Descrizione
I would like to run 3 coding days where the selected children spend the day developing coding skills. My goal would be to give the children different coding experiences to increase their understanding of how coding works and develop their skills so that future programming learning will be more accessible to them. I would also aim to foster an enjoyment and love of coding in them to encourage them to pursue such activities at home or through joining clubs at school.
I would initially start with physical programming using programmable toys like Beebots to create a foundation in the basic steps of programming and coding. I would aim to develop the children's understanding of simple algorithms and develop their ability to plan and then program algorithms to move the Bee-Bots around a floor mat. I would also introduce the concept of debugging asking them to correct coding errors. As they would share Bee-bots it is also a good opportunity to encourage teamwork and cooperation to solve problems and work out solutions together.
I would then build on this using software like Purple Mash 2Code or Scratch looking at basic block coding. I would initially aim for them to be able to write simple code snippets to program a sprite to move, create sounds and change it's looks. Depending on their level of understanding I would then progress this to using infinite and count-controlled loops to create an animation.
If they are progressing well I would then finish the day with a challenge using coding blocks to create a specific outcome. We have microbits so I would challenge them to use the Make Code software to turn their micro:bits into a fortune teller or a counter to introduce the notion of variables for the more able. Those who might not be ready to move onto variables I would encourage them to use their micro:bits to play sounds and show different symbols using the LEDs.
The targeted children would be Pupil Premium Pupils who come from low income households and disadvantaged economic backgrounds. We currently have 57 children who could benefit from these days. Ideally I would like to run 3 days to cover all our PPG children for a whole day each.