As testing season approaches or maybe it’s already here, I wanted to share a fun activity for you and your kiddos. After taking Coding, Robotics and 1:1 Devices - a NASA Endeavor course - I wanted to incorporate more computer science and coding. It’s great at any point in the year, but it just may be what you need right now.
We started out the unit with computer science standards in mind. They were recently developed for Indiana and we wanted students to gain more experience “thinking like a computer”. Of course, we thought of it through the lens of space exploration. Inspiration came our Giant Mars Map with a connection with the most recent Martian lander, Insight. Like many units, we wanted to see where our students were regarding their knowledge/familiarity with certain vocabulary and concepts. We used a Google Form at the beginning and end of the unit to be able to determine growth as well as how to improve the unit in the future. Note: You may notice that I say "we" a lot. This is due to the fact that I have some awesome colleagues that I am able to collaborate with. Several of the activities I blog about are created in collaboration. We co-plan and co-teach, hence the we! If you're interested in learning more about our process, we were featured on Inside the Rock - our school district's podcast - last week. Check it out! Tech Tool - Edpuzzle
Edpuzzle allowed me to record myself reading the story. Then, I was able to add questions for students to answer as they watched. It was a great way to keep them engaged and check for understanding. Edpuzzle has lots of great features that makes it very useful in your classroom.
You can search previously created Edpuzzles or add a video clip from another site. You are able to edit the clips so it's just the part that you want your students to view. You are able to track student progress and see how far they've gotten through the assignment. For multiple choice questions, you can set the right answer to be graded. For short answers, you are able to view all and quickly grade. Click the button below to create a free account! Once you create a class, students are able to join with a code, specific link or e-mail invitation; whatever works best for you!
To continue building background, we gave students resources to explore to better their understanding the four main coding concepts (loops, conditionals, events/functions, and algorithms). As students explored the resources, they sketchnoted to record information and make connections.
Mission 1: Planetary Design
In small groups, students created a planet. They had to:
Mission 2: Traveling to a New Planet
With inspiration from the Rover Races NASA lesson, students created a code to make it across the new planet’s surface. Each team of four was split into pairs. Each pair determined whether they were the controller (write the code) or the rover (run the code). The goal was to get through the planet with the most points and the least amount of time in 12 lines of code or less.
Mission 3: Sphero Rover
Teams now travelled to a third planet with a new mission. Spheros became their rovers. They now had to code a Sphero to make it across the planet. Students were only able to use 15 blocks of code. Their code had to include both a light and sound because it’s dark in space and their rover needs to send a signal back to Earth. Instead of earning or losing points from the planetary features, they added or subtracted from their total time.
For each mission, students were at a different planet. The planet they created, the planet they coded and the planet they roved. It was a great way to get students moving, see other groups' work and add an element of difficulty.
Like almost all of our units, we used the SLED Structure (Science Learning Through Engineering Design). Check out my past blog post to learn more about SLED. As students progressed through their missions, they recorded information in their logbooks. The logbook will be available in my TPT store.
Peace, love and space exploration,
- CAPCOM Conrad
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AuthorApollo 13 fan. Educator. Lifelong Learner. Third generation Boilermaker. Space Exploration Enthusiast. Collaborator. Click Subscribe to stay updated!Archives
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