Jill Snyder The Wheatlands Elementary School Oswego CUSD #308 IIT Research Mentor: Dr. Cindy Hood This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under grant No. EEC Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

Overview Activities chosen to present to students during the RET Workshop were: Introduction to computer components and vocabulary. PB&J activity: Introduction to software programming Role Playing: How a computer works

Overview Lessons presented in workshop focused on content as it related to computer science utilizing inquiry method of teaching. Students were engaged and all participated in all activities presented. Positive teacher feedback was received on the module.

Overview Design: The design component of the module was not presented in the workshop, as it required time in the computer lab. However, as an improvement to lessons presented design aspects will be added to the module. Students will be asked to design a ‘better’ PB&J sandwich based on the problem: How can I make a pb&j sandwich so that when I make it in the morning the jelly has not bled through the bread by the time I want to eat it in the afternoon. During the Computers lesson students will be asked to design an input or output device for the computer that would solve a problem for them.

Overview –Ethics: Students did not focus on ethics during the workshop as it was well covered in the previous module that they took part in. –More ethics will be added to the module using the labels in the pb&j activity as an introduction. –Ethics will be discussed in the Computers lesson as it pertains to the free software used in the design part of the module. For instance, is it ethical to copy and sell a program that is available for free on the internet? Is it ethical to download a pirated version of software that is for sale? Is it ethical to use software intended for one purpose to be used for an unintended purpose?

Standards Illinois Learning Standards -Based on teacher feedback, some teachers were unsure how the module related to Illinois State Standards. This module fits with these goals……….. -Science and Technology: STATE GOAL 13: Understand the relationships among science, technology and society in historical and contemporary contexts. English: STATE GOAL 3: Write to communicate for a variety of purposes. English: STATE GOAL 5: Use the language arts to acquire, assess and communicate information. Math: STATE GOAL 7: Estimate, make and use measurements of objects, quantities and relationships and determine acceptable levels of accuracy.

Pre/Post Test Results Students average pre-test score was 5 of 13 possible points. Students average post-test score was 9.77 of 13 possible points. Students seemed to grasp most concepts and vocabulary by the end of the lessons. Some changes will be made to the pre/post-tests to include more material on computers and ethics.

Modifications More activities will be added to make this material more usable for older students, though not all things will be able to be modified. The design aspect of the module can be used from grades 3-12 th grades. The ALICE program can be used as a very basic introduction to computer programming or the more complicated aspects of the program can be used at the higher levels. It all depends on the background knowledge of the kids and the comfort level of the teacher.