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Classroom Activities

Unlock Creativity and Computational Thinking with Gimkit’s Creative Mode

by Belinda Howell
written by Belinda Howell

What’s the big idea?

If you’ve used Gimkit before, you know it as a classroom favorite for interactive review games. Students answer questions to earn virtual cash and compete in fast-paced challenges that make learning feel like play.

Recently, Gimkit has taken things to the next level with Creative Mode—a feature that lets teachers and students build their own interactive games from the ground up. Imagine a cross between a quiz tool and a platform builder where students can add keys, doors, enemies, vending machines, teleporters, and more.

What is Gimkit’s Creative Mode?

Creative Mode transforms Gimkit into a sandbox game builder. Teachers can create worlds filled with challenges and embed question sets so students must answer correctly to move forward or unlock new areas.

But the real power comes when students take charge and design their own games. They can experiment with mechanics, test logic, and bring their ideas to life while reinforcing class concepts.

Why Creative Mode Works

When students design games in Gimkit, engagement skyrockets—and so does learning. As they’re building, they’re also:

  • Practicing computational thinking as they plan logic, sequence events, and test outcomes.
  • Developing creativity and collaboration by designing, testing, and refining their games with peers.
  • Reinforcing content knowledge as they integrate subject-area questions and challenges.
  • Building perseverance as they troubleshoot, iterate, and improve their designs.

This is game-based learning at its best: hands-on, meaningful, and student-driven.

Gimkit’s Creative Mode in the Classroom

Start simple! Teachers can create a quick demo game tied to a unit and let students play. Then, invite them to make their own. For instance, here is a quick sample platforming game I created. It will prompt you to create a free account if you have not done so, and to select the question set.

Here are a few classroom ideas:

  • Science: A lab-themed adventure where players collect samples after answering correctly.
  • ELA: A story-based game where each room represents a key event or theme.
  • Math: A puzzle world that opens gates or doors after solving equations.
  • Social Studies: A platforming game where students have to answer questions to climb up through levels of different eras or events.

These projects naturally incorporate creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving—while reinforcing academic content.

Try it out!

To help teachers and students get started, I’ve created a step-by-step guide that walks you through building a quick platforming game with a few features such as adding terrain, lasers, enemies, walls, teleporters, etc. Each step has written instructions and a corresponding short video. After completing this quick platforming game, creators will start to understand how the design process works and even figure out new features they can add.  Teachers can copy the steps and video walkthroughs if they want to use them as 

Once students understand the basics, the possibilities are endless. You’ll be amazed at what they create and how excited they’ll be to share their worlds!

Final Thoughts on Gimkit’s Creative Mode

Gimkit Creative Mode opens a new door for classroom engagement. Whether you design a fun review game or let students take the lead, this tool fosters creativity, computational thinking, and a love of learning.

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A whimsical little robot with the title "K-8 Coding and Robotics Activities with Teacher Clarity Questions" and an image of activity sheets for K-2, 3-5, and 6-8.
Coding/Computer ScienceCurricular Standards

A Scope and Sequence for Computational Thinking: Part 2

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

You may recall that part one of this article shared a story. I had questioned a small private school about its coding curriculum vision. They had the tech but no clear plan. A curriculum map and content standards for computational thinking were absent or unavailable, and part one proposed a potential solution. In this follow-up article, we’ll delve into coding and robotics for grades K-2, 3-5, and 6-8. Keep reading to get activity sheets with digital tools, objectives, activities, and teacher clarity questions.

“Yes, you too can develop complex scope and sequences in a single bound through the AI magic of interactive prompt engineering. Come study with TCEA Prompt engineers and earn your ChatGPT for Educators and Artificial Intelligence digital badges, certificates, and CPE hours.”

-Miguel Guhlin, author

Breaking Activities Down Further

In grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8, you can see a natural progression for computational thinking through the use of digital tools that aid in coding. But generating projects and classroom activities can be an ongoing challenge. Luckily, AI tools can help. Let’s take a look at a detailed sampling of activities for K-8 generated through interactive prompt engineering and various AI tools.

K-2: Introduction to Coding

Digital Tools

Learning Objectives:

  1. Understand basic block coding concepts.
  2. Create simple stories and animations using Scratch Jr.
  3. Engage in basic robotics tasks with Sphero and Dash-n-Dot.
  4. Explore introductory engineering concepts with SPIKE™ Essential.

Activities:

  • Scratch Jr. Storytelling: Students will create a short, interactive story that includes characters moving across the screen, using basic block coding sequences. Questions for teacher clarity include:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to make your own little stories on a computer. You’ll use blocks like puzzle pieces to tell the computer what you want your story’s characters to do.
    • Why am I learning it? It’s fun to tell stories, right? By making stories on the computer, you also learn how to solve problems and make your ideas come to life. It’s like being both a storyteller and a magician!
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you can make a character move, jump, or even dance across the screen by yourself. If you can watch your story play out the way you imagined, you did it!
  • Robotics Exploration: Using Sphero and Dash-n-Dot, students will complete a series of challenges, such as navigating a simple maze, to understand cause and effect in coding. See teacher clarity questions below:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to be a robot helper. You’ll use a tablet to tell robots named Sphero and Dash-n-Dot how to move around, like going through a maze.
    • Why am I learning it? Playing with robots helps you understand how things cause other things to happen, like how pressing a button can make the robot move. It’s important because it teaches you how to think step by step to solve a puzzle.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you learned it when you can make the robots go where you want them to, like through the maze without getting stuck. If the robot does what you planned, you’re a great robot helper!
  • Building Simple Structures: With SPIKE™ Essential, students will follow guided instructions to build simple machines or figures, introducing them to basic engineering concepts. See teacher clarity questions below:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to build things like a young engineer. Using something called SPIKE™ Essential, you’ll put together pieces to make simple machines or figures.
    • Why am I learning it? Building helps you learn how things fit together and work. It’s like playing with your favorite building blocks but even cooler because you’re making machines that can move!
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you learned it when you can follow the steps to build something on your own. If your machine or figure looks like the picture and can do something special, like move or spin, you did a great job!

