#cs4all

I just got back from the Virginia Society for Technology in Education (VSTE) Conference where computer science was a big topic. I have been involved with VSTE for many years and looking back I can see that in 2017 there were 5 CS-related sessions, in 2018 there were 11 and this year there were 21. I helped organize one of these sessions - the K-8 Computer Science Cohort Playdate. The K-8 CS Cohort is on a mission to integrate computer science into the curriculum. This group came together at the CS Institute this past summer and includes teachers and technology coordinators from public and private schools around the state. The group is being facilitated by Jennie Chiu of UVA Curry School of Education and myself. We’ve been sharing ideas, having playdates to try out different learning platforms and experimenting in our classrooms.

The cohort session facilitators included:

Jennie Chiu - UVA Curry School of Education

Kim Wilkens - St. Anne's-Belfield School

Jo Crowder - Albemarle County Public Schools

Goldy Purcell - Campbell County Public Schools

Karen Canfield - Campbell County Public Schools

Kim Arrington - Campbell County Public Schools

Anne Deane - Tandem Friends School

Michelle Dunphy - Prince Williams County Public Schools

During the session, we shared out examples of CS integration work we’ve been doing in elementary and middle school, before, during and after school. We also brought lots of fun CS-related learning platforms for participants to try out like micro:bit, Hummingbird robotics, Spheros, drones, Ozobots, Turing Tumble, BeeBots, Strawbees and Binary Bracelets.

Using @TinkerCad to Learn #Arduino Basics

Arduino is everywhere. Integrating Arduino into your computer science curriculum only makes sense. Arduino boards are cheap… but they are not free. Here is a solution to that little problem.

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Guest post by Nia from her 8th Grade Exhibition

In fifth grade, I learned how to snowboard, and the first thing they taught us how to do was fall correctly. Although my exhibition is not on snowboarding, the Computer Science teachers at St. Anne’s-Belfield School (STAB) have taught me how to fall correctly. When you fall, you can’t just flail and not get up; you have to use that as a learning experience to propel yourself forward. Mistakes are a big part of Computer Science, which is a way to work through problems and algorithms creatively, using programing languages. You rarely get anything on the first try; it is a system of trial and error. The teachers at STAB have helped me not be afraid, but instead to welcome failure, because it is how we learn. Thinking creatively and working though these problems have helped me, also, to become a better student.  

Nia at her 8th Grade Exhibition

In fifth grade, there was an open house for the new Computer Science field of study at school. I went to it, but I cannot say it was love at first sight. I found I merely liked computer science. So, I signed up for the early-morning club and went every week. I learned Scratch, an early programing language geared toward kids to get them to understand the basics of coding. I got to know my fellow programmers and got to know the teachers, as well. Every Tuesday I would drag myself out of bed, just to get to school at 7:30 for coding.

During the summer of fifth grade, I took part in the STAB tech camp for the first time. The camp is designed for three skill levels: red, green, and blue.  Each group is a different skill level. The teams compete against each other and do different projects. That first year, I joined the green team, the middle level, and worked on game design. My game was Scratch, nothing too fancy or complicated, but I feel as if it was an important first step. If I had done no CS that summer, I probably would not have stuck with it. My time on the green team helped me realize how much I liked it and how fun it could be.

Nia being interviewed by NBC29 about volunteering at Girls’ Geek Day

The next year at tech camp, I signed up for the green team, but I ended up on the blue team. Mrs. Wilkens told me to move up a level, to the blue team, because I had already been on the green team and had improved much from the previous summer. She believed in me, even when I did not. I thought what they were doing would be too hard, that I would never be able to keep up, but it turned out, I fit right in. My skill level was maybe a little below theirs, but instead of giving up, I adapted and pushed myself to work harder, and racked my brain for solutions to the algorithms that were placed in front of me. And even when I did not understand something, I just started working on it, and I would eventually figure it out as I went. I made so many mistakes, but that only helped me understand the problem more. For the first time in my life, I experienced real failure, not just getting a bad grade. I had to pick myself up and try again to find the solutions to the problems. Those ups and downs have made me much better equipped for what lay ahead in my overall future.

Nia leading a CS lesson at SPARK! Launchpad this summer

Through Computer Science, I have been introduced to a whole new community. I have gone to so many events so that I could get people interested in this technology.  I hope I have inspired others to become coders. Our future is moving towards machine learning, programming and engineering. Towards more and more complicated ideas and more problems that require complicated solutions. I am happy to be learning how to be a creative problem-solver and how to persevere through hard problems.  In this way, I know I will be well prepared for my future.