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Good point. That's why I am big fan of teaching "Computational Thinking" before any specific programming language. Personally used Scratch (from MIT) to teach m

by hsshah 15y ago

Good point. That's why I am big fan of teaching "Computational Thinking" before any specific programming language. Personally used Scratch (from MIT) to teach my nephews and niece. It worked well to cement their core concepts. http://scratch.mit.edu/ http://scratch.mit.edu/ http://info.scratch.mit.edu/sites/infoscratch.media.mit.edu/files/file/ScratchProgrammingConcepts-v14.pdf http://info.scratch.mit.edu/sites/infoscratch.media.mit.edu/...

pbhjpbhj 15y ago
Do you know of a basic introductory course using Scratch so I don't have to ad-hoc it so much? We're supposed to be building a game but I need something, like KhanAcademy, that I can give my primary-aged son space to explore by himself without me hovering over him.
- wiredfool 15y ago
  I'm pretty much winging it with the Middle Schoolers. Normally I throw a quick demo up on the big screen, talk about it for a couple of minutes pointing out what it does that they were struggling with in the last class. Then they work on doing something interesting while I answer questions and ask "What happens if...".
  - hsshah 15y ago
    In case you are interested, there is a curriculum that ScratchEd team has developed. http://scratched.media.mit.edu/resources/scratch-curriculum-guide-overview-august-2011-webinar http://scratched.media.mit.edu/resources/scratch-curriculum-... Personally, I also "wing it". I encourage them to come up with ideas for games, animations that implicitly requires them to cover all aspects of "computational thinking". It's implicitly because I don't want them to think of this as too academic; let them have fun while learning (for a change!)
    - wiredfool 15y ago
      Looks interesting -- they posted that a week or two after I was searching. We're heavily into animations and games right now, including one where the student is building up space invaders, one complication at a time.
- hsshah 15y ago
  You may want to refer to the curriculum link I posted in the thread below. I don't think it is sufficient for what you are looking for. In fact, these days I am spending time on developing such a course (actually it is more than just programming; it includes intro to hardware and communications). Happy to share it with you when it is done. Also, would be open to receiving suggestions for it (based on your experience)
sethg 15y ago
My nine-year-old son learned Scratch last year. Oh, if only I had that when I was nine....

by hsshah 15y ago

pbhjpbhj 15y ago

Do you know of a basic introductory course using Scratch so I don't have to ad-hoc it so much? We're supposed to be building a game but I need something, like KhanAcademy, that I can give my primary-aged son space to explore by himself without me hovering over him.

wiredfool 15y ago
I'm pretty much winging it with the Middle Schoolers. Normally I throw a quick demo up on the big screen, talk about it for a couple of minutes pointing out what it does that they were struggling with in the last class. Then they work on doing something interesting while I answer questions and ask "What happens if...".
- hsshah 15y ago
  In case you are interested, there is a curriculum that ScratchEd team has developed. http://scratched.media.mit.edu/resources/scratch-curriculum-guide-overview-august-2011-webinar http://scratched.media.mit.edu/resources/scratch-curriculum-... Personally, I also "wing it". I encourage them to come up with ideas for games, animations that implicitly requires them to cover all aspects of "computational thinking". It's implicitly because I don't want them to think of this as too academic; let them have fun while learning (for a change!)
  - wiredfool 15y ago
    Looks interesting -- they posted that a week or two after I was searching. We're heavily into animations and games right now, including one where the student is building up space invaders, one complication at a time.
hsshah 15y ago
You may want to refer to the curriculum link I posted in the thread below. I don't think it is sufficient for what you are looking for. In fact, these days I am spending time on developing such a course (actually it is more than just programming; it includes intro to hardware and communications). Happy to share it with you when it is done. Also, would be open to receiving suggestions for it (based on your experience)

sethg 15y ago

My nine-year-old son learned Scratch last year. Oh, if only I had that when I was nine....