Grades 3-5: Building Computational Thinking

Digital Tools

Learning Objectives:

  1. Develop problem-solving skills through more complex block coding projects.
  2. Introduce text-based coding concepts.
  3. Undertake intermediate robotics projects with SPIKE™ Prime.
  4. Apply the engineering design process in project development.

Activities:

  • Advanced Scratch Projects: Students will develop interactive games or stories that require logical thinking and sequencing, incorporating variables and conditional statements. Teacher clarity questions include:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to create your own games and stories on the computer with Scratch. You’ll use coding to make things happen, like making a character move or score points in a game. You’ll learn about variables, which are like invisible boxes that can hold information, and conditional statements, which are like making the computer make decisions based on what you tell it.
    • Why am I learning it? Creating games and stories helps you become a better problem-solver. You’ll learn how to think logically, organize your ideas, and make your digital creations interact the way you want. It’s a fun way to learn how computers follow instructions and make your ideas come to life.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you can make a game or story that works the way you planned. If your character can move around and react to different situations because of the code you wrote, you’ve done it right!
  • Micro:bit Experiments: Introduction to simple text-based coding tasks, such as creating a digital thermometer or basic games, to understand inputs, outputs, and processing. A few teacher clarity questions:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to program a tiny computer called Micro:bit to do cool things, like measure temperature or play simple games. You’ll write code using text, which is a bit like writing instructions for the Micro:bit to follow. You’ll learn about inputs, which are like the Micro:bit’s senses, and outputs, which are the ways it can respond or show you what it’s thinking.
    • Why am I learning it? Programming the Micro:bit teaches you how everyday technology works and how you can control it with coding. It’s exciting to see your code make something happen in the real world, like creating a gadget or a game. It also helps you understand how computers process information.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you learned it when your Micro:bit can do the task you programmed, like showing the temperature or playing a game you made. If it works just like you wanted, you’ve successfully learned how to program it!
  • SPIKE™ Prime Robotics: Design and program robots to complete specific tasks, such as carrying objects or navigating obstacles, emphasizing the iterative design process. Teacher Clarity questions:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to build and program robots using SPIKE™ Prime. You’ll design your robot to do tasks, like picking up objects or moving through a course. You’ll also learn about the iterative design process, which means planning, building, testing, and improving your robot step by step.
    • Why am I learning it? Building and programming robots with SPIKE™ Prime helps you understand how technology can interact with the physical world. It’s a hands-on way to learn about engineering, coding, and problem-solving. You’ll see how your ideas can become real and work on improving them, just like real engineers do.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when your robot can complete the task you designed it for. If it can carry an object or navigate an obstacle course because of how you built and programmed it, you’ve mastered the challenge!

Middle School (6-8): Applied Coding & Robotics

Digital Tools

Learning Objectives:

  1. Master text-based coding languages for app, game, and web development.
  2. Understand the fundamentals of computer science and software development.
  3. Design and implement advanced robotics projects that solve complex problems.
  4. Apply design thinking in developing technology solutions for real-world challenges.

Activities:

  • App Development: Using Swift or JavaScript, students will create a simple app that addresses a community need, focusing on user interface design and basic functionality. Teacher clarity questions:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning how to create an app using programming languages called Swift or JavaScript. This involves designing how the app looks and making it do things, like helping people in your community through technology. You’ll focus on the user interface, which is how users interact with your app, and the basic functions that make your app work.
    • Why am I learning it? Developing an app teaches you how technology can solve real-life problems. By focusing on a need in your community, you’re learning to think like a developer who not only codes but also considers how technology impacts people’s lives. It’s a way to combine creativity with technical skills and make a difference.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you’ve created an app that works — one that people can use to do something helpful or important for your community. If your app’s design is user-friendly and its functions perform as intended, you’ve successfully learned app development.
  • Game Development with Python: Design and code a game that incorporates complex logic, player scoring, and multiple levels. Teacher Clarity questions:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to design and code a video game using Python, a powerful programming language. This includes creating the game’s logic, like how players earn points or advance through levels, and making sure the game is challenging and fun.
    • Why am I learning it? Game development with Python introduces you to complex programming concepts in a fun and engaging way. It helps develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills as you figure out how to make your game work. Plus, it’s a creative outlet that lets you bring your ideas to life.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you’ve built a game that others can play, with rules, scoring, and multiple levels that you designed. If players can interact with your game as expected and enjoy the challenge, you’ve mastered game development with Python.
  • Advanced Robotics with VEX: Simulate and build a robot that performs tasks in a virtual or real environment, such as environmental monitoring or assisting in daily tasks, using coding for control and automation. Teacher Clarity Questions:
    • What am I learning? In this adventure with VEX Robotics, you’re stepping into the role of both an engineer and a programmer. You’ll learn how to bring robots to life, giving them tasks to perform in both simulations and the real world. These tasks could range from keeping an eye on environmental changes to lending a hand with day-to-day chores. By writing code, you’ll be the brain behind the robot’s movements and actions, teaching it to think and act on its own.
    • Why am I learning it? Diving into advanced robotics with VEX Robotics isn’t just about building and programming robots for fun. It’s a powerful way to see firsthand how technology can be harnessed to address challenges we face every day, from monitoring our environment to making our lives easier. This journey equips you with a blend of critical thinking, creativity, and technical skills that are vital for innovators and problem solvers of the future.
    • How will I know I learned it? Your moment of triumph comes when your robot accomplishes the mission you’ve programmed it for. Whether it’s successfully navigating an obstacle course by itself or accurately collecting and reporting data about its surroundings, if your robot can carry out these tasks smoothly based on your instructions, you’ve nailed it. This shows not only your mastery of coding and robotics engineering but also your ability to turn ideas into real-world solutions.
  • Design Thinking Project: Identify a real-world problem, brainstorm solutions, prototype a technology-based solution, and test it, applying coding and robotics skills. Questions for teacher clarity include:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning the design thinking process, which is a way to solve problems by understanding the needs of people, brainstorming ideas, prototyping solutions, and testing to see what works. You’ll use your coding and robotics skills to create a technology-based solution for a real-world problem.
    • Why am I learning it? Design thinking teaches you to approach problems creatively and empathetically. It’s a valuable skill not just in technology, but in any field, because it focuses on finding innovative solutions that meet people’s needs. By applying this process, you’re learning to think like an inventor and an entrepreneur.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you can identify a problem, come up with a creative solution, build a prototype, and test it to see if it solves the problem effectively. If your solution works and meets the needs you identified, you’ve successfully learned and applied design thinking.
Get fun ideas for K-8 computational thinking activities, like making games, creating stories, programming robots, and solving problems!
Get the K-8 Activity Sheets

