As a computer science teacher, I work with students who are users of technology but do not understand how technology works. Therefore, the purpose of this mini-unit is to introduce new computer science students to basic computer programming concepts in a fun and safe manner. The mini-unit will utilize the "Minecraft Hour of Code" tutorial at https://code.org/mc integrated with three "unplugged" activities. At the end of the mini-unit, the students will design and create their own Minecraft project.
Source: https://code.org/mc
My goal for this project was to identify a fun and safe method
to introduce computer programming concepts to students who may or may not have a strong foundation in problem solving skills. In addition, I did not want to reinvent the wheel or establish the need to submit a procurement request as my school district has limited resources.
Unfortunately, there was not a single resource with a mini-unit
(3-5 lessons) which would satisfy my school’s classroom standards as well as provide a learning opportunity for young students. Code.org has established 5 courses: Course 1 for ages 4-6, Course 2 for ages 6-18, Course 3 for ages 8-18, Course 4 for ages 10-18 and the Accelerated Course for ages 10-18. Each course is designed to be completed in 20 hours. Code.org has also created 9 games (or story lines) which do not incorporate lessons but progressively allow a student to create their own game or story line utilizing prominent themes such as Star Wars or Angry Bird. After deliberately reviewing the courses and games, I decided that Course 1 and 2 were too simple for high school students. However, the other courses neglected some key concepts incorporated into Course 1 and 2. In addition, all of the courses are designed to last 20 hours and I wanted a 3-5 hour mini-unit. The games such as Star Wars or Minecraft are exceptionally engaging. However they do not integrate the learning of computer programming concepts so that a student may be evaluated in order to determine if the concepts have been grasped.
Therefore, I integrated and repurposed different aspects of
Code.org’s resource with the goal of creating a mini-unit which may be taught in one week and thoroughly hooking in the world of computer programming.
Source: Code.org
Unplugged lesson plan for Commands from Code Studio allows students to learn concretely and then apply abstractly to Minecraft puzzles.
Integrate with Minecraft Hour of Code (1st 4 Puzzles) which introduces Commands such as "Move Forward", "Shear" and "Destroy Block to students.
Lesson will be differentiated depending on the demographics of the class. For example, ELL students will benefit from the vocabulary section but the section may be simplified with a word wall for more advanced students.
Unplugged lesson plan for Loops from Code Studio allows students to learn concretely and then apply abstractly to Minecraft puzzles.
Integrate with Minecraft Hour of Code (5th-11th Puzzles) which introduce Loops to students.
Lesson will be differentiated depending on the demographics of the class. For example, ELL students will benefit from the vocabulary section but the section may be simplified with a word wall for more advanced students.
Source: https://code.org/mc
Unplugged lesson plan for Conditionals from Code Studio allows students to learn concretely and then apply abstractly to Minecraft puzzles.
Integrate with Minecraft Hour of Code (12th-13th Puzzles) which introduce Conditionals to students.
Lesson will be differentiated depending on the demographics of the class. For example, ELL students will benefit from the vocabulary section but the section may be simplified with a word wall for more advanced students.
Source: https://code.org/mc
Minecraft Hour of Code - 14 Puzzles (https://code.org/mc)
Source: https://code.org/mc
Competency: Design Instruction using a variety of 1:1 computing models
All project components referenced above are elements of Code.org websites https://code.org or https://studio.code.org/. Code.org is a non-profit dedicated to expanding access to computer science.
Teaching Computer Science is a new endeavor as I have been trained and certified to teach mathematics. While I have a computer programming background in a prior career, I find teaching Computer Science concepts a different struggle. Unfortunately, I have not had the opportunity to implement this mini-unit. However, I understand from my mathematics education training the importance of young learners learning through the discovery process.
I believe that this mini-unit offers students who may or may not be proficient at mathematical concepts the opportunity to learn computer programming concepts through the discovery process of Problem Based Learning.
