General Announcements:
Wow, we have been really rolling through this semester with computer programming and digital citizenship in a variety of ways. Check out the information below to learn about the projects and curriculum students in our Leopold Community are engaging with!
Project Lead the Way:
The first quarter has really flown by now that we have been able to jump into Project Lead the Way: Launch. This has been a great curriculum to adapt with our Leopold kiddos in mind. The kids are working in groups to program stories, games, and create models all while learning essential computer programming vocabulary and concepts (functions, loops, algorithms, events, etc).
iPads and PLTW
The iPads have really made this much more accessible at the young grades than some online programs. The iPads are a required part of the PLTW curriculum (proprietary apps). Mr. Beaman has been gracious enough to split his iPad collection in half so students may recieve the full Project Lead the Way experience in both REACH classrooms, however, this has caused some difficulties. Ideally students should be working 1 to 1 with an iPad in PLTW but I have found that pair programming also works really well with students and is a key component of successful retention. Given the limited number of iPads (6) and the number of students in each class, some classes, particularly DLI classes, are sharing one iPad for a group of 3-4 students. I am currently in the process of applying for grants in order to cover the extras. An additional 3-4 iPads could means students would be able to work in groups of 2 and get the most out of our time together and the programming.
Digital Citizenship
We have also been working on expanding our understandings around Digital Citizenship with the help of the non-profit organization Common Sense Media. Students in 3-5 have been engaging with Common Sense Media: Digital Passport and learning about issues around internet safety, privacy, cyberbullying, and boolean search.
Hour of Code
Next week students across the country will be participating in Hour of Code. Students in Kindergarten will be working on iPads and learning block programming through the app Kodable. First and Second grade students are continuing their work in PLTW and Scratch Jr by retelling books from Bookflix as four part stories using coding to help animate their retellings. Third grade students are being given a choice between retelling stories with Scratch Jr or doing individual projects in Tynker or Code Studio, the same choices that fourth and fifth grade students will be given. The older students may choose to work on Tynker or Code Studio to program activities around: Minecraft, Star Wars, Monster High, or Hot Wheels!
*UPDATE
In order to facilitate a school wide implementation of Hour of Code students will be using Hour of Code web based games on the desktops. You can see which games are recommended to be "just right" for each grade level team (K/1, 2/3. 4/5).
*UPDATE
In order to facilitate a school wide implementation of Hour of Code students will be using Hour of Code web based games on the desktops. You can see which games are recommended to be "just right" for each grade level team (K/1, 2/3. 4/5).
MinecraftEDU
We are excited to confirm that MinecraftEDU has been successfully installed and will be ready in time for winter break.*
This curriculum is exciting because it really embraces all that can be done in Minecraft while removing anything less than school appropriate (weapons, ability to fight each other, creepers, etc). We will be exploring issues of digital citizenship, computer programming, social studies, art history, history, and common core aligned mathematics within the Minecraft virtual world.
*UPDATE
Stress testing begins next week with 5th grade students who will be engaging first with MinecraftEDU. There may be possible hardware issues preventing the computer lab computers from running the required software. District personal are being very helpful in looking for further solution to this issue. If students can not engage with MinecraftEDU after winter break further work in programming, digital citizenship, and choice projects are planned (Plan E).
This curriculum is exciting because it really embraces all that can be done in Minecraft while removing anything less than school appropriate (weapons, ability to fight each other, creepers, etc). We will be exploring issues of digital citizenship, computer programming, social studies, art history, history, and common core aligned mathematics within the Minecraft virtual world.
*UPDATE
Stress testing begins next week with 5th grade students who will be engaging first with MinecraftEDU. There may be possible hardware issues preventing the computer lab computers from running the required software. District personal are being very helpful in looking for further solution to this issue. If students can not engage with MinecraftEDU after winter break further work in programming, digital citizenship, and choice projects are planned (Plan E).
Ms. Smiths Professional Development
In order to ensure that our Leopold students are receiving the best possible education in 21st Century Learning Skills I have been exploring a variety of professional development opportunities. I was very excited to attend our Leopold special Responsive Classrooms seminar. Furthermore, I am proud to return yet again to my alma mater UW-Madison to pursue a masters in Educational Psychology in order to ensure that I can select, tailor, design, and adapt the best possible activities for our scholars.
Last week I completed our application to be a Digital Citizenship certified school. This certification means that Common Sense Media verifies our classroom work in order to recognize our efforts and ensure that ALL students leaving leopold are capable of being safe, respectful, and responsible online.
I am also currently in the process of working towards my Google Innovator Certification. Currently, I will be taking the level two certification over winter break. From that point it is a matter of showing Google all the fabulous work our Leopold students are doing here at school! They will review our documentation and projects and determine our eligibility from there.
Last week I completed our application to be a Digital Citizenship certified school. This certification means that Common Sense Media verifies our classroom work in order to recognize our efforts and ensure that ALL students leaving leopold are capable of being safe, respectful, and responsible online.
I am also currently in the process of working towards my Google Innovator Certification. Currently, I will be taking the level two certification over winter break. From that point it is a matter of showing Google all the fabulous work our Leopold students are doing here at school! They will review our documentation and projects and determine our eligibility from there.