Get the PDF version of the Activity Sheets

In the end, these computational thinking activities do more than teach coding or building. They turn students into creators, thinkers, and solvers. Whether it’s building an app, crafting a game, making a robot, or solving real problems, students learn to make a real difference. They see how technology solves problems and brings ideas to life. A worthwhile endeavor, no?

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Two young girls using tablets to demonstrate computational thinking and coding skills. To the right, the title "A Scope and Sequence for Computational Thinking: Part 1" is displayed.
Artificial IntelligenceCoding/Computer Science

A Scope and Sequence for Computational Thinking: Part 1

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

“What’s your vision for a coding curriculum?” I asked a small private school. They had collected technology but lacked a real plan. What was missing? A clear scope and sequence showing when they should introduce certain technology and an alignment with computational thinking standards. Let’s explore a potential solution.

Defining Scope and Sequence

Many schools have a complex series of scopes and sequences to cover various topics and content areas. “Scope” means the topics covered. “Sequence” is the teaching order. The aim is to build on previous lessons, including a certain level of repetition and review, then add on to these concepts and introduce new ones. In this way, students add to their knowledge with each lesson in a spiraling curriculum. This allows for a recursive review of key concepts, skills, or themes.

The iterative learning cycle is a process children use to master new skills like walking, feeding themselves, reading, and more. The cycle involves making an attempt, failing, evaluating what went wrong, refining the approach, and starting the cycle again. This process values failure and self-assessment.

Source: The Iterative Learning Cycle

The Benefits of Iteration

What is iteration? Repetition. The opportunity to revisit and review content is well-supported. The use of high-effect size instructional strategies can enhance learning. Iteration also facilitates long-term information retention. You may be wondering what instructional strategies get the job done. The ones below are well worth pairing with curricular standards and technology:

  • Retrieval Practice (d=0.49). A well-established strategy that increases access to retrieving “to-be-remembered” information. Entry and/or exit tickets and dice debriefs work well (source). This is also known as “practice testing” or “test-enhanced learning.”
  • Rehearsal (d=0.71). This is the repetition or organization of information that has entered short-term memory (source). It relies on images, photographs, or index cards and involves memorizing information through repetition.
  • Interleaved Practice (d=0.46). Implement a schedule of practice that mixes different kinds of problems. This strategy relies on a schedule of study that mixes different kinds of material within a single study session (source).
  • Spaced vs Massed Practice (d=0.65). This strategy involves implementing a schedule of practice that spreads out study activities over time (a.k.a. distributed practice).

As you might imagine, a strategy like Teacher Clarity (d=0.85) is also helpful. It is helpful because it sets the expectation for what students will learn. It does this through three questions students can answer in their own words:

  • Set the learning intention. Ask, “What am I learning?”
  • Explore the relevance. Ask, “Why am I learning it?”
  • Specify success criteria. Ask, “How will I know I learned it?”

Strategies like the Engineering Design Process (EDP) and Design Thinking are also beneficial. These have the potential to accelerate student achievement. You can group EDP and Design Thinking as Explicit Teaching Strategies (d=0.63). That is, as follows:

Explicit teaching is like building with scaffolds. It guides students with clear goals and reasons for learning new skills. Teachers show and explain the target. Then, they support practice with feedback until the student masters it. This strategy involves direct instruction, guided practice, and teaching until mastery.

A “discovery approach” isn’t as effective as Explicit Teaching Strategies. The latter gets better results, especially when one combines the previously mentioned strategies.

Getting Started with a Scope and Sequence

Thanks to the power of AI, generating a starting point for a scope and sequence need not be onerous. In a long prompt, I specified a variety of high-effect size strategies (those discussed above) as well as ISTE standards. The product yields a basic scope and sequence that addresses the needs of a specific school. The long prompt was edited interactively in a chat with ChatGPT 4.0 and other tools, yielding the following results.

