Posts Tagged distance learning

STEM Tuesday — Coding– Writing Tips and Resources

Conditional Statements

Welcome to the STEM Tuesday Coding Revival & Traveling Medicine Show! Grab a great book from the STEM Tuesday Coding recommendation table, have a seat and let the power of coding revive your STEM soul. Can I get a “Hallelujah!”?

Citation: George R. Brunk II 1950’s Revival Photographs. Theron F. Schlabach Photograph Collection (HM4-378 Box 1 Folder 4 photo). 

Our simple and elegant design looks at coding through fresh eyes and is inspired by the universal power of the coding embedded in our daily lives. 

Coding is two-fold. We mainly associate coding with the writing of computer programs, but coding also means classifying or identifying something by assigning it a code. I like to preach coding as being the logical breakdown of a process or event. Coding is a way of thinking. 

Coding, on one hand, is computer programs and video games and special effects and entertainment. The scope of computer coding reaches far and wide into almost every aspect of modern life. Alexa is Alexa because Alexa’s software codes it to be Alexa. Banks, governments, law enforcement, education, sports, etc. all increasingly rely on the power of code.

Coding also exists outside the electronic world. 

Coding is biological. Coding is chemical. Coding is physical. 

Coding is animal, vegetable, and mineral.

Coding spans from describing how atoms interact to how our entire universe behaves.

Now that’s truly a hallelujah thought!

Conditional statements

If/then, hypothesis/conclusion, cause/effect are conditional statements. Thinking in code requires using conditional statement tools. Thinking within the logic of a conditional statement helps break down a process which leads to an understanding of that process.

If this happens, then that happens. If this doesn’t happen, then that happens. 

A simple tool with so much power. A way to look at the world and attempt to understand it. The knowledge of the human race is built upon conditional statements. The knowledge waiting to be discovered will most certainly be found by observing if this happens, then that happens.

Simplify & design

Once one knows how something works, the process and the design, and the logic can be extrapolated to other things. Build a better building by studying the steps (coding) termites use to build a mound or the organization of chemical bonds in a crystal. One of the coolest things in molecular biology I’ve been reading about is DNA origami. Molecular scientists are using the predictive binding inherent between the nucleotide bases of the DNA genetic code to fold DNA strands into molecular tools for a wide range of processes, from drug delivery systems to micro-robots. 

Better design comes from a better understanding. Better understanding comes from thinking like a coder!

Steps to Code

A. Observe!

     Watch something happen. Pay attention to what is happening and record what is seen.

(There’s an almost indefinable book first released in 1969 called, Supper of the Lamb by Robert Farrar Capon. The book combines culinary science, philosophy, religion, and economy in a stream of consciousness style as the author prepares four meals for eight from one leg of lamb. The entire second chapter is about observing an onion. How it’s packaged, designed, and executed to produce a wonder of nature and of flavor. That’s next-level observation!)

B. Break down the parts.

     Take the observations, place them in order.

C. Study how the parts fit and how they work.

     Come up with ideas (hypothesis) of how to get from part A to part B. 

D. Mimic.

     Try out your idea. If it works, then move forward. If it doesn’t work, then try something different.

E. Repeat. 

     Iterate until you imitate.

Logic muscle  

Coding requires healthy logic muscles. Living life through a coder’s lens takes practice and discipline. The logic muscles need work. Practice daily and code your world! Observe. Observe. Observe. 

Thank you for attending the STEM Tuesday Coding Revival & Traveling Medicine Show! We hope you feel the coding inspiration flowing through your veins. On your way out, don’t forget to grab your complimentary bottle of Dr. Swanson’s Patented Problem-Solving Elixir! It is guaranteed, organic, pure STEM with a touch of STEAM for added flavor.

Go out and code, my friends! 

See the world through new eyes!

By Unidentified U.S. Army photographer – Image from Historic Computer Images, Public Domain.

 

Mike Hays has worked hard from a young age to be a well-rounded individual. A well-rounded, equal opportunity sports enthusiasts, that is. If they keep a score, he’ll either watch it, play it, or coach it. A molecular microbiologist by day, middle-grade author, sports coach, and general good citizen by night, he blogs about sports/training related topics at www.coachhays.com and writer stuff at www.mikehaysbooks.comTwo of his science essays, The Science of Jurassic Park and Zombie Microbiology 101,  are included in the Putting the Science in Fiction collection from Writer’s Digest Books. He can be found roaming around the Twitter-sphere under the guise of @coachhays64.

 


The O.O.L.F Files

The Out Of Left Field (O.O.L.F.) Files this month branches out into the world of coding. As I said in previous O.O.L.F. Files, all roads lead down the rabbit hole of curiosity and inquiry. Have fun sliding down your rabbit hole of curiosity and inquiry! Just remember to come back and do good work.

