Hello! Things have slowed down drastically in 5th Grade Coding and in 3rd grade we have hit a bit of a wall also. Many of the students have had difficulty in advancing their programming beyond the basic concept they came up with several weeks ago. They have great ideas but are stuck after having built the basic framework of their game. With this in mind we are shifting to a new set of lessons planned for the upcoming weeks.
I will create small programs for the students to "remix" and fix. Each will focus on a new set of skills that they may find helpful in writing their own programs. My thinking is that these lessons may get them past their difficulties. While they may not finish the project they have planned, they will gain the skills needed to finish the project.
If your student is really interested in finishing this project, they can continue working at their own pace, on their own time, and finish when they are able. I can continue to provide assistance to these students through the next semester, as some of these projects are quite good and deserve the chance to be seen through to the end. I feel like these are worthwhile goals and maybe we were just over reaching for the time we had available in the semester.
Click on the picture below to link to the Scratch site for our first remix:
Here is a link to some projects I am sharing to help you begin creating your own Scratch game or animation. The program we worked on together in class is also here for you to look at to remember what we did.
Some of my programs are basic and some are pretty complicated. Check them out and figure out what kinds of features you'd like to include in your project and I'll teach those in class.
Most of the students are finished with the lessons at Code.org and have moved into working on Scratch. Their first assignment is to have the program print all of the letters in GALACTIC on the screen. They worked to write this code out on paper using what they had learned through Code.org. Now they are trying to translate their work into Scratch. They figure out pretty quick that there are MANY similarities between the two and this helps them to maneuver through the free programming aspect of Scratch.
Next the students are choosing a project of their own. Most will create some kind of simple game, however some of our advanced and dedicated coders are setting their sights high! Quinlan is writing a game program that will help others learn about chemistry and the periodic table. I suggested to the students that they think about writing some kind of review or educational game based on a class they took last year at GALACTIC. Space, Spanish, and Seuss could make for a lot of cool projects that the teacher could use with this year's 2nd grade classes. Music and Motion, Africa, Rain Forests, Engineering, and Math - the choices are HUGH!
If you are at all interested in trying your own hand at coding I strongly recommend Code.org and Scratch as some fun ways to learn a little and connect with what your children are doing here at GALACTIC. Here are links to both sites:
Make sure to check out my other posts about both 3rd and 5th grade Coding Class.
This semester in both 3rd and 5th grade I am teaching a class on coding. Everyone starts out working through the tutorials at Code.org and students work at their own pace. The kids really don't need much assistance in this part of the class as the people at Code.org have done an excellent job making the work engaging and understandable, and the lessons build on one another. While I expected the 5th grade students to be way out in front of the younger children I have found this to not be the case. Many of our 3rd graders are keeping pace with the 5th grade class.
Code.org is accessible to everyone - go to the website, sign in, and try your hand at coding right along with the kids. It's a lot of fun and will give you something to talk with your children about.