Grade Level Focus Area Tools & Languages ISTE Standards Alignment Scope & Sequence
K-2 Introduction to Coding Scratch Jr., Sphero, Dash-n-Dot, SPIKE Essential Computational Thinker Begin with basic block coding concepts, incorporating retrieval practices like entry/exit tickets. Introduce storytelling, simple animations, and tactile interactions with Sphero, Dash-n-Dot, and SPIKE Essential for engaging robotics experiences. Use images and index cards for rehearsal. Activities are designed with teacher clarity and interleaved practice in mind.
3-5 Building Computational Thinking Scratch, Micro:bit, SPIKE PRIME Computational Thinker Progress to more complex block coding and introductory text-based coding. Incorporate basic and more advanced robotics with SPIKE PRIME, emphasizing the engineering design process. Projects are sequenced using spaced practice, and concepts are revisited to deepen understanding. Teacher clarity is maintained with explicit learning goals and success criteria for each project.
6-8 Applied Coding & Robotics Python, Swift, JavaScript, TinkerCAD Computational Thinker Focus on text-based coding, app and game development, and an introduction to advanced robotics concepts and design thinking challenges. Implement spaced and interleaved practices to tackle coding and robotics problems. Continue with explicit teaching strategies, ensuring students understand the relevance and application of their projects in real-world contexts.

In part 2 of this blog series, you will see more specific ideas that explore K-2, 3-5, and 6-8 use of coding and robotics. We will also look into specific teacher clarity questions and more examples. Stay tuned!

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Title: "LEVELING UP WITH TA-TEKS: COMPUTATIONAL THINKING, CODING, AND PYTHON"
Coding/Computer ScienceTEKS

Leveling Up with TA-TEKS: Computational Thinking, Coding, and Python

by Rachel Minton
written by Rachel Minton

One of the significant shifts in the updated Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Technology Applications, or TA-TEKS, is a focus on teaching computer science skills. In fact, the revised TA-TEKS require foundational computational thinking skills to be taught as early as kindergarten.

This focus on computer science isn’t unique to us here in Texas. Already, 42 states have adopted computer science education standards, and 27 states, including Texas, require high schools to offer computer science to students.

Quote block "This focus on computer science isn’t unique to us here in Texas. Already, 42 states have adopted computer science education standards, and 27 states, including Texas, require high schools to offer computer science to students."

“Across the country, there’s a growing movement to provide computer science education to every student, in every school, at every grade level,” says Keith Oelrich, CEO of Learning.com. 

Focus on Computational Thinking and Coding

Within the revised TA-TEKS, Computational Thinking is a new strand. You may be left wondering, what exactly is computational thinking, and why is it important for students? 

Computational thinking encompasses skills such as pattern recognition, decomposition, abstraction, and algorithmic thinking, all of which are powerful tools for real-world problem solving as well as foundational skills for coding.

Students can begin to develop essential computational thinking skills at the earliest grades in school, without even using a computer, and gradually build toward learning the coding and computer programming languages that allow them to create their own projects.

Programming with Python

Python is one of the most popular programming languages in the world, opening doors to in-demand careers in data analysis, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and app development. Hundreds of thousands of companies, including some of the most well-known brands of our era – Facebook, YouTube, Netflix, Etsy, Tesla – are powered by Python.

At Learning.com, we’re very excited about our recent acquisition of Codesters, after years of partnership with the company. With the acquisition, Learning.com can offer even more of Codesters’ popular interactive, web-based Python coding curriculum to schools through our existing comprehensive EasyTech digital literacy curriculum and EasyCode computer programming curriculum. 

Screenshot of linked blog article about Learning.com's acquisition of Codesters, a web-based Python coding curriculum.
Read more about Learning.com and Codesters.

Codesters helps students learn key coding principles using Python. In each lesson, students complete a project through a series of activities that include coding challenges, debugging practice, and quizzes. Each lesson ends with an additional coding exercise in which students create their own project applying the skills learned.

Our high-school level offering includes advanced Python lessons and even prepares students for certifications that can directly lead to jobs.

Breaking Barriers with Python Webinar

Join us on April 6, 2023 for the TCEA webinar, Breaking Barriers with Python to learn more about this powerful coding language and how you can prepare your students for the new TA-TEKS, and equip them to excel in the digital world. Click here to register.

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Computational Thinking
AndroidChromebooksCoding/Computer ScienceiOS Tips and TricksMathMicrosoftProfessional LearningSTEM/STEAMWriting

TCEA Announces All-New Scratch Computational Thinking Course

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Make coding more than a programmer’s tool. Teachers can now learn how to use Scratch, a block coding tool, across the curriculum! This course allows you to learn how to use Scratch to teach computational thinking. Teachers can use it to present, animate, and gamify their lessons. The online, self-paced course (Scratch Computational Thinking) is available through TCEA.

An infographic with an orange cartoon cat and a talk bubble with a red heart and TCEA Scratch course logo. Behind the cat is a screenshot of Scratch code. To the right of the cat is information on cost, course structure, and what is included with enrollment. Above the cat is the title "TCEA's Scratch Computational Thinking" with a brief course description.

What Is TCEA?

If you don’t know us, we’re a nonprofit education association. Our mission? Advancing teaching and learning through the use of technology. Improving education with teachers and ensuring student success is our goal!

What You’ll Learn in the Scratch Course

Participants in the Scratch course watch videos to learn how to create animations, make mathematical instructional resources, and create games. And the course shows teachers how to pose and solve computational thinking problems.

