Digital Fluency - Week Waru

This is a short and unusual animation I've created using scratch. The session was useful in that we had a brief introduction, had a simple piece of coding from the tutor that we could use, not use or even take as a starting point and modify. I think this is a useful approach that I could take into the class. Make it short and snappy, leave all the students with something they can use to allow for success for all right away and then leave it mostly to trial and error.

Throughout my own recent learning journey being a student of coding (I'm learning so I can help start a Game Development club at our school), I've come to see the value in having some basic building blocks and then being left to figure it out. That's the beauty of coding, it encourages problem solving and logical thinking in our students. Game development is a highly motivating platform in which to teach coding, as students get instant, entertaining feedback on the code as their games take shape. I am a convert to teaching game development in the class and have seen my learners across all our curriculum levels excited to do it.

I loved exploring the different tools for teaching computational thinking today. Relating back to the Manaiakalani kaupapa of learning being accessible to all, regardless of socio-economic status, I love that these rich learning tools are free and accessible online. If teachers see the value of it, then school wifi and devices are all that are needed to tap into some incredible learning and set kids on the course towards creativity and even digital careers.

Next I'd like to take 'Compute It' into my classroom as a intuitive, problem solving challenge that I know all of my learners are capable of doing and would get value from.

It's been an intense and truly worthwhile journey on DFI...next step: study for the exam!