Coding Instruction from Home

Coding is the common term for Programming, or writing the programs that run apps, websites, etc.  All of this falls under the general title of Computer Science.  When I was growing up, you took computer science classes if you planned to go into a computer science field, which I didn't.  So it was an uncomfortable thing for me to start learning coding, and then building it into my classes.  I started teaching coding about 6 years ago, and now it is an enormous part of what we do, from kindergarten on up.  The kids will tell you that it's my favorite thing to teach.  Part of the reason for that is because the reactions from them when they figure out how to program something.  It is very empowering and exciting for them!

While we're all virtual learning for the next few (weeks? months?) coding is a great way to keep their little brains growing while they are having fun doing it!  The availability of coding resources online has grown incredibly over the last few years.  Now there are free resources (both online and offline) everywhere!  I wanted to share some of my favorites so that you can hopefully share them with your children as well.

Code.org was considered the first kid-accessible site for learning to code with no prior experience.  Over the past half a decade or so, they've expanded the offerings on their site to include extensive courses as well as shorter overviews, courses for non-readers, engaging games and activities, as well as more advanced text-based coding lessons.  If your child has a Google account, they can track their progress and save their projects along the way.

My favorite platform for beginning and intermediate coding lessons is Scratch .  All of my 3rd and 4th graders learn how to code in Scratch, while my k-2 students start out on the iPads on Scratch Jr. It is user friendly and adaptable to kids of all coding levels.  You do need to have an account in Scratch, so I have my students set them up using their regular school username and password, for continuity.

Typing.com (our keyboarding program) and Khan Academy (a home-learning favorite) have both developed coding curriculum along side their original curriculum.  If your child is looking for something new or different than what we do in school, this is possibly the way to go. 

Good luck and have fun!

Spring Break STEM Challenge

Next week is Spring Vacation, although for most of us, there will be no vacations taking place this year! And the snow falling outside today definitely makes it feel like winter still!  Now that you've had a couple days to get used to learning at home, I have a STEM design challenge for you!

Start with this video about engineers

Remember, engineers design things to solve problems.  So think about one of the problems or challenges you've noticed now that we're all learning from home.  Can you design something to solve that problem? 

Start by brainstorming:

• something to organize your supplies
• something to keep you comfortable while working at a table
• a privacy blocker to separate you and your siblings
• a system to deliver messages to your parents while you're working
• an iPad stand
• be creative! 

If you have the materials to create it at home, go for it!  If not, draw a diagram of your plan and label what materials you would use.  

Don't forget to send me a picture or a video!

STEM in the age of Virtual Learning - Build a Leprechaun Trap

In the last week, everything we've known and become comfortable with about teaching has been upended.  Due to the growing concern about the COVID-19 Virus and the speed at which it's spreading, most teachers and students are working from home for the foreseeable future.  This seems like as good a time as any to revive this blog and share projects and activities with the families.

Today, since it's St. Patrick's Day, your challenge is to build a leprechaun trap!

This is a fun read-aloud to start out with

The story is that if you can catch the leprechaun, you get his gold. You need to use something gold and shiny as bait to lure him in to the trap. But your trap has to be creative and quick!  Think about what materials you can use.  Here are some suggestions:

• shoe box
• tissue box
• straws
• string
• cloth
• cotton balls
• sticks
• bowls
• tin foil

Build your trap to see if you can catch a leprechaun.  Be sure to send me a picture!

Hope you're having fun with your family at home this week!

Girls Who Code

Girls Who Code is an organization that was founded by Reshma Saujani to address the gender gap in computer science, and to provide computer science opportunities to all girls, regardless of their location and their background.  As part of our STEAM and Storytelling grant through the Oconomowoc Public Education Foundation, we had an official Girls Who Code coding club this fall.  In order for the club to be considered an official club, the leader gets certified online, and the club uses the materials and book provided.

The girls in the club are LOVING it!  We meet once a week and read parts of the book, then complete coding challenge activities using Scratch.  They each have a copy of the book, which many have said they have been reading with their moms at home.  What a powerful message this sends them, that there are clubs and books encouraging them to learn to code.  I hope we will be able to have a follow up club next year and grow the number of participants even more.  

  

NEW - - Science in the Makerspace

There were several reasons for the changes to our curriculum and structure this year.  One of those reasons was to increase the focus on engineering in the elementary schools.  Subsequently, we adopted a new science curriculum at the k-5 level.  One of the three units at each grade level is a physical science unit.  Each has a final project that is "makerspacey" in nature - heavy on the design process, very open ended, and applying science concepts to a building task.  We are teaching the physical science unit in the Library/STEM classes this year.  We started the year with those units at 3rd grade and 4th grade - Forces and Interactions, and Energy Works, respectively.  It's been a big change for us and for them, but everyone has enjoyed it so far! 

This week we begin the Push, Pull and Go unit in kindergarten, and the Light and Sound unit in first grade.  This will lead to the kindergarten and first grade students spending considerably more time in the makerspace this year than in previous years.  Over the next few years, it will be very interesting to see how this impacts their work on design projects as they get older.  We've seen a change in our current third and fourth graders, now that we've had the makerspace for 4 years, particularly in the amount of creativity and independent thinking they're showing. 

We continue to be so fortunate to have a community willing to support "out of the box" ideas like tearing out a computer lab and building a makerspace.  Our students are showing the benefits of this every year!

Level Up Village

As part of our 2018-19 OPEF grant to develop a STEM and Storytelling program to help engage our girls, we participated in a Level Up Village course this fall.  I have had my eye on Level Up Village for years - they partner students with groups from around the world to study and collaborate on a global issues.  The culminating project is some sort of STEM or Tech project that both schools work on simultaneously.  Participation has been cost prohibitive in the past, so when we were writing our grant proposal, we knew this was  one thing we really wanted to include. 

We were able to enroll one second grade class, and they participated in the LUV course called "Global Storybook Engineers".  During this six week course, we read folk tales from around the world, and identified the problem the characters faced.  The students then applied the engineering design process to make a creation that would solve the problem.  We were partnered with a class from Singapore and had a great time learning about them. 

We read Streganona and built towers out of spaghetti that would withstand an avalanche:

We read Fox the Trickster and built boats

And we read Jabuti the Tortoise and made "shell protectors" (aka egg drop challenge!)

The kids loved watching videos from our partner class in Singapore and talking about how we're alike and different.  We're so appreciative of OPEF making this possible for us!

Looking Good!

Little by little we are updating the library furnishings and arrangement to make it more of a flexible learning space.  We were given a Donor's Choose grant at the end of last school year in order to purchase some flexible seating.  It's a great start, and the kids are loving it!