Search for: All records

Research suggests that introducing students to computational concepts at a young age improves the likelihood that they will become interested in computer science later on in life (Super, 1953). As such, it is becoming increasingly important to develop lessons for K-12 students that include computational thinking (Barr, 2011). The storytelling project at Montana State University integrates computational thinking skills into the Indian Education for All (IEFA) curriculum for middle school students in Montana. 1. Identify an object not in Alice and needed for a lesson. 2. Develop rough draft and provide to the model developer. 3. Develop model in 3Ds max. 4. Add model to world, and add methods as needed. References Plateau Indian Beaded Bags 5. Gather feedback from students and instructors. Barr, V., & Stephenson, C. (2011). Bringing computational thinking to K-12: what is Involved and what is the role of the computer science education community? Acm Inroads, 2(1), 48-54. Cooper, J. (n.d.). Plateau beaded bag, ca. 1930 [Photograph found in Fred Mitchell, Montana Historical Society, Helena]. Retrieved from http://mhs.mt.gov/ Portals/11/education/ABeautifulTradition/tradition%20design%20color% 20brochure.pdf Super, D. E. (1953). A theory of vocational development. American Psychologist, 8(5), 185-190. We work to develop lesson plans, plan outreach events, and find relevant literature to satisfy the content standard requirements as well as the essential understandings associated with IEFA. Furthermore, we strive to integrate basic computer science concepts into these lessons to help pique student interest in programming and computational thinking. This is done using the Alice software, a drag-and-drop programming environment that allows students to use computational thinking in a beginner-friendly interface to create animations.