Computer Science Education Week December 5-11

Kahoot Trick - Shared by Tony Angelini

Tony Angelini, a teacher at the middle school, shared a trick with me that he uses with Kahoot so that his students can play it at home with his Kahoot quizzes for review.  Click this link to see how Tony does this.  If you have any questions, please contact Tony.  He will be glad to help you do this with your students.  Tony is going to be offering a Kahoot! workhop in January so if you have never used Kahoot! your chance to learn all about it is coming soon.

Google Classroom Template for Discussion Forum

I am sharing a link to a template that Tony Angelini shared with me. He developed it for use in his Google Classroom. It is open to anyone with this link, but you have view only until  you make a copy of it for yourself.   Click here to see the template.  This template came about because one of the features in Google Classroom that is not as neatly organinzed as we are use to in an LMS is the discussion capability.  Tony has solved this with this Discussion Template that allows the students to collaborate in a discussion on one sheet in an organized manner.  Tony wants anyone who can benefit from use of this to feel free to  make a copy and use it.  I think it's a really helpful template, thank you for sharing Tony. ​

If you have a technology related tip or trick that you use, please consider sharing it so others across the district can benefit and grow their use of technology.

Additional Resources for Hour of Code

I have been promoting Hour of Code and this week is the official Hour of Code which coincides with Computer Science Education Week.  I have some additional Apple information below which was passed on from Mike Boylan, one of our Apple contacts.  I have had a chance to checkout Apples Swift Playground.  It's very engaging.    Coding activities are great enrichment activities, they are engaging and promote higher order thinking and give our students an opportunity to develop skills and knowledge that could potentially lead to a career in the field of computer science. Coding activities can be promoted by any content area teacher.  ​​I am sharing the information below with you so that you can to can enjoy the experience of Apples Swift Playground.

Hour of Code Activity
We’re excited to announce a new Hour of Code challenge, right in the Swift Playgrounds app for iPad. The challenge, which only takes an hour to complete, lets students use real Swift code to guide a character through a dynamic 3D world. Students will learn how to give simple commands, write functions, and run loops. The Hour of Code Challenge in Swift Playgrounds is a great way to start exploring teaching, writing and learning code.  

Sign up for a hands-on Hour of Code workshop in your local Apple Store. Or, host your own activity in class or after school with the Swift Playgrounds app and our Hour of Code Facilitator Guide.
Register for a workshop
Download the guide

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Expanded Curriculum for Swift Playgrounds and iPad
For those who have already started learning to code with Swift Playgrounds, we’re pleased to add a new set of lessons to the app called Learn to Code 3, along with a companion Teacher Guide to support using the curriculum in the classroom. Learn to Code 3 helps students put together the skills they learned in previous lessons and apply them in a project-based environment. The Teacher Guide includes activities, reflection questions, journal prompts, and more to help teachers bring these new lessons into the classroom.
Get the Teacher Guide

Swift Playgrounds Badging in the Apple Teacher Program
We are also excited to announce a new professional learning opportunity to help teachers build skills to bring coding into their classrooms. 

Apple Teachers can now complete four new badges for learning and teaching with Swift Playgrounds, and earn a new Apple Teacher logo featuring Swift Playgrounds to share their accomplishment.  
Get started

New Apple Professional Learning Provider
For teachers, schools, and districts who want additional support to bring iOS app development into their curriculum, we’re pleased to announce MobileMakersEdu as a new Apple Professional Learning Provider. MobileMakersEdu offers workshops and training so teachers can bring App Development with Swift into their classrooms. 
Learn more

Kahn Academy Offers Hour of Code Activities

Click here to go to the Kahn Academy Hour of Code site to sign up and participate.
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Kahn Academy is offering several tutorial that do not require teacher or students to have any prior coding experience.

• Drawing with code: Learn to program using JavaScript, one of the world's most popular programming languages (ages 8+).
• Creating webpages: Learn to make your own webpages using the basics of HTML and CSS (ages 10+).
• Creating SQL databases: Learn the fundamentals of databases using SQL to create data tables and query the data (ages 12+)

If you have a student who has an interest in computing, this is a wonderful opportunity for them to give coding a try. There is a log button for students, teachers and parents.  If you share web resources with parents, this would be one I would recommend.

Kahn is also invites you and your students to join their Facebook Live chat with their professional coders on Tuesday, Dec 6th at 7 pm ET / 4 pm PT. Their coders will talk about their career paths and what they do at Khan Academy, and will answer questions live.

Studyladder

Here is a link to a collection of resources from Studyladder.  If you have a teacher website or wikispace that you share with parents or even a Google classroom.  There are lots of activity idea and sheets that you could put out there for students to access from home or school.  They are things that parents could download and do with students or that students could access and do on a rainy day at home.  In looking over the "free" resources provided, I saw a lot of activity sheets that could be used in the classroom.  Check it out by clicking here.

PBS Resources

Here are a number of PBS video collections that can be used to supplement teacher lessons.  In a quick scan of what's available, these resource look like they would be a fun way to get students thinking.
Sid the Science Kid videos teaching students about weather are now available. Click here.  At the link if you scroll down you will also see other Sid the Science Kid episodes teaching about a number of science related topcs.

 Here is an fun facts, and humorous, video for grades 6-12, that would be a perfect end to that day before the Christmas Holiday, Is Santa Real? (A Scientific Analysis), which is part of the PBS It's Okay to Be Smart Collection. Ever wonder how Santa could possibly manage to deliver all those presents in a single night? Or what gives red-nosed reindeer the ability to fly? And why do your Christmas lights get tangled in knots no matter how carefully you put them away?! Click below to check it out.  Here is a link out to the PBS site.  This video had some really interesting facts along with 

Here are a number of PBS videos about how the holidays traditions and how some are different than others.  Click on any of the images to go to the collections shown below. This is the Pre-K Collection.  When you click on the image below you will be redirected to the PBS site and I noticed that I was able to also get educational standards for the videos.  Look for more PBS holiday resources in next weeks post.