Last year, I wanted to try a new, more advanced class that focused less on science and math concepts the upper grade levels were already learning in their regular classes and instead introduced students to computers, coding, game design, and the ever-increasing concern of parents around the world: online safety. The coding class was a huge success, so we're bringing it back again this year!
Instead of individual lessons on different STEM topics each week, the coding class lessons are structured around a single project that students will work on throughout the courses. The final class session of the courses is reserved as an extra day to complete projects and, if this extra time is not needed, will instead be a time to program and play with our LEGO Mindstorms robots.
Fourth/Fifth Grade Class Signup Form
The focus of this class is primarily on computer software. As more and more of our day to day lives has been moving online, computer proficiency is an important skill to begin developing early on and coding a skill that will only increase in demand for the foreseeable future.
We will start by covering the basics of computing starting with binary calculations, using web browsers, and online safety, then transition into the basic parts of a website and coding languages. Students will then use this knowledge to begin building their own website about their favorite animal. Each student will be provided with a subdomain from Neocities.org, a website that offers free tools and tutorials for building a website using html (this is also the resource I used to build the CCA Stem website).