Wednesday, March 8, 2017

New Curriculum is Soft-Launched

Hello, Parents,

We are rolling out the Structured Learning computer lab curriculum in our lab, gently. Revising the launch for our students so that they are not overwhelmed, but also so that they begin to understand the transformative potential of learning as much about technology as they possibly can, I'm doing a serious (re)introduction to computer keyboarding. Please talk with your child about how practicing this important skill toward learning it--the goal being to learn to type without looking at your hands, both quickly and accurately--can open up their future to be more comfortable and successful both in school and in life after school. I have a few students who seem unwilling to put forth the effort to do so, and I trust that hearing it from you might just help!

Kindergarteners, 1st-ers, and 2nd graders learned a bit about the difference between input devices and output devices on a computer this week. This is an essential concept for them to understand and most of them worked through the online tutorial at ABCya.com very well. Next week we are slated to work on basic problem-solving skills--how exactly can you solve a problem if you don't immediately know the solution?

I have a few pictures of students working in the computer lab, along with their work, of which they are always proud once its completed.

See...
Free Choice two-player games adds collaboration


Creating Minecraft bots at Kodable.com