December 13, 2015

Greetings!

166,726,959 served

Consider this number: 167,000,000.

That's the number of kids around the world who engaged in the global initiative, "Hour of Code", this past week. And our Swain students were among them!

Part of Computer Science Education Week, the Hour of Code gave children a glimpse into the world of computer programming. We hope it is spreading to our families (see below for resources so you can try it at home)!

Click on any photo for more images from this exciting initiative -

Two weeks ago, Tech- nology Instructor Mary Gruber (left, in white top) held kick off sessions to introduce the Hour of Code to all students in grades K-8. During their Town Meeting, Lower School students learned coding basics.

To understand 'loops', students engaged in an algorithm to 'program' Mrs. Haussmann, Mrs. Franzyshen, and Mrs. Beers to make certain movements.

Collectively, they used a magic remote with three buttons: a star, square, and circle. Each button represented a different line of code

or movement from a faculty member. They even tried repeating lines of code by creating loops to code their teachers. What fun! After exposure to some logical thinking, ten fourth grade students (right) presented their various Scratch creations (Scratch lets students program their own interactive stories and games).

Middle school students took a different approach. Already possessing a Scratch background from their fourth grade curriculum, they embarked on a journey to understand binary (using two options as a way of representing information).

To give them hands-on practice in this language, Mrs. Gruber helped students create binary bracelets. Using pipe cleaners, black and white beads, and a decoder, middle school students worked in their Advisory groups to code an initial using their own algorithms.

This week, students in grades K-8 spent more time coding with Mrs. Gruber. Kindergarten students were joined by middle school buddies to code using the following iPad apps: Lightbot, Daisy the Dinosaur, and Scratch Jr. Students in grades 1-3 practiced coding using the code.org curriculum.

Fourth grade students created animated holiday cards in Scratch. And middle school students used code.org's Hour of Code tutorials, with Minecraft, Star Wars, and Artist being the most popular. They also enjoyed the challenge of learning JavaScript using Khan Academy, Codecademy, and other programs.

Seventh grade student Tanner Kontir shares his experience with Khan Academy's Hour of Code:

"I really enjoyed this unique coding experience. It was great and hands on. If I ever got stuck, there was an easy tutorial to follow. With a lot of trial and error, I was able to code many things. When I got it right I felt so accomplished. This short period of time got me interested in coding."

With this newfound interest in coding from

the students, Mrs. Gruber plans on offering a coding class for the Winter SASS schedule. Look for details coming soon!

She encourages everyone to keep practicing coding skills at home using the links found on swainkids.com.

Mrs. Gruber shares, "No matter what careers they aspire to, our students will need technology and coding skills. To compete in a global market, they need to be prepared for what lies ahead. It's been a privilege to watch Swain students code and debug while collaborating and problem-solving. Happy coding!"

Check out this link for coding resources to try at home from code.org's Hour of Code website!

Thanks for reading this edition of Swain Stories. We hope you are following other Swain news on Facebook and Twitter, including photos from recent events, the 'off campus' activities of Swain friends, and articles of interest to parents.

The Swain School
1100 South 24th Street
Allentown, Pennsylvania 18103