Over the last few weeks, sophomores have been preparing for the trip to Barbados by teaching the 4th graders here at CSG for practice and to get used to the lesson plans for when we leave. By using different lesson plans we have taught the girls what coding is, the basic skills for scratch, and how to create a maze (pictured below). Using the teaching skills and different changes to the lessons, students will be more experienced for when we go to teach in Barbados.
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Last week in One Laptop per Child the sophomores were able to teach the lower school fourth graders basic Scratch in a forty minute lesson. Before we began with coding we prepared a fun activity where one student had their back to the board, and their partner told them directions on how to draw the item depicted on the board. We created various rules to make the activity more challenging, and they loved it! We then explained that the person with their back to the board was the computer and the person telling them what to do was the coder. We then taught the girls basic Scratch skills including how to make their sprite (or character) move, and make noises. The students were very receptive to this lesson and were able to make their own codes quickly. Teaching the students was an informational experience because we learned how to answer questions and help the girls with coding. I think that the most challenging part was getting the students to not talk while we gave directions, however we were able to overcome this obstacle very quickly when we were given a “silence bell”. Overall the experience was amazing! Recently in One Laptop, I have been finding and contacting organizations to donate laptops to. I've been in contact with several places so far, and am hoping to find more places so we can help a larger group of people!
In one laptop we started to plan our trip. I researched different villas that we could potentially stay in. I found a lot of different options but our favorite was a pretty house near Holetown. Hattie and Alex researched different fun activities that we could participate in during our free time on the trip.
By Paige GullettAs the new teacher for this project I'm just one of the changes for this year. I'm so fortunate to be taking over this project from Christine Murakami who poured her heart into this for so many years. I know I'm up to the challenge and I'm working with a wonderful group of students this year. We have spent the first part of the year cleaning up and refurbishing the retired laptops from CSG. Typically we have around 40 laptops to refurbish and donate. This year we have over 120 laptops to refurbish for donation. The girls are learning a bit about installing the Ubuntu operating system. They have been diligent and working hard and we are getting close to donating some of the laptops. We've realized this will be an all year project and are excited to have the ability to reach so many more people this year. In class we are starting to focus on our trip and the skills, both technological and teaching, that will be needed in the schools. I'm happy to have several returning students who are taking on a leadership role and exploring some additional options to help teachers develop lesson plans and learn to use scratch in their classrooms. Having been in several different schools over the past three years there is an interested on the part of the teachers to learn about using scratch in their classrooms. We are excited to help make this happen. |