What is coding and computer science? Why is it important to my child? What do the objectives mean?
Reading the Computing Curriculum objectives you could be led to believe that it is challenging, however you could not be more wrong.
Time and time again I have run events where in a blink of an eye a full hour has passed by and the children are still fully engaged. Spending time exploring, talking, creating and engaging in hands on challenges that help children make sense of technology around them, and build confident and inquisitive minds.
My son who is just six, and is a keen coder, explained to me in a car travelling home from school how a road traffic signal for speed worked. If a child of six understands this concept then having time to explore coding as part of the wider curriculum will allow subjects to come to life.
Many teachers, and I speak from personal experience, have to juggle their time between assessment, marking, planning and teaching (as well as a curriculum responsibility). Through my posts and blogs I hope to help empower teachers by helping them make the links that will enable them to bring coding as a regular feature into their classroom. The ability to bring Maths, Science, Art and English to life through an approach that involves technology will enable children to learn with a deeper understanding and purpose.
As part of a Year 5 Coding workshop I taught recently children engaged in an Art session that involved using their knowledge of shape to develop repeating patterns. The children used their knowledge of angles on a straight line to find missing angles to allow them code to develop shapes. Using division to work out internal angles allowed the children to develop a variety of shapes. The understanding of mathematical terms was superb “Mrs Dodds that would be an obtuse angle.” The class understood and started referencing learning that had taken place because it was important to the challenge. Allowing children to problem solve and reference key learning is essential as this is an area children need to develop resilience in.
Children learn when it’s purposeful just like adults. Why is the skill necessary? How can it benefit me in the future? Let’s help children see the links in their learning and open in their opportunities through computer science.
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