All good things must come to an end.

Hopefully for you, the proverb "All good things must come to an end" sums up your experience in Gr. 8 Coding class. For many of you, it was a valuable introduction to coding - throwing you into the deep end,  for those with some experience I hope that it has opened your eyes to the possibilities that exist in I.T. for your future. You all have gained some valuable skills. 


Now is the time to reflect on the experience. 
Please take the time to answer all the questions below, as much detail, evidence and feedback would be greatly appreciated. 

Answer all questions on your Gr. 8 Coding blog. 

Questions

1. Reflecting on this trimester, what has been one of the most valuable skills that you have learned?

2. If you had to choose 2 School Wide Learning results to describe the knowledge that you have gained in class, which would you choose? Explain ( be sure to provide evidence and examples to support your ideas).

3. What activities do you believe could be included in the class if it was offered next trimester? 


When you have completed the questions, please create a new page in your portfolio. 
Title the page - Grade  Coding 101. 

Place the following on your eportfolio page. 
 1. Embed your blog into the google site page. 
 2. Please your 3d Symposium presentation on the page. 
 3. Embed your journal into the page. 

Lastly, ensure that you have completed your 3D symposium rubric, reflected on the experience, both through highlighting your perception of your assessment and providing rationale. Please remember all components are assessed. 


If you are unsure, on how to embed your blog, view the following youtube. 
Enjoy
Mrs.N


Embedding Blogger into a google site page.

Graphic source 

Let's reflect on progress so far.

Now that we are rapidly approaching holidays, it is time to reflect on our experiences. 

We have blessed to have our student mentor, Austin Holmes, the resident 3D expert with us. He is having such a great experience that he wants to come back and join our class in January. 

On your blog, please reflect on the following and respond,:-

1. What knowledge have you gained in class?

2. How has this knowledge changed your attitude to school life?

3. Looking ahead what real life problem could you solve with 3D printing. 

4. Find a graphic that clearly shows you as a learner. 


Once you have completed your blog, please review your collaborative journal and make sure that this is up to date. 

When done, you may use the rest of the time working on coding - let's go back to our Computer Science Course. 

A little bit of fun - Google Santa Tracker

The 3D printing journey continues....

Last week, with the mentorship from Austin Holmes we had the opportunity to begin to explore the world of 3d printing. Thingiverse, Makerbot and Tinkercad are now common phrases in the classroom. On Wednesday, we saw first hand the Makerbot digitizer. Next week we will be able to examine the Makerbot printer. 

As outlined in the TED Talk, the possibilities for solving real world applications, using 3d printers are staggering. Applications such as prosthetic hands once ridiculously expensive have become more cost effect and affordable for people in need. Medical Science is exploring the use of 3D printing for bone, kidney and heart transplants. 

With yourthe partner lets begin to describe our journey on the following google doc. 

Global Hour of code - December 9th - 15th, 2015.

From December 9th - 15th, 2015 is the hour of code. ! Pretty Exciting!
Millions of people world wide will take part in this initiative. 




To entice people to take part  Code.org has designed some basic coding activities to get people ready for the event. 

Accelerated Intro to Computer Science Course
In order to give students the skills necessary for computer science courses and logic programming, Code. Org has developed a course that covers core computer science and programming course. It is designed for students 10-18. 

As a starting point, navigate to CODE.ORG's website... https://studio.code.org/

Select Student sign up. 

Once you have signed up, select the ACCELERATED COURSE ICON. 

CLICK HERE to access the course

Knitters and Coders - Separated at birth?

During the summer, I received several emails that highlighted a connection between knitting and coding. 

Last week, you had the time to collaborate constructively in class and attempt to follow instructions and produce a knitted square. 

As we know coding is about logic, attention to detail, perseverance and at times working as a team. For your weekly blogpost let's reflect on the experience. 

Reflect and respond

1. Outline the successes that you had
2. Outline the difficulties
3. Lessons Learned
4. Describe the connection to coding
5. Take a screenshot of your finished product and add to your blog. 

Enjoy

Mrs. N. 

Resource article
Knitters and Coders - Separated at birth

Welcome to Coding 101

Welcome to Coding 101

It's amazing to reflect upon the way in which technology is a vital component of our everyday life. Truly it touches the majority of activities that we complete each day; in class, at home, while doing homework, contacting friends. Indeed technology is second nature to us, a facet of our life that we take for granted.


One fact that numerous researchers agree upon, is that programming is a crucial skill that should be taught in school. The major problem is that not all educational institutions view programming as a necessary skill.
Let's look at some facts:-

As a starting point, lets uncover your skills, passions and wishes for this trimester. 

1. Create a new blog for our Coding Class. (url - your panther apps user name, followed by coding - for example jsmithcoding.blogspot.com)

2. Look for a creative title.

3. Reflect upon your programming skills and interests. What prior experience have you had with programming. What programs do you know?

Python

Java

C++

Xcode

Scratch

HTML

4. What have you created with the programs that you know- provide evidence. 

5. What interests and goals do you have for the trimester?

6. If you had the choice to work on any programs in the class, what would you like to do?

7. Phew,next find an image that portrays you as a programmer. 

8. Spell check, grammar check, publish your blogpost and send the url to Mrs. Narsiman, via google classroom. 

Graphic Sources:-
1. Code.Org