TCEA Course Developer James Abela says that teachers will make lessons that encourage literacy and writing. Abela assisted in the launch of the Raspberry Pi at Cambridge, and he is also the course developer of TCEA’s Swift Programming course.

Abela says he loves teaching computer science, and with this course, teachers can take first steps into coding. “You will be able to create interactive animations. Teachers can support learning across all subjects!” he says.

Screenshot showing the block palette, code area, and stage in Scratch.
Image Source: Scratch Wiki

What Are the Scratch Course Details?

Once you complete the course, you will be able to create learning experiences for students with Scratch. “You can click things together just like Lego, so it’s a great way to get things started. It enables us to teach real models like the input process and output model,” says Abela.

The course includes five modules:

  • Module 1: Getting Started with Scratch
  • Module 2: Sequence
  • Module 3: Selection
  • Module 4: Iteration (Repetition)
  • Module 5: Interactivity

Enrolling in the course gets you a free TCEA membership, and once completed, you receive 12 CPE credits, and a digital badge. What’s more, you’ll get a digital certificate of completion! Course access lasts for one full year from a your date of enrollment in the course.

What Are the Scratch Course Prerequisites and Requirements?

This course is for teachers of students ages 7 – 14 and is an introductory course to computational thinking using Scratch. More sophisticated techniques shown here are suitable for older students. Scratch is also featured in Harvard’s CS50 course, which shows learning Scratch can benefit adult learners.

How To Sign Up

The course is available for $39, but for groups of 10 or more, the price is discounted to $34 per person. Contact Miguel Guhlin (mguhlin@tcea.org) for pricing quotes for 10 or more people. Large groups can also pay via TCEA Credit Card Authorization Form. Interested? Go ahead, enroll now!

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Legislature
AdvocacyCoding/Computer ScienceCTO/CIOCybersecurityDigital LiteracyProfessional LearningSTEM/STEAMTechnology Applications

86th Texas Legislature Wrap-Up

by Jennifer Bergland
written by Jennifer Bergland

All good things must come to an end, but only someone who loves politics would consider the legislative process a good thing. I’m one of those people. I love every minute of it, even the ones that go past midnight! Looking back over the past four months, I am happy to report that TCEA was able to move our vision of education forward through legislation and have some promising opportunities to help shape the future of Texas schools. I have created a 2019 Bill Analysis document that include the specifics about the bills that will impact digital education, but below is a quick summary of the more important bills.

Computer Science and Coding

LegislatureWe had some huge wins in the area of computer science and computational thinking this session. Our six-year goal of providing weighted funding for the 9-12 Technology Application courses has finally been achieved. In HB 3, the school finance legislation, the weighted funding for CTE was changed from grades nine through twelve to grades seven through twelve. In addition, the bill specified that CTE courses and programs include Technology Application courses. This means that Technology Application courses from grades seven through twelve will receive the same weighted funding as CTE courses, which is 1.35 (instead of the normal 1).  HB 963 requires the SBOE to consolidate the 9-12 Technology Application courses with similar courses found in the CTE curriculum. The goal is to eliminate duplicates and identify the purpose of each of the courses. Finally, HB 2984 requires the SBOE to update the K-8 Technology Application standards to ensure that they include coding, computer programming, computational thinking, and cybersecurity. It also establishes a committee to create a strategic plan for K-12 CS education to increase computer science instruction and participation in public schools.

Broadband

LegislatureThere are two pieces of legislation that are going to impact educational broadband. The first is HB 1960 which creates a Governor’s Broadband Council that will advise the governor on issues related to broadband access to unserved areas. This is progress, but not as much as we hoped for. There are few, if any, areas of Texas that are unserved. The original bill included underserved areas, but heavy lobbying by the large telecommunication companies eliminated that language from the bill. However, we consider this progress because we finally have some entity at the state level that will look at the state’s needs for broadband from a strategic perspective. For too long, all state entities have tried to provide affordable, scalable broadband for their own purposes when it would be much more cost efficient to survey the needs across agencies and entities and design a plan to meet all the needs. HB 1960 at least establishes a council that could do this in the future, if given the authority.

The second bill that may help with broadband is HB 3906. This is an assessment bill that requires online testing by 2022-2023. The bill requires TEA to evaluate the availability of Internet access for each school district and identify changes to state law or policy that are necessary to improve the availability of Internet access. This may open a door for more aggressive action in parts of the state that are “served” but are underserved.

Digital Learning

HB 3 established a Blended Learning Grant program and then funded it at $6 million a year. TEA’s Math Innovation Zones are how the agency is fulfilling this requirement. It is good to know that the agency has funding to continue these types of grants.

Legislature

I have already mentioned that HB 3906 requires TEA and the SBOE to implement online testing by 2022-2023. Before this can happen TEA and the SBOE must devise an implementation plan that is approved by the legislature. The planning for this type of implementation will require heavy district input, which will largely come from their technology departments. This has the potential to finally focus some much needed light on what the state must do in order ensure that all students have access to technology, not just for assessment, but for learning throughout the year. In order for students to be successful on an online assessment, they must first be technically proficient and familiar with the type of device they will be using when taking the assessment. This translates to more access to digital tools for all students.

