Your students have been working SO hard this past month! I can hardly believe that we are into the first few days of October already. It seems as though we just started our time together in class. This past month, we have been focusing on our technology skills in many different ways.
We have already explored graphic design by using a program called Canva. The students created posters for their own fictional bands as if they were rock stars. I saw so many great posters-if you didn't get a chance to see your student's work, ask them to share!
After our graphic design project, we explored how to be safe, responsible and respectful digital citizens. This year, we focused on creating and keeping safe passwords. With virtual learning, students are using more and more online media, and keeping information shared with online learning resources safe with a password is incredibly important!
Once we completed our safety unit, we moved on to coding in Scratch. Scratch is a program created by the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Media lab and allows users to create computer games with coding. We worked together on a Snake Game, and students created their own Snake sprite, and added code to their sprite for movement. It was amazing to see all the codes that students came up with, and many added backgrounds, sounds, and other movements well beyond what we learned in class! Scratch is a great program to use on Wednesdays for extra practice with critical thinking, problem solving, and creativity. If you are interested, there is a great book on Scratch call Coding Games in Scratch, a Step-by-Step visual guide to building your own computer games by Jon Woodcock. I found a used copy on Amazon for just $1.50, but it can also be found at most libraries.
This week, we started working on our understanding of the Design Process by creating a Food Truck. A great overview of the design process can be found here. The students are creating a concept, theme, logo, menu, advertisement, and food truck wrap and putting all of their elements into a presentation that will be shared on Tuesday of next week. I have really enjoyed seeing their work-ask your student about their truck and see what they are creating!
Finally, this week your student had a brown paper bag in their take home totel In this bag, there are parts to a mystery project that the students will build next week Thursday. Please let me know if you were not able to pick up your tote. We will work to make sure that your student has their supplies. The items in their brown bag are the students to keep, there is no need to return them!
I said finally earlier, but I have ONE MORE announcement. If your student is interested in joining the after school robotics club, watch for the announcement that will be sent out next week. I will be checking out kits, and we will be building a VexIQ challenge robot design so that we can possibly compete with a middle school team later this spring. The dates for the competitions are still tentative because of Covid, but we will be practicing each week with different designs regardless. The information meeting will be held on October 15 from 3:45-4:30. If you are not able to attend the meeting, you are welcome to email me at aflickingerpierce@deforestschools.org and I can share the information with you!
Thank you for sharing your students with me-I know that virtual learning can be hard, but I have been so impressed with your students every day. They are truly a joy!
