Not only did we read and pretend to have a "Magic Finger" (sorry 1A, we were a little loud), but we also had our big helpers from Code Club visit to show 1S students the basics of creating a story using Scratch Jr. (read our previous post about Scratch Jr here).
Cooperative planning week at our school provides great opportunities for specialist teachers to immerse themselves in different classes for more extended periods of time. This week I was so excited to be teaching 1S, FOR A WHOLE DAY, and not just any day, but Roald Dahl's 100th birthday! Yay! Not only did we read and pretend to have a "Magic Finger" (sorry 1A, we were a little loud), but we also had our big helpers from Code Club visit to show 1S students the basics of creating a story using Scratch Jr. (read our previous post about Scratch Jr here). The aim of the lesson was for 1S students to become familiar with the app in general, then character alternatives, backgrounds, movement blocks, sequencing and recording and adding vocal blocks. It was not about creating an amazing story at this stage, simply developing the skills to be able to do so later, and of course, have lots of fun learning. Next Term, Ms Squires and I will continue to develop students' coding skills with authentic learning experiences, including publishing their amazing writing.
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Each Wednesday afternoon our Code Club students meet to extend their skills in coding by creating games and exploring a variety of ways to develop algorithmic and computational thinking through programming and coding programs. In addition to the presentations they are preparing for each of our Year 1 and Year 2 classes for next Term, today they immersed themselves in the free coding app, 'Scratch Jr'. Scratch Jr is a free app available for iPad and Android tablets. It's creators are currently working on an internet version as well. Our Year 5 and 6 students had experience with Scratch, the Middle School/High School version of Scratch Jr at their High School orientation, but they found Scratch Jr a challenge as well. Scratch Jr uses block programming. Students choose, drag and drop directions or statements, the 'blocks', that are completely visual, as shown below. They use these to create a 'code block' that directs different elements within the frame or background they have chosen. Students can choose from a wide variety of characters and backgrounds to meet a wide range of curriculum criteria, whilst developing their programming skills. For example, a literacy project might require students to develop their imaginative and creative skills by extending a known story or creating one of their own using the variety of backgrounds and characters provided in Scratch Jr. To do this, students need to plan their story, sequence it, develop characters, type and/or record dialogue and problem solve the blocks they need to use, their timing and sequencing. This project was completed within 15 minutes with the aim of simply exploring the blocks, timing, recording and other elements available in Scratch Jr. There are so many opportunities for integrating Scratch Jr into classroom activities. Apart from the storytelling aspect, Scratch Jr can also be used to demonstrate understanding of events in history, science concepts (I'm thinking life-cycles, phases of the moon, planets, sea levels, and so on...), as well as hand-writing. Scratch Jr allows students to draw their own elements and write. Students can also learn, practise and develop numeracy skills by creating games for their peers, like the one here. Source:Scratch Jr, Counting and Cardinality Retrieved from: https://www.scratchjr.org/curricula/literacymath/cc-module-3.pdf The implementation of the new Geography syllabus over the next couple of years also provides an excellent opportunity for Scratch Jr to be used in the classroom. By changing the page mode to a grid, students can complete teacher or student-created mapping activities or they can leave it free-form and take a photo of the environment around them or of a map they have drawn. Mr J's Digital Learning Channel shows a great example of this type of activity. A great starting point for parents with their children as new users is provided by Digital Canvas Workshop.
There are also lots of Scratch Jr project examples on Youtube. Here is just a couple: So, have I convinced you to give Scratch Jr a try at home yet? I'd love to hear about your projects and activities using Scratch Jr, too. |
AuthorHello! I am a Primary School (that's Kindergarten to Year 6) Teacher Librarian at a medium-sized school (300+) in Sydney, Australia. This blog and it's website records our learning adventures as we prepare students who are future-ready, digital savvy, productive digital citizens. Archives
October 2019
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