Funding

HB 1 is the budget bill for the 2020-2021 biennium. Listed below are some of the appropriations that were made that will impact digital education:

  • Technology and Instructional Materials Allotment – $1,101,430,204
  • OER curation – $20,000,000
  • Blended learning teacher training – $2,000,000
  • Blended learning grants – $12,000,000
  • TxVSN administration – $800,000

HB 396 allows districts to use their TIMA on software that will help manage instructional resources, including the usage and effectiveness of digital materials. HB 4611 stipulates that 50% of the funds that the Texas General Land Office sends to the legislature for education must be appropriated to the TIMA. If this had been in place this biennium, there would have been $3 million more placed in the TIMA. In addition, the budget stipulates that the SBOE should restrict instructional material proclamations to 75% of the TIMA and should consider school district’s technology needs when determining the size of the percentage of the Permanent School Fund sent to the legislature. 50% of this distribution goes into the TIMA. In translation, this means the SBOE should be sending the legislature enough money from the PSF to fund both the instructional material needs of school districts and also their technology needs.

Cybersecurity

SB 820 requires each school district to establish a cybersecurity policy that determines the cybersecurity risks to the district and a plan to mitigate those risks. The district will also be required to designate a cybersecurity officer who will oversee the policy. In addition, the district will be required to report to TEA any cyber attack that breaches the system security and notify the parents of the students whose information has been compromised.

Professional Development

LegislatureThere are several opportunities in the bills mentioned above that will provide professional development in digital learning. The Blended Learning Grants are largely designed to provide professional development for educators in blended learning, not to mention the funding provided to UTeach to continue to provide this type of training to Texas teachers. Also, this is a good chance to remind districts that the TIMA may be used to provide professional development on the use of technology. In addition to these bills, the legislature passed HB 2424 that requires the SBEC to establish rules to create microcredentials in fields of study related to an educator certification class. This was one of TCEA’s legislative priorities, so we are excited to see this bill pass.

What’s Next

The legislative session has come to an end, but  the hardest work is ahead of us. Enacting legislation is the first step in changing things. Now we begin the process of working with the different agencies and entities to ensure they are enacted well. Stay tuned for more blogs about many of these legislative initiatives and how you can provide input.

Credits

Photo of the computer code taken by Sai Kiran Anagani on Unsplash. Photo of cables taken by Jordan Harrison on Unsplash. Photo of teacher interacting with students taken by Mimi Thian on Unsplash Photo of teachers taken by Kylie Haulk on Unsplash.

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learning.com
Digital LiteracyTechnology Applications

Gearing Up for the 2019 TCEA Convention with Learning.com

by Guest Blogger
written by Guest Blogger

We’re excited that Learning.com will be in San Antonio in February for the annual TCEA Convention & Exposition. For the 2019 Convention, we’ll be at Booth #937 and welcome you to share your experiences and learn how Learning.com helps you and your students meet TA-TEKS standards, prepare for online assessments, and excel in a digital world. Here’s a sneak peek of what you can expect.

Keyboarding

Do your students lack proficient keyboarding skills? Prepare them for success with Adaptive Keyboarding, a TA-TEKS standards-aligned, gamified curriculum that includes direct instruction, guided practice, application exercises, and quizzes. Students master proper touch-typing techniques and effectively use word processing tools in real-world situations. Students and educators monitor their progress through instantaneous results and dashboards and show success by obtaining mastery badges and levels.

Coding and Computational Thinking

Want to prepare your students for opportunities in computer science and coding, but not sure where to begin?  Introduce them to coding concepts with EasyTech’s computational thinking lessons which help them develop a foundation in cognitive skills and problem-solving processes. Students apply their computational thinking skills with real programming languages in EasyTech’s coding curriculum to solve challenges and work towards building their own apps and games. Because our lessons contain detailed teacher resources, lesson plans, and solution sets, getting your students to code has never been easier—even for teachers with no prior coding experience.

Online Safety and Digital Citizenship

Equip students with the skills they need to stay safe online, determine what information is credible on the internet, and make informed decisions. EasyTech’s positive, research-based approach to online safety and digital citizenship helps educators take on tough issues such as cyberbullying and encourages students to be aware and safe online. It can also be used to document compliance with federal e-Rate requirements.

Technology Applications

Can your students communicate, collaborate and create effectively with word processors, spreadsheets, and presentations? EasyTech provides students with understanding and practice with these vital digital tools and more. These technology applications are presented in a generic software environment to help students transfer their knowledge and skills to a variety of business applications they may encounter to in high school, college, and the workforce.

Standards-Aligned Digital Literacy Assessments

How do you know your students are truly digitally literate? Our Digital Literacy Assessment can tell you the answer. These assessments help districts gain practical insight into how well fifth- and eighth-grade students comprehend digital literacy concepts and apply digital skills. Digital Literacy Assessment been awarded the ISTE “Seal of Alignment” and provides the real-time data and easy-to-interpret dashboards needed to make informed decisions and ensure students are prepared for success.

Interoperability

Want to make it easy to teach and learn digital literacy? Deliver EasyTech digital literacy curriculum directly in Google Classroom, Canvas, Schoology, or most other learning management systems.  Students and teachers not only access and consume EasyTech curriculum in your school’s own learning management system; they also monitor progress and check grades as well, saving time and frustration associated with learning new platforms or managing multiple logins to multiple learning platforms.

This is a sponsored blog written by Jeff Meyer and provided by Learning.com.

