Coding, Computational Thinking and Kindergarten

So last year I started a Coding Club…with kindergarten students.

Oh it get’s better-I haven’t been a ‘teacher’ in over a decade!

The Woodson Coding Club started first on a personal passion – to find out more about my son’s love of robotics. This passion grew into a mission to provide our youngest learners opportunity to create, design and amplify their own learning, and in turn my own.

This year we are back again, this time with a little more research and a new framework to support this learning. We will run two 30-minute sessions during two 6-week sessions for a total of at least 60 students participating. Teachers are identifying students who might have an interest or spark in this work and like last year ensuring that the students in our club represent the diversity of our classrooms.

We need to facilitate empowered learning experiences that will nurture student-led movements and produce powerful projects created by kids who are connected to the world.

Renegade Leadership, Brad Gustafson

During the six-week sessions the focus won’t be on the tools the students are learning, it will be on the learning that the students are creating. We will continue to develop learning outcomes that align with standards and based upon essential outcomes in reading and math – but I am attempting to do so without the step by step answer-key to accomplish the goal.

Computational Thinking (CT)is a problem-solving process that includes (but is not limited to) the following characteristics:

Formulating problems in a way that enables us to use a computer and other tools to help solve them.

Logically organizing and analyzing data

Representing data through abstractions such as models and simulations • Automating solutions through algorithmic thinking (a series of ordered steps)

Identifying, analyzing, and implementing possible solutions with the goal of achieving the most efficient and effective combination of steps and resources

Generalizing and transferring this problem solving process to a wide variety of problems

How we use this process will evolve with student collaboration and ideas. What becomes of this work? Stay tuned!

Keep Dreaming BIG for our LITTLEST Learners,

Jessica

Need ideas to start?

Unplugged Hour of Code: What does a programmer do?

Algorithms-Code.org

Coding Club Post 2016

Woodson Coding Club Lesson Reviews

Renegade Leadership