Name
Getting started with Coding
Topic
CODING-English as a foreign language
Learning time
Designed time
2 hours
Size of class
16
Description
- Students give instructions to their mates to draw a graph paper and to walk a path to reach an object. - Students start coding on www.code.org
Aims
Students become aware of the importance of giving the correct instructions to reach a goal. They learn the meaning of new words such as algorithm and program.
Outcomes
Define, Draw, Find out/discover, Measure, Estimate, Investigate, Give feedback, Show awareness of
Editor
valecar
Edit
BRAINSTORMING
30 minutes)
  • Read Watch Listen
    3
    16
    0
    the kids are shown a video suitable for introducing the concept of a problem. We can propose the short scene with the famous "Houston we have a problem" quote from the film Apollo 13, where scientists on earth try to recreate the circumstances the astronauts have on the spacecraft to find out a solution. Here is the link to youtube: http://bit.ly/2leSgg2
  • Discuss
    5
    16
    0
    This video can be useful to start students brainstorming. The teacher can stimulate ideas by asking: What happened? What did they do? How do we find a solution?...
  • Read Watch Listen
    5
    2
    0
    kids are divided into pairs. (Student A and B). Student A is given a 5x5 graph paper grid in which some of the 25 smaller squares are coloured and some are not. Student B mustn't see the original drawing. The teacher draws five commands on the board: ← move one square left ↑ move one square up → move one square right ↓ move one square down fill-in square with colour. Then he explains the game:
  • Discuss
    12
    2
    0
    Student A has to describe the square to student B using only the 5 commands starting at the upper left-hand corner and student B has to write down on a white piece of paper the correct sequence of coding he is told, using just the 4 arrows and colouring square when requested. With this game the two students will discover by themselves the importance of discussing to decide and agree on certain rules to follow, for instance the direction to follow or when to say to colour.
  • Practice
    5
    2
    0
    After they have completed their sequence, each pair exchanges their code with other students to verify if it is understandable. In the other pair, student A has to read the code of arrows and student B has to recreate the original drawing.
Notes:
Resources linked: 0
WHAT IS CODING?
90 minutes)
  • Read Watch Listen
    5
    16
    0
    The teacher gives a brief explanation of what coding is and where we find examples in everyday life. In Information Technology the code we write gets converted into an instruction that a computer can understand. Programming a videogame is based on logical thoughts as for example IF....THEN... (for example: if your avatar finds an obstacle in his path, then make him turn right..). Then.. we know that kids love videogames...
  • Collaborate
    15
    4
    0
    Game: The teacher divides the kids into 4 teams and identifies a large room such as the gym or the corridor where to allocate an object for each group. Then he puts some obstacles on the way to these objects, like benches, chairs.. The members of each team have to discuss and collaborate to write down the correct code to lead one of the other team members from a starting point to the assigned object. To write down the code they can only use the 4 arrow signals (right, left, back and forward) and numbers. The unit of measurement are the tiles or in the absence of these, kids will collaborate to propose new ideas and discuss until they reach an agreement on how to measure (it can be the size of someone's shoes..)
  • Practice
    10
    4
    0
    After they have written down a code of arrows, one of them reads aloud the signal to the "walker" of the other team to make him reach the object. This is useful in making them understand the importance of giving the correct sequence to reach their goal. The speaker can just say: turn right/left, move forward (four times)/backward.
  • Read Watch Listen
    10
    16
    0
    Then the teacher shows a video chosen from the site code.org in which a software developers speaks.
  • Produce
    40
    2
    0
    In turn pupils in pairs go to the IWB and try to play at one game previously chosen by the teacher. It is important that the teacher explains the importance of reading the instructions given by the computer. It is nice, for pupils whose mother tongue is not English, starting with their mother tongue and then setting the language in English. The kid reads aloud the instructions and does as requested. There are lots of games that kids will adore! The teacher will distribute to every student a password to enable him/her to play at home.
  • Investigate
    10
    16
    0
    Pupils are asked to think about what they did. The different phases they went through. Then with a final brainstorming they will be guided to the concepts of algorithm (a list of steps that we can follow to finish a task) and Program (an algorithm that has been coded into something that can be run by a machine).
Notes:
The teacher previously chooses a game and creates a class on www.code.org to generate a password for each student so they can use the site at home.
Resources linked: 0

Learning Experience

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