Bioinformatics: Where code meets biology by Daniel Bourke

Code.org

Code.org® is a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to computer science in schools and increasing participation by young women and students from other underrepresented groups. Our vision is that every student in every school has the opportunity to learn computer science as part of their core K-12 education. They also sponsor the Hour of Code event.

Best Coding Tools for Middle School from Common Sense Education

Coding in Astronomy

I never really thought much about the relationship between astronomy and coding until a few years ago. But when you think about how the immense amount of data generated by modern telescopes collecting electromagnetic wave spectrum from distant galaxies, that data needs to be organized and analyzed. Astronomy and coding. It’s a no-brainer-relationship.

DNA Origami

 


How do I motivate students outside the classroom?

Distance learning took many teachers by storm.

With the advent of Covid19, teaching went from being in front of a classroom of students to being behind a computer with periods of facetime. The magic of the classroom and active student engagement was gone. Every teacher was faced with the same question. “How do I motivate students outside the classroom?”

Before I describe the following Harry Potter contest, imagine using other books you’d like to feature. How could you incorporate a biography? A STEAM book? Historical Fiction? Think how this system could work in your own classroom between students, between classrooms within the grade level teams, or between grade levels in the same school. Have fun. Think outside the box.

Our school librarian was concerned that our students would opt for entertainment games instead of reading a good book. She and the other librarians in our school district came together and created a Harry Potter Contest. The contest was designed to be a competition between schools.

After creating the different elements of the contest, the librarians designed a website with weekly instructions and a leaderboard featuring house points. Before the contest began, the librarians sorted the schools into houses. My school was sorted into Hufflepuff.

(As a side note, we just finished the contest and it was a HUGE success. Students were engaged, books were read, lively conversations took place, and best of all, the schools came together in a friendly reading competition. Oh, and Hufflepuff won!)

Harry Potter Contest

Week One

  1. Reply to your Hogwarts invitation letter via electronic owl (Google Form)

Prompt positive responses are worth 5 pts; late responses will still be accepted, but will only be worth 1 pt.)

  1. Access a copy of the first Harry Potter book. The audiobook is currently available to stream for free online (in English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, and Japanese) from Audible Stories; and the ebook is free on Amazon for Amazon Prime members (please talk to your parent/guardian for assistance).
  2. Take a picture of yourself reading/listening to the first Harry Potter book (worth 1 pt). Submit to your house email box.

Week Two

  1. Read Chapters 1-4
  2. Find out what wand you would get by taking this quiz
  3. Design your own wand or Arm yourself with a wand such as a chopstick, stick, or pencil. Post a pic with a sign showing your quiz results (worth 5 pts). Submit your results to your house email box.
  4. Take the Ch 1-4 Trivia Quiz (Teacher created Google Form) Your answers must be submitted by noon on (TBA). Participation is worth 10 pts. The winner from each House will battle the other Houses in a Trivia Match. Extra points will be awarded to the house that wins.

Week Three

  1. Read Chapters 5-8
  2. Show your House spirit by making a House bookmark. Post a pic of you using your new bookmark (worth 10 pts)
  3. 3. Ch 5-8 Trivia Quiz Your answers must be submitted by noon on (TBD date). Participation is worth 10 pts. The winner from each House will battle the other Houses in a Trivia Match. Extra points will be awarded to the house that wins.

Week Four

  1. Read Chapters 9-13
  2. Create your Patronus animal out of origami
    • Dog (easy)
    • Cat (easy)
    • Horse (that flips) (medium)
    • Bird (that flaps) (medium)
    • Snake (medium)
    • Rabbit (medium)
    • Fox (not hard, per se, but has more steps to it)
    • Phoenix (not hard, per se, but has more steps to it)
    • Mouse/Rat (doable, but slightly tricky at times)

Share a pic of your Patronus (worth 15 pts)

  1. Chapters 9-13 Trivia Quiz. Your answers must be submitted by noon on (TBD date). Participation is worth 10 pts. The winner from each House will battle the other Houses in a Trivia Match. Extra points will be awarded to the house that wins.

Week Five

  1. Read Chapters 14-17
  2. Make something for the Hogwarts end-of-year feast (for some inspiration, click here)
  3. Take a pic of your food/beverage for the virtual banquet table (worth 20 pts) Submit to your house email box.
  4. Ch 14-17 Trivia Quiz Your answers must be submitted by (TBA) to be in the running to compete in the Trivia Cup Final against the other Houses; the winner from each House will battle the other Houses in the Trivia Cup Final held at (TBA) with questions from the whole book.

    The winning school wins the HOUSE CUP!

    The winner is awarded the right to display the HOUSE CUP for one year, until the next competition.