What Are You Thankful For?

This week hybrid students created simple Scratch projects as they practiced file management, organization and some starter block coding. Check out some of the work they shared in the video recording below.

New Beginnings :)

Ms. Dee and I are excited to join you this second quarter of 20-21. We have a lot of fun projects planned for you this term. Stay tuned each week to see what is happening in class. You can bookmark this page or launch my link from my weekly email.

I work with three different groups of students each day who after this week will not be on the same page. I teach 2 fully remote classes that I see on alternating days and Ms. Dee joins me during the two 5th and 6th grade hybrid courses.There are a handful of similar activities that we will complete but the primary focus in both classes is digital literacy and computer science. Each quarter kicks off with some getting to know you activities and review of expectations. Each day begins with a "Do Now" to get the kids started.

Grade 5 - Exploration into Coding and Educational Tech - is a course that offers a broad exploration of computer programming and education technology. This course has a considerable range of content; but typically will include the introduction of block coding, file management, video tools, and other computer technologies as they relate to industry applications.

Grade 6 - Coding and robotics is a hands-on course designed to introduce the basic concepts of computer programming, robotics, and the design process. This course has a considerable range of content; but typically will include an introduction to binary code, algorithmic thinking, block and text based coding, video tools, and other computer technologies as they relate to industry applications.

Don't forget to bookmark this page so you can come back to see what we are doing in school.

Wrapping it Up

 Fifth grade hybrid students finished up the term with their Scratch parade. 

It is epic! The avatars they made earlier in the term look great marching across the GDRMS campus. Check it out on scratch.mit.edu below or click here to watch the video. 

B block

H Block

Grade 5 remote students finished up their comics. Below are links to some that they shared. 

Grade 6 explore a few a choice activity using the Root Simbots. Students used the marker tool to write words and initials, snowflakes, flowers, and other geometric shapes. 

PRIDE, Kindness, & Music

With just a few days left of the term students are wrapping up their final projects, which will be posted next week. Students of remote learning are finishing up their comics so I will share them next week. Grade 5 hybrid students are exploring Scratch and will share current projects next week as well. Grade 6 hybrid students will continue to explore Root Sim as well. Until then here are some highlights from this week.

Fifth grade Hybrid students started to explore Scratch while they animated a word, PRIDE. PRIDE is what we strive for at GDRMS: Positivity, Respect, Integrity, Determination, and Empathy! To see their work, watch the video below.

Sixth grade Hybrid students are coding Root Sim, a web-based simulator they used to create musical compositions. They had options in choosing their musical piece as well as coding level. The most popular song for most students, particularly those new to "reading" music was, well I suppose I shan't tell you as that would spoil the surprise. There were also quite a few students with prior musical knowledge who really stepped it up a notch. I'm impressed with all their work. To hear their work watch the video below. See if you can, name that tune! You could also give Root a try yourself using the guide and student codes below the video. 

When asked if this project was worth doing with future sixth graders, students said:

• yes, because its fun
• yes because it is easy and fun
• mhm YEAH
• yes it will teach them music notes and how root works
• i like the light show
• yes because it is fun
• I think they would because you can learn a lot about music and coding
• yes because it is very fun 
• They might like it because root is fun but the music making is awful
• I think this would be very enthralling for other students because it is so fun making music and doing coding too!
• yes, cuz we learn music is good
• i liked it and yes you should do it with more people
• it was fun to hear the final product
• I think it is worth doing for future 6th graders
• i liked and you should do it with other classes
• It was fun And I think other kids will like this project
• It Was Pretty Goooooooood
• music I say do it another time!!!!
• This was a fun project, although, it did take longer than it should have.
• It has music and coding combined together which I think more people would like
• I liked that I could choose any song that I wanted. I think it is worth it to do this with the other classes

Today is World Kindness Day! To celebrate, classes that had completed prior works had a chance to review some coding concepts in Scratch. For some this was a review, others learned new blocks that they had not used before.  Take a peek at the video below to see how they like to show kindness. 

We have just a few days left of the term. You will be missed. I hope you remember all that you have learned and more importantly use what you have learned to help you with future endeavors! 

 

Coding Time

With just a couple weeks left in the quarter we just got started with our coding activities. My remote students will continue to explore coding activities on asynchronous days with Code.org, one of my favorite online coding platforms. Thanks Hadi Partovi! Speaking of Hadi, I had the privilege to meet him at the White House as part of the 100 Teachers Meeting in Washington DC. I was one of 8 lucky teachers from Massachusetts nominated to attend this event with other educators from around the United States.  

@AudraKaplan @WhiteHouse with @ECS @hadip @jessicaalba #hourofcode kids from NJ & NY teach the President how to code pic.twitter.com/epph0U429t

— AudraKaplan (@AudraKaplan) December 8, 2014

Hybrid fifth grade students have just wrapped up their FAB Comics to show off their avatars and the articles in our FAB Constitution. They are spectacular! I am so proud of the work they have done. You should be too! Go to slide 5 in the presentation below to see some of their amazing work! Remote fifth graders are midway through their comic project so stay tuned to see their work which will appear on slide 6 early next week.

Next up for the fifth grade hybrid students is Scratch. A web-based block coding platform that the kids love! To kick off our Scratch exploration, students will animate the word "PRIDE." We are focusing on PRIDE, to show our school spirit and the promotion of:

Positivity,     Respect,     Integrity,     Determination,     Empathy.

Without official Scratch accounts, students will practice uploading, downloading, file naming conventions, and they will learn about a new file type, .sb3 as they upload the "latest version" of their program so that they can download it the next day to continue their work as they complete this projects. Check out the Scratch tutorials to  learn more or to try some activities of your own. 

My sixth graders, Ms. Dee, &  I began to explore robotics last week. After an interactive Pear Deck activity to gauge prior knowledge about robots, coding, and what they wondered about robotics we started exploring coding through a series of music making activities.

Before accessing the Root Simbot simulator, we completed an unplugged Code Break activity to get familiar with the Root Robot interface, https://code.irobot.com/#/. I recreated the activities with Slides in a digital format to allow students to drag and drop responses. Honing our skills while saving some trees. 

UDL is built into these activities from a musical and coding perspective, providing an opportunity for students to appropriately challenge themselves. There are 3 levels to choose from with the Root interface so anyone from a novice to an expert can participate. Level 1 is for beginners, early readers, or non-English language learners. Level 2 is a hybrid model with combined visual and text blocks Level 3, the most complex, is completely text based. The beauty of Root's level three option is that like the other levels, it is also drag and drop so syntax errors are not an issue helping students focus on computational thinking and process. This coupled with musical notation and I am expecting a wide variety of final projects.

Root has several sensors and the ability to play musical notes spanning 8 octaves so I was excited to get started with a version of "Name That Tune." This began with guided activities to get students comfortable with the music notation key I created. As not every student plays an instrument or reads music a simple song coupled with the level 1 visual block interface was just what they needed to get started. Like the option to chose a coding level, students later had the option to complete a musical compositions of their choosing. They could reference my Music and Coding Wakelet board for some something simple or try something more complicated if they have the skill sets to do so. I can't wait to hear what they come up with. Some of my musicians are pushing the boundaries. I can't wait to hear "We Will Rock You" by Queen which is on the list.