Computer Science Inspired by Literture - WAOTL

For over a decade I have been celebrating Computer Science Education week with Vermont educators.  In 2013, we created a place for Vermont schools to share their participation in #CSEdWeek and the #HourOfCode activities that many of them participated in.  Since taking on a role as a chapter leader for Vermont-CSTA, I've continued these efforts. Here are some highlights from our Vermont schools participation in #CSEdWeek2024, 

One of my contributions this year was to design a workflow for elementary classroom teachers, librarians, and their students to code an interactive experience using SCRATCH  to accompany the children's picture book "Who's Afraid of the Light" by Anna MacGregor.  This was one of my grandchildren's favorites from the Red Clover Book Award nominees.   

I also created a PD opportunity for educators who wanted to create confidence with code using this workflow.  If you're interested in enrolling in this PD opportunity (including a certificate of participation for continuing ed credit) email me at ldelabruere at gmail and I'll send you the Google Classroom Code. 

I also plan to share the workflow and lessons here and over the next few blog post for those who just want to try it with their students. 

This blog post is the first in this series of posts.

In this series, you will experience computer science by using Scratch to create and code an interactive experience with bioluminescent characters from the book. Most of the coding challenges target grades 4-6.

Younger students will be able to participate in SOME of the activities in collaboration with older students or with support from teacher and other adults.  

Your characters will include the storyteller (i.e. diver), Fergus,  and 3 additional bioluminescent sea characters from the book. You will learn to code a blinking light animation effect to simulate bioluminescence 

You will also learn to control your characters, hide and show your characters, make them move and add dialogue between them. You will also change the setting (backdrop) and add sound.

Here is part 1 of a teacher guide that also includes a Welcome video to get you started.

To get started go ahead and read the book "Whose Afraid of the Light."
You can get a copy from your local bookstore or your library. 

You will meet 4 bioluminescent characters:
a gulper eel, a vampire squid, a spook fish, and an angler fish.

Use the unlined back of an index card to draw one character per card.
Trace the outside of the character with a bold black line using a Sharpie.

Color the inside of the characters with vibrant bold colors.

 My 5 and 6 year old grandchildren loved this part.  I imagined students in grades 4 and older adopting a reading buddy from lower grades and encouraging their reading buddies through this part of the process. 

Perhaps each of the younger readers could draw ONE character that older children can use as they learn to code the experience.  I an tell you from experience that the younger learners will be very excited to see their illustrations used in these Scratch projects.  When your older students use younger reading buddies as an 'authentic audience' for their projects, they  hear comments like "There's mine!" contributing to a feeling of community amongst your students.  That's an outcome worth striving for in our schools. 

In the next blog post in this series, I'll describe a workflow that I  have used for bringing hand drawn student work into a SCRATCH project. 

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