Coding – Learning Unboxed

I believe that any conversation about teaching coding is incomplete without a look at how it can be used to enhance the curriculum. Coding applications such as Scratch and Gamemaker are open ended and give a teacher more flexibility to differentiate then a worksheet or pre-made app. It also gives students the ability to create. This ability makes student’s learning meaningful and gives them more ownership of their learning. In such a situation learning to code is secondary to the lesson objective. Don’t get me wrong, teaching coding explicitly is important but as a 5th grade teacher what really gets me excited is seeing how coding has enhanced my curriculum.

One example of this type of lesson is when I taught fractions using music.

Lesson Objective:
“Describe, continue and create patterns with fractions, decimals and whole numbers resulting from addition and subtraction” – Australian National Curriculum Year 5

My Thoughts:
I was having a coffee and discussion with a Alexis Ramsey, a music teacher at my school when I was struck by something she said. She explained that music is great for teaching fractions. At the time I was teaching fractions and loved the idea of pulling in music to teach the above curriculum standard. My immediate thought was that if I could get my students to hear fractions, it might make better sense to them. In looking for resources to teach this lesson I came across the iPad app (pictured left) which had promise but was limiting.

It wasn’t open ended. I wanted opportunities for differentiation and creativity. As cool as the app was, it was still someone else’s creation and therefore limited to the imagination of that person. I wanted the end result of the lesson to be limited by nothing more than my students. Therefore I came up with the idea of using Scratch to teach the lesson instead. With Scratch students would be able to create their own app. They would be able to write and listen to their own music.

In the end my students were all able to meet the lesson objective of continuing a pattern using addition and subtraction of decimals and fractions. They were all able to identify the pattern they created and describe how they applied their understanding to coding. I could have taught my students this same concept in many different ways but I can’t imagine them being any more engaged or excited about their learning as they were with this lesson. Anyone who thinks coding sounds boring has never seen a group of 5th graders coding their own music.

Lesson Outline:

Review the names of music notes with students. whole note, half note, quarter note, etc
Students copy a chart of music notes to use later in writing their music.
Look at a piece of music written in 4/4 time and write down the fractions for each line. Explain that each bar adds up to 4/4 or one whole. (extension: teach fractions in 3/4 and 2/4 time)
Students are given a line of music. They write down the equation for each bar. Example 1/4 + 1/4 + 1/2 = 4/4
Students are given a blank music sheet to compose their own compose song. Below each bar they write the mathematical equation. Example music sheet
Show students how to put their music into computer code using Scratch. a. They can use the “play drum” command or “play notes” command and then input the desired note. b.They convert their fractions to decimals and then follow their music sheet to input each note into Scratch. c. As they input their music they can listen to it to make sure their calculations are correct.
Students share their music with each other. Example of my student’s work
Students reflect on what pattern they created and identify the concepts they learned. Example of my student’s reflection

Part 2-The Global Codeathon

We had chosen the date of May 17. We only had 2 months to get this off the ground.

The first thing Michelle and I did was to form our team. My husband and COETAIL graduate, Dan Slaughter volunteered to be a part of the team. We then recruited Heidi Kay who helped start our schools Coding Club.

First task: Define the idea.

We decided that the main purpose of the event is for elementary students to connect, create and compete with other elementary kids around the world. With this in mind we decided to call the event the Global Codeathon.

Second task: Find interested schools

We started with a simple flyer which explained our idea. We then made a website, sent word out via Twitter, Google+, and at our presentations at EARCOS and ASB unplugged.

We began to get some initial interest from schools but not commitments. Timing was tight and coordinators needed to get their schools approval and see if their students were interested.

Third Task: Get students interested and schools committed.

To gain some momentum we asked our coding club students to help us create a promo video.

We also started putting together useful documents for schools such as flyers and posters that they could print and letters they could send to parents.

Then we began my favorite but most time consuming aspect of the Global Codeathon. We began contacting the interested schools and discussing questions and ideas with them. This communication started out mostly through e-mail and then eventually moved to Skype Callls and Google Hangouts. It was exhilrating to speak with teachers and tech coordinators around the world who had similar interest in integrating coding into schools.

This was the point where our team felt the pressure.This was when our idea would either stay as nothing more than an idea or it would materialize to a global event. As schools started to commit this idea started to become a reality. One by one schools took a leap of faith and committed. I felt such a kinship to the participating schools around the world. We all believed in a common idea and were willing to take a risk on it. None of us knew for sure what the event would look like. All of us had to put ourselves out there to Heads of Schools, to parents and to students by participating in the first event of this kind. All of these schools around the world took a huge risk and in doing so they made an idea come to life.

Fourth Task: Plan the logistics.

Connect: One of our biggest questions was how would we actually connect. After gathering feedback from participating schools the plan for the day began to take shape. Many of the participating schools had beginner coders and were interested in having us lead sessions. Schools were also keen to be connected to other schools worldwide rather than just UNIS. We decided that in order to do that we would use Google Hangouts. This way schools could hear us leading a virtual session but also see other participating schools around the world. In order to aid in the global collaboration and to help answer questions we set up a backchannel and we recruited several experts to man our backchannels. That way students could ask questions virtually and have their question answered. We also had lesson materials and helpful tips available on our website in case connectivity was a problem. We decided to start with one big Google Hangout where students around the world could say hello to each other.

Create: Next we would split into intermediate and beginner sessions which schools could tune into or run themselves. Finally we would finish by letting students play each others games on Scratch via Scratch Galleries and by having a select student from each school share their program in a closing Google Hangout.

Compete: Competing was a bit tricky. We knew competing would be a great motivation for some students and could inspire students to code year long much the same way that an athlete spends time preparing for a tournament.

However, we also were weary that competition could ruin the event for some students. So we decided to make the competition aspect optional. In order to give students time to make something more interesting we felt they needed longer than the 2 and a half hours they would get on the day of the Codeathon. We released the theme of “Superheros” to all students 2 weeks prior to the submission deadline.

One of our highlights of this entire event was that Dong Nguyen (the creator of Flappy Bird) agreed to judge the Advanced Competition. He even donated Flappy Bird T-shirts which we used as prizes. It was amazing to see Dong Nguyen comment on students games and give them useful feedback.

5th Task: Plan and pray that it will actually work

The first time you try something is always more scary because no matter how well you plan for it you can’t anticipate what may actually happen on the day. One thing we hadn’t expected was that we would crash our own website by directing everyone to access lesson materials on it. Thankfully the problem was fixed in a relatively timely manner and we all did what teachers do best. We adjusted and made it work.

The day of the Codeathon was amazing to me. Watching the students wave at each other from all around the world was one small moment which encapsulated what we had been working toward. It had actually happened. Students from all over the world really were connecting.

Their connections were meaningful. Weeks later students continue to comment on each others programs and give each other feedback. Students were proud of what they accomplished and inspired to try new ideas.

Final Task: Reflect
Reflection gives you the chance not only to learn from your experiences but also a chance to grow from them. So of course we held meetings, spoke with students and sent out a survey to participating schools. With the information gained we have started to look at how to go forward with this event in the future. The Global Codeathon will be held again next year on May 16 and hopefully for years after. Because if there is one thing we learned from all of this it is that it we have only just begun.

Learning Unboxed

Code to Create, Create to Learn

Category: Coding

Mashing up Math, Music and Coding

Taking an Idea Global