, computer lab Tags: code.org, victory
And away they code! It should come as no surprise that when student will complete a level, he may pump his fist in victory!
Soap Box Derby
17 Nov 2021 Leave a comment
in 36K, engineering Tags: soap box derby
We took a break from coding and did engineering instead. The students assembled miniature soap box derby race cars. They used paperclips for screwdrivers on the chassis, and magic markers and tissues for body paint. The students jumped to it from the starting gun, and problem-solved their way to the checkered flag!
BEST CLASSES EVER!
Quelle Surprise
16 Nov 2021 Leave a comment
in Microsoft Tags: glitch, Outlook
It always does with Microsoft, doesn’t it?
Pencilcode.net Student Work
12 Nov 2021 Leave a comment
in 36K, code Tags: pencilcode.net
Students explored pencilcode.net, and came up with some beautiful art.
Stockholm Syndrome
12 Nov 2021 Leave a comment
in 36K, computer lab Tags: 36K
“Every Descent Leads to a Greater Ascent.”
Wise words, no?
After being forced by the DOE spending two weeks at 36K, teaching approximately 20 classes computer programming, I developed positive feelings towards the situation. Where would the computer programming lead to? Which program works best with which classes? Is code.org better than scratch? What about pencilcode, or the Foos? What about doing 3D design with tinkercad, and also photoshop? There was so much potential, and I needed to know what does a whole year of teaching coding actually look like.
It is not enough to just talk the talk – one must also “walk the walk.” So, I have been going back to 36K to teach four classes (3 standard, 1 alternate) once a week, working with the teacher who took over the computer lab after the DOE Covid deployment ended. It is the best of both worlds: I can teach four classes coding/design (modeling all the while, what a n effective lesson looks like), then debrief with the other teacher who is in the lab with me, and lastly, plan her programming lessons for the classes she will teach the four days of the week.
So far I have been introducing the students to robotics and code.org, and creating a 3d printing curriculum with the older students using tinkercad.
Stay tuned….
And It’s ‘Highbridge.mov’ by a Nose
12 Nov 2021 Leave a comment
in Macintosh Tags: Empty Trash
Recently tried to empty too many files at once. It was very exciting to see which “horse” would win.
Teaching in the 36K Computer Lab, part 6
19 Oct 2021 Leave a comment
in 36K, code, computer lab, Covid 19, deployment Tags: blocks, code.org, commands
Part 6, Block Coding
My goal for the time I was in 36K was to teach students computer programming, aka coding. I began by discussing robots and commands. Now it was time to transition from spoken commands to a live person/pretend robot (move forward, turn right) to block commands (rectangular blocks with arrows pointing in the direction the robot is supposed to go).
Here is an example of a command block for making an on-screen character move one step to the right (or East). It is from the code.org website.
In the code.org environment, command blocks are stacked in a column, like puzzle pieces, to create a sequence of commands (i.e., an algorithm). Below is an example of five East blocks attached to a “when run” block. This means that when another block, called a “Run” block, is pressed, then these commands beneath the “when run” block will activate.
I told the students that pressing the “Run” block is like when you press a light switch: the electricity begins to flow through the wires and the light bulbs and light is created. So in the same way, you press the “Run” switch here, and something else happens there (in the “when run” section).
[BTW: Code.org is a great resource to learn programming: it lets teachers set up classes, assign exciting challenging courses, and track student progress. More on this later]
Here is an example of an on-screen robot being commanded by an algorithm. There is a “repeat” block in use. Do you think the code is beautiful? (The code.org doesn’t think so)
What would you do to beautify the code? Here is a screen shot. Do you see that the robot has already moved one space to the right in the screen shot?
To be continued
Teaching in the 36K Computer Lab, part 5
19 Oct 2021 1 Comment
in 36K, code, computer lab, Covid 19, deployment Tags: algorithm, beautiful code, commands, sequence
Part 5, Beautiful Code
In the previous post, I had the students command the Bender Robot to walk to the light switch using only “turn left,” “turn right” and “move forward” commands.
I explained:
that “command” is both a verb and a noun: you command a robot to do something with commands.)
I explained:
that the list of commands it took to get me to the light switch (i.e., turn right, move forward two steps, turn left, move forward six steps, etc.) was called a “sequence” of commands, which is also known as an algorithm. (I wrote one or both of these vocabulary words on the smartboard depending on the level of the students).
I explained:
that it is better to stay “move forward ten steps” rather than “move forward one step” ten times.
I explained:
that less is more, that shorter code is more beautify code.
I explained:
“If, when commanding a robot, you can use either five commands to do something, or you can use four commands to do the same thing, it is better — it is more beautiful — to use four commands. And, if you can do the same thing with just three commands, it is more beautiful to do it with three. Fewer commands equals more beautiful coding.”
I explained:
“see my face? That is not the beauty I am talking about. I am talking about the beauty of using the fewest commands to accomplish something.”
This was the introduction to beautiful code, and I brought it up in subsequent lessons.
To be continued
Teaching in the 36K Computer Lab, part 4
19 Oct 2021 2 Comments
in 36K, code, computer lab, Covid 19, deployment, robotics Tags: commands, robotics
Part 4: Commanding Robot Bender
After all the students had come up to the board to write their names, I made a new Notebook page and wrote “Robotics.” I asked the class if anyone knew what this meant. I underlined “robot” in red and asked again. Students called out answers, and we agreed that it was the study of robots, or making robots move, or something like that. Some students started doing the “robot dance” in their seats or out of their seats.
I told them that “I am a robot.” Yes, Mr. Bender is a robot. And I only understand three things: turn left [I turned left]; turn right [I turned right]; and move forward [I shuffled forward]. I explained that I had to turn off the light switch by the door, and they — the student programmer-coders — had to command me to get to the light switch.
I didn’t know the students’ names yet so I had to use my book to call the students in turn to give me commands. There were obstacles in the room — chairs, desks, legs — but through trial and error each one give me a command.
- some students stood up to count the floor tiles to tell me how many steps to take;
- some students had to get out of their seats to see what to command me;
- some students estimated the number of steps [NB: A para used the term “guesstimate,” which is a bit slangy and should be avoided to avoid confusion]
- some students gave commands that were bad, e.g., “move forward 100 spaces” in the small computer lab. So I moved forward until I hit an obstacle and then kept moving my legs in place. I told the student that it was a bad command and I returned to the prior position. I told the student to fix the command and try again.
- some students gave bad commands to be silly; some did it on purpose
- some students had to work on their estimation skills and counting skills.
After I was commanded to go to the light switch — at which point I turned off the light, so the kids really knew I accomplished the task — I asked if anyone else wanted to be the robot. Hands flew into the air and so we practiced commanding other student robots to move around the room.
To be continued
Occasional Observations of Traveling Technology Coach 