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Hour of Code
Coding/Computer ScienceDigital Literacy

Plan Now for Hour of Code

by Jennifer Bergland
written by Jennifer Bergland

According to Code.org, 93% of Texas parents want their child’s school to offer computer science, but only 40% of Texas schools teach it. Maybe the reason for their interest is because there are 44,972 computing jobs open in the state of Texas in which the average salary is $93,518. The Hour of Code is a perfect event to help drum up support for computer science in your school, district, and community to help meet the demand of your parents and the job market. 

code

The Basics

The Hour of Code is a one-hour introduction to computer science to demonstrate that anyone can learn the basics of coding. The effort was designed to demystify computer coding and to broaden participation in the field of computer science. The official Hour of Code takes place each year during Computer Science Education Week. The 2018 Computer Science Education Week will be December 3-9, but for all practical purposes, you can host an Hour of Code all year round.

Organizing an Hour of Code event at your school or in your community is easy. Their website provides step-by-step instructions on how to pull off the event, complete with activities your participants can use to learn to code in an hour.  They also provide ideas to get your community involved and a FAQ page that will answer almost every question you have about hosting an Hour of Code.

Five Easy Steps to Host a Hour of Code

Code.org has made is easy for you to host an hour of code. Here are the things they suggest you need to consider to make your event a success.

1. Logistics

The first thing you need to decide is where are you going to host the event. They have coding activities that you can use for any device, but you need to decide which devices you’ll use and what you’ll need to make sure they have the necessary bandwidth and power. Code.org even has activities to teach computational thinking skills without using a computer so your event can take place anywhere, even a public park! Just make sure you have reviewed what materials you’ll need for these types of “unplugged” activities.

2. Pick a Tutorial

You may be thinking, “This sounds great, but I don’t know how to code, so how could I help teach someone else?” All the codeactivities are self-guided so you don’t have to know how. You can learn to code at the same time as your participants! All you have to do is select a tutorial to use in your Hour of Code. All teachers can participate because Code.org has tutorials that are related to math, science, social studies, language arts, fine arts, and computer science. You can sort by subject area, grade level, and by the coding abilities of your participants.

3. Promote the Event

Now that you are all jazzed about hosting an Hour of Code, you want to make sure others know about it. Hour of Code has all types of promotional materials for you to use. They have handouts, videos, posters, social media, and different tools you can use to reach certain people in your community, including your elected officials.

 

4. Host an Hour of Code

Once you have taken care of all the pre-event details, it is now time to host the event. Have your participants go to code.org/learn and choose the tutorial you picked out. If any of your participants finish early, have them either help someone else or find another tutorial to complete.

5. Celebrate Your Success

When your participants complete the hour, be sure and celebrate. You might want to create a photo booth where they could take selfies and post their photos on their favorite social media site using #HourOfCode as your hashtag. You could also create a certificate to be given out at the end of the hour.

Hour of Code events are full of energy and excitement. It is the perfect opportunity to demonstrate that everyone can code. Who knows, you may spark an interest in coding for the next Steve Jobs! What are you waiting for? Get busy planning your event!

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coding applications
Coding/Computer Science

Four Apps for Teaching Students Coding Skills

by Guest Blogger
written by Guest Blogger

Why should we learn coding? All technology that is used in the world has code as the driving force. Students are more engrossed in technology than ever. They’re active on social media or glued to the latest video game. The issue is that our students are simply acting as consumers. How can we transition them to become creators of their own applications? How can we empower students to engage in self-directed learning?

By learning essential programming skills, students will gain significant computational thinking capabilities. They will learn how to analyze problems, break them down into smaller chunks, and create multiple solutions. They will learn to collaborate with peers, communicate their creativity, and gain a broader understanding of the impact coding has on the world.

Recommended Programming Applications

This article shares four coding applications I’ve found to be effective at providing self-guided learning experiences in my classroom. There are a vast number of coding applications out there. One can become easily lost in the forest of options if I were to list them all. I am hopeful that this blog will provide educators enough knowledge to effectively choose which applications they want to implement in their own curriculum.

1. Lightbot: Introduction to Programming Concepts

When I was ready to introduce coding to my students, even those that were not in my programming class, the first activity I had them engage in was Lightbot. Lightbot is an application that is featured as a part of the Hour of Code activities and is designed to serve as a one or two-hour lesson. Lightbot engages students in a game that tests their logic and problem-solving capabilities. It introduces the most basic concepts of coding: iteration, procedures, and loops. At first, my students thought the game was too childish, but they soon realized their own struggle to solve some of the more complex problems. This game is easily accessible on the computer and all major mobile platforms. I have used this program as a recruiting tool to expand my rapidly growing Computer Science program.

2. Scratch: The Block-Based Coding App

After Lightbot, the next logical step is to introduce block-based programming to the students. Scratch is a great program for introducing coding concepts to students. First, Scratch is free. Second, it is known as a block-based program because students literally drag and drop blocks of instructions in the code editor. There is very little typing involved. Scratch is simple, but it can become complex if a student really gets in-depth. During my first year of teaching Computer Science, I had my class complete a project with Scratch to create a visual story or a game. Half of my class chose to create a game while the other half chose a story. The students truly valued the openness of the project, and they enthusiastically created their own applications.

I believe Scratch is one of the easiest applications to implement across the curriculum. Also, Scratch contains a host of freely-accessible, community-built programs that can be used in lessons. As an educator, you can even create your own content or quiz using Scratch. Below are a few examples of projects utilizing the program across the curriculum:

  • ELA – Creating a visual poem; book report
  • Math – Probability (dice rolling); fractions game
  • Science – Formula balancing; report on the brain
  • Fine Arts – Creating music; animated drawings
  • Social Studies – Historical biography; quiz game

Eventually, the students grew weary of Scratch and are ready for the next challenge. This is the point when I introduced CodeCombat that gets students more engaged in typing code.

