Education Standards
Timeline of CS
What is HTML/CSS
What is Programming
Introducing Computer Science 6th Grade
Overview
This is an introductory lesson introducing what computer science is and what some of the topics are that we will cover in their Intro to CS and Web Design Course.
Computer Science Interests
Once students are in groups I will divide them into two groups based on their hobby or pass time. One group for computer science-related and the other for non-computer science-related.
After everyone is either in a computer science or non-computer science group, as the students why I grouped them this way.
I’m expecting them to make a connection to one half being technology-related and the other half non. I will ask probing questions to help them form the connection that these were developed or used using computer science in some way and the others were not.
I am expecting students to be shocked by the percentage of students that are around one group because of computer science.
Students- Stand up!
Find one or two people in the room that share a similar hobby or favorite pass time as you. Some examples might be video games, reading, instruments that you play, YouTube channels you watch/follow, sports that you play, etc.
Once you are in a group, quietly converse with one another by answering the following questions one at a time:
1. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
2. Would you rather eat pizza or tacos?
3. Would you rather read a book or run a mile?
4. If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?
Once everyone is grouped, listen to the teacher as he/she will then start combining groups to make larger groups. Pay attention to which small groups are joined together.
The teacher will open the floor for suggestions about why he/she grouped them this way.
CS Video #1
Students will view this video and then answer the following questions:
Ask students:
“What surprised you about this video?”
“What might be a definition of computer science?”
Be ready to answer the following quesitons after viewing this video:
What surprised you about this video?
What might be a definition of computer science?
CS Video #2
Students will view this video and then answer the following questions:
Ask students:
“What surprised you about this video?”
“What might be a definition of computer science?”
Be ready to answer the following quesitons after viewing this video:
What surprised you about this video?
What might be a definition of computer science?
Gallery Walk
These are the articles I found for the current environment I will be teaching in. Feel free to adjust topics and articles based on your course priorities or as information becomes more updated.
When I say “move”, get into groups of 3 and pick one of the posters on the walls to move to. You will have 5 minutes to read the poster and summarize the key points. When the timer goes off, be ready to share your key points with the class.
How many people should be in each group?
What are you going to share with the class?
Go ahead and say move. On each wall in the classroom, I will have a short article posted explaining each of these 4 key topics.
-History of CS
-Problem Solving Process in Computers
-HTLM/CSS
-Programming
Once back in there seats, ask the following questions:
What are examples of frequently used tools or items that have been developed with computer science?
What do you think will happen to the future of computer science jobs and techniques?
I will explain that these are all computer science topics that we will explore in this course.
After the final rotation, ask students to go back to the seat.
Exit Ticket
Activity: To evaluate how well the students are understanding the topic (most specifically that Computer Science is not just coding/programming), I will pay attention to their key point observations from the gallery walk as well as their responses to the questions following the gallery walk.
As an exit ticket, I will ask students to come up with a brief definition of computer science and write it on a sticky note before they leave class. This will give me a more formal way to check what they took from the lesson.
Exit Ticket:
On a large sticky note (located on the counter in the back of the classroom), come up with a brief definition of computer science and write it (along with your student number) on a sticky note. Place your sticky note in the "Exit Ticket" folder before you leave class. This will give me a more formal way to check what you took away from this lesson.