Hour of Code

As an educator, Hour of Code is one of my favorite weeks of the year. I was first introduced to Hour of Code by a fellow educator a few years ago. I signed my third graders up on the code.org site, introduced what little I knew, and let them explore. I was amazed at what they discovered and how quickly they learned programming.

Last year, I wanted to take it a step further and offer them choices. The students had a choice of 16 different coding choices that not only involved code.org activities, but also hands-on coding (board game and Lego robotics), PC programs, and iPad apps.

Furthermore, a high school in our district reached out to the elementary schools during the week of Hour of Code. The high school students used video conferencing equipment to converse with my students about programming. The high school students taught my students the importance of coding language by relating it to the steps in making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Another group of high school students taught my third graders about coding within Minecraft. My third graders were so excited about conversing with high schoolers and aim to take programming in high school now.

My third grade students thoroughly enjoyed conferencing with high schoolers and the choosing aspect of the coding choice board. They beg to do coding daily.

This year, the choices I added to the Hour of Code Choice board included Dash and Dot (purchased through DonorsChoose.org) and Bloxels (students design video games).

Click here to see Hour of Code Choice Board (editable).