3. CodeCombat: The Coding Game 

CodeCombat introduces students to typing code instead of dragging and dropping. They first choose from several characters and are then guided in the lesson content through gaming “quests.” CodeCombat offers a fully-planned curriculum and a grade book. Students can work through at their own pace. The programming languages taught are Python, JavaScript, and HTML. If a student struggles through a level, they are automatically assigned additional practice to complete. Meanwhile, those students who prefer to move at a quicker pace can jump ahead to more challenging levels.

The first set of levels is offered in a free version. I have used this free version to introduce coding to my students in both my programming and non-programming classes. The paid version promises many game development activities, ranging from beginners to more experienced coders. CodeCombat was recently endorsed by the College Board for their Computer Science Principles course. I am hopeful to be able to explore their setup for this curriculum one day. Even though CodeCombat is a wonderful resource, I utilized another coding application known as CodeHS as the primary learning tool for my students.

4. CodeHS: The Individualized Learning Platform

CodeHS is the current driving force in my ever-growing Computer Science program. Like CodeCombat, there are free and paid versions of this self-contained platform. Students can learn a variety of coding languages, including JavaScript, Python, HTML, and Java. The CodeHS paid version provides educators with curriculum, professional development, and an abundance of tools and resources to create an engaging and student-empowered classroom. CodeHS is also College Board Certified for their AP Computer Science Principles course. There is also room for growth for both educators and students as the program offers the AP Computer Science Applications course and additional preceding courses. This is the next step in building my Computer Science program to engage my advanced students further.

My students have loved being able to work at their own pace. They have enjoyed building a website, creating pixel art, and learning the basics of cybersecurity. They love that the content is fully open and that they can perform many trial and error tests. My students were recently actively engaged in creating an application for their AP tasks, and I had the privilege of acting as a coach in the classroom where I actively monitored progress and provided aid where needed. I even had one student excel beyond the scope of the course. He gleefully pressed forward into his own personalized learning.

Examining the Results of These Coding Applications

Each of these programming applications has been a great asset as I took charge of the Computer Science content area on my campus. In the 2016-2017 school year, which was my first year of teaching Computer Science, my total number of students was eight. This number doubled during my second year. As for the upcoming 2018-2019 school year, I am already expecting the number of students to nearly triple in size based on current enrollment data.

I warn my students that coding can be their worst nightmare, but also their greatest addiction. There is much to learn with coding, and I am hopeful that my Computer Science program continues to grow. I truly believe that the students who take a programming class will walk away with more than just a good coding skill set. They will walk away with the knowledge and understanding that they are empowered through coding and are capable of tackling their own learning experiences.

This is a guest blog by James D Turnage. James is a Computer Science and IT teacher formerly at Ball High School in Galveston ISD who will begin teaching Computer Science and Video Game Design at Clear Falls High School in Clear Creek ISD in August.

 

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coding
Coding/Computer ScienceSTEM/STEAM

Computer Science Is Not New…So What’s All the Buzz About?

by Guest Blogger
written by Guest Blogger

This is a guest blog by Keith Oelrich, CEO of Learning.com, a TCEA partner.

As I have posted before, interest in and discussion of computer science and coding instruction for K-12 students continues to grow. This article from PBS is a great overview of how some of our nation’s largest districts view this growing imperative, and how they are attempting to fill the need for their students.

Another sign of the momentum around this topic: today, in 29 states plus the District of Columbia, computer science credits can count toward high school graduation math and/or science credits; this number is up from 12 states just three years ago!

A few things about this are interesting to me. First, teaching computer science in K-12 schools is not new. This subject has been taught for decades, mainly in high schools and as an elective. What IS new and exciting is the recent emphasis on teaching computer science and computational thinking to ALL students, at ALL grade levels. There is a growing acceptance that CS/CT should be treated as a “fifth core subject,” on par with math, science, language arts, and social studies—and even our youngest students should have some early exposure to the topic.

Also interesting is the increasing recognition that learning CS/CT is not only appropriate for those who intend to pursue careers in programming or technology. The study of computer science provides skills which are applicable in many professions, in fields as diverse as retail, healthcare, manufacturing, entertainment, agriculture, and transportation, among others. Employers value the skills that students learn in studying computational thinking and coding such as problem solving, creative thinking, analysis, and logically organizing data. No longer is the study of computer science just for the “geeks.”

Here at Learning.com, we are excited to see these developments. For over 15 years, we have been working with school districts around the country to provide a technology literacy and pre-computer science curriculum for K-8 students. Our core product, EasyTech, covers many of the standards included in the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) standards for K-8 students. We deliver this offering today in more than one in every six districts across the nation, roughly 15,000 schools.

Earlier this year, we announced the development of our new Foundations of Coding/Computational Thinking lessons for grades K-8 (available for back to school this fall). This week, we are excited to announce the introduction of EasyCode, an additional set of coding activities and exercises for students in grades 3-8. With EasyCode, we provide a hands-on experience with a real coding language (Coffeescript), giving students the ability to write code to solve problems, test their solutions, and receive feedback. And all delivered in a fun, gamified environment that, I have to say, is quite addictive!

As mentioned in the linked PBS article above, one challenge facing districts is the lack of teachers who are trained to teach computer science. We have been helping districts address this problem for 15 years, and EasyCode provides great lesson plans, teacher support, and a variety of implementation options that ease the introduction of these activities into a variety of classroom or lab settings.

Take a look at EasyCode here and learn more about how you can offer CS/CT in your district.

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