One of my favorite features in programming the micro:bit has been using the radio feature. Designers learned about how to program the micro:bit to use its radio function and then were challenged to create a Treasure Hunt for their partners in mentorship to experience. |
|
0 Comments
It was at this point that I learned about all of the amazing resources that are available on the Ciena Solutions Challenge website after introducing the Global Goals and several design activities - blog post. Under Teacher Resources on the Ciena Solutions Challenge website, there is a wealth of resources in English, Spanish, and French. I found the resources easy to access and they gave me the opportunity to differentiate for different projects that designers felt best met their problem while still using the same format for all of my designers. My Designer's ProjectsClick on the picture to go to the project we submitted or the videos that designers created.
Designers also shared their new found coding skills with the teleporting duck activity as a preview of next week's Treasure Hunt with the Micro:bit.
Lastly designers had time to explore and design in Challenge Central of Makers Empire. In Week 3 of our Global Goals Design Unit, designers were challenged with different design scenarios to help build an understanding of some of the different Global Goals as well as different actions that could be taken to respond to the goals. My lessons were based off of Little Inventors STEM challenges - Link to Resource. I really appreciated these resources because of the embedded videos as well as focused challenges. Student ExamplesMentoring
For the mentoring this week, designers mentored the Oceans of Trash Challenge Module from Makers Empire.
Our designers debuted their designs with their mentor partners this Friday.
Using several days of designing interlaced with tutorial videos to expand coding options, the goal was to give teams a chance to really reimagine their initial design so that we would not have a mini golf course full of only windmills.
Micro:Bit Light Sensor EdpuzzleMicro:Bit Radio EdpuzzleDesigner ReflectionsBest Iteration Flip Student DesignsLAUNCH of Talking Object in Flip
This project inspired by Cecilia Hillway's presentation at Make: Education Forum this past September was a challenge that required partners to work together both in their code and in their physical design. I'm going to start by showcasing the final product that was created through productive struggle.
Highlight and Fix
Create
Also plugging servos into the Bit:explorer incorrectly were aha moments. Reseting the micro:bit with a battery pack and then adding the micro:bit back to the Bit:explorer was part of the process for some teams who struggled to reach the reset button which is essential with iPads and micro:bits. Of course recognizing that a micro:bit can't be powered by a battery pack and the Bit:explorer at the same time was also an important discovery.
Navigate Ideas
Which code works better? I modeled the code that I had learned and quickly modeled how you can make mistakes. So I showed how both codes worked. No code is the only way to do something. My code has more than its share of room for improvement but it provided a starting point.
Understand
Having never done this project before, the only example that I had was the one that I created. It took me several hours to troubleshoot my design and I quickly realized that it was an important scaffold to show step by step how I created both the base of my physical design and my code.
Ask Questions
What do we need to know about the code? What do we need to know about the physical design? What do we need to know about servos? I used an edpuzzle to start building the understanding of one of the important components of the project.
Look, Listen, and Learn
Introducing the Bit:explorer as well as creating scaffolds for the use of the servo and a sample project built a beginning foundation to understand what we would be doing.
The Week's Plan
Next my designers shared the games that they have been developing to get feedback about how to improve their game. As always the first meeting was more subdued but the take aways were super powerful for both groups.
This lesson is based on the Infosys Pathfinders CodeJoy Hummingbird PD Day 1. Students will already know how to program an LED as well as a servo prior to this activity.
Design Thinking Story
I love using stories to introduce a project because stories are such an essential part of our culture.
Design Thinking Project: Tiny Drummer
Objective: Using the story To Be a Drum, find a song that moves you and can be animated with a tiny drummer. Use the design process to create and code your tiny drummer to the beat of the song that you have selected.
Resources: Video Tutorial Troubleshooting Coding Cards Day 1: Example of PlanningDay 2: Physical Construction (Plan and Create)Day 3: Coding Your Robot (Plan and Create)Day 4: Tiny Drummer Version 1 (Improve)
Activism MixtapeI choose to use the Challenge Central lesson from Makers Empire as part of the framework to do the Design Thinking Project with a focus on our community.
This week was the culmination of our Design Thinking Coding Project with a LAUNCH to 4 different classes ranging from 2nd to 4th. Designers impressed with their knowledge and ability to adapt to different learning groups.
Featured in Our District Facebook Page
This Friday was the first time that our 8th grade designers started to mentor Ms. Moll's third grade students in 3D Design and Printing. They learned about each other, shared a 3D video, and helped their partner log in to Makers Empire.
3D Design and Printing Unit
For the last few weeks, designers in our 3D Design and Build class have been learning about the world of 3D design and printing. Using Wakelet, my students accessed videos about 3D Printing in Our World, 3D Communities, and 3D Printing for a Purpose. In the first printing rotation, they found a print in 3D Communities that they wanted to print where they learned how to slice and use the printer.
In the second printing rotation, they learned how to use Makers Empire, Morphi EDU, and Tinkercad to create a print that serves a purpose in our school, home, or community. Currently they are in the process of iterating their designs using the Design Thinking Process. CS Problem Solving Unit Mastery CheckStudent MaterialsWeek 1
Week 2
Week 3 and 4TuesdayWednesdayThursdayFriday |
Archives
March 2024
Categories
All
|