Overview
Students create computer programs with loops and events and write algorithms for everyday tasks. Through this they learn to collaborate with others meaningfully, investigate different problem-solving techniques, persist in the face of difficult tasks, and learn about Internet safety. By the end of this course, students create their very own custom game or story that they can share. Students starting in Course 1 will be early-readers in the lower elementary grades.
Lesson Sequence
Online lessons are in regular text and unplugged activities are in bolded text.
| # | Lesson Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Happy Maps | Students create algorithms (sets of instructions) to move a character through a maze using a single command. |
| 2 | Move It, Move It | Students learn what it’s like to instruct their classmates to move through a maze in their classroom. |
| 3 | Jigsaw: Learn to drag and drop | Students gain familiarity with a computer by solving jigsaw puzzles, which accustom them to the Code.org system and also to the idea of dragging and dropping. Students learn how to collaborate with others on assignments at the computer. |
| 4 | Maze: Sequence | Students write programs (algorithms for the computer) that get a character through a maze. They’ll understand the importance of sequence in the programs they write. |
| 5 | Maze: Debugging | Using the same environment as the prior lesson, students are presented with a maze and a pre-written program that fails to get the character to the goal. Students will have to “debug” or fix the pre-written program. |
| 6 | Real-Life Algorithms | Over the first 5 lessons in this curriculum, students have been writing algorithms. This lesson calls out ways we use algorithms in our daily lives. This lesson also focuses on the bigger picture of computer science and how algorithms play an essential part. |
| 7 | Bee: Sequence | Students write programs that move a cartoon bee around that gathers nectar and makes honey. This is a more complex version of Maze. |
| 8 | Artist: Sequence | Students write programs that move a character around, drawing a line behind it wherever it goes. |
| 9 | Building a Foundation | Students build a marshmallow structure using only provided supplies. Structures must complete a task (reach a certain height or bear a certain weight), and students discuss the idea of persisting during a task. |
| 10 | Artist: Shapes | Students write programs that draw simple shapes, while describing their position relative to other shapes (above, below, etc). |
| 11 | Spelling Bee | Students write programs that moves a Bee around a grid of letters. The path the bee takes spells out simple words. |
| 12 | Getting Loopy | This lesson introduces the programming concept of loops (repeated instructions) through a dance activity. Students will learn simple choreography and then be instructed to repeat it. |
| 13 | Maze: Loops | Students write programs in the Maze that involve using a loop. |
| 14 | Bee: Loops | Students write programs in the Bee environment that involve using a loop. |
| 15 | The Big Event | Students are introduced to the programming concept of “events,” which are actions that a computer constantly monitors for. The teacher will press buttons on a fake remote, and students have to shout specific phases depending on which button is pressed. |
| 16 | Play Lab: Create a Story | Students write event-driven programs that create games or tell stories. There are puzzles with certain goals and at the end, students are encouraged to express their creativity to create whatever they’d like. |
| 17 | Going Places Safely | The Internet is a powerful, but sometimes dangerous place. Teachers introduce to students how to stay safe while navigating the Internet. |
| 18 | Artist: Loops | Students write programs that draw interesting and beautiful patterns using loops. |
