1. Somerset Conference Update
Diving deep into primary programming - design for quality and independence
Somerset Conference Update
Jane Waite

2. Engaging teachers in research & feeding this back

3. Activity 1. What would you call these?B C D

4. Task (problem)
Design/ Algorithm
Code
Running the code

5. Levels of abstraction Task Design (including algorithms) Code
Running the code
(Waite, Curzon, Sentence and Marsh, 2011)
What % of your SOW are at each level?

6. How might a simple sequence be represented by pupils as an algorithm /design?1
Norway Longboat sprite
Norway Longboat sprite
move
move
say
say 2 3
say
say 4
???
???
Denmark Longboat sprite
Denmark Longboat sprite
Map background
Map background

7. Labelled diagram
& Storyboard
Santa sprite
Background with stars and moon
Tree sprite
Mouse sprite
Snowman sprite
say
Move
???
move
say
say
say
Move

8. Design can be used as
Aid memoire – improve independence – tick/what next?
Completeness check – improve cohesion/quality
Contract for pair programming
Annotation - scaffold implementation of code
Self assessment - growth mindset
To think about ‘do-ability’
Reminder of design patterns used
To teach abstraction!
For the teacher
To know what to teach next
Differentiation
Assessment

9. Trial in Somerset 3 Teachers across three schools provided feedback
Year 6 Christmas card
Year 6 Christmas card or maze game
Year 3 Viking invasion
Year 6 – Christmas card or maze game
One afternoon talking and designing, two writing the program
Year 3 Viking invasion
Coordinates all highlighted in red (not covered in maths yet)
An EAL – refused to highlight – loves computers
HA EAL - struggled to draw – slowed down and didn’t ask for help quite as often
Year 6 Christmas card
Design chunked so that children could complete that part of the coding within the lesson, move on to the next chunk for next week

10. Feedback from the trial - Overall
Successes
Teachers discovered what pupils knew & what they needed to know (formative and summative assessment).
Teachers could plan in activities to address revealed common gaps or misconceptions.
Pupils decomposed the task to work out what they needed.
Pupils thought in detail about how their solution would work.
Pupils discovered what they knew and what they needed to know (AfL).
Pupils used the design as reminder (independence).
Pupils can use the design to refer back to for a new challenge.
Design useful as
Reminder prompt
Referring back to when children take on a new challenge
Teacher assessment of pupils
Showed understanding of who knew how to do things
Helped recognise where gaps in knowledge were
Planning tool – which things do I need to teach the whole class
Repeat for evaluation of children at the end
Pupil self-assessment (AfL)
Helps children recognise more clearly what they can do, need help with, can’t do
More honest than a tick list

11. Feedback – children’s response
Drawbacks : Not all pupils confident to rag (AfL)
Confidence
In 1 school children confident to RAG
In another school, LA less confident to ‘amber/red’
In another school EAL reticent to rag.
Factors that may have influenced confidence
School culture – do pupils already use AfL/ ragging
Pupil confidence to self-assess – EAL, new to school, personality

12. Feedback – children’s response
Knowledge
Think in more detail about how their solution would work
Think of the skills and knowledge needed to make it work
Recognition of what they already knew (more honest than a tick list)
Realisation of skills they needed (AfL)
This is what I know and can do
These are the skills & knowledge needed to make it work
This is how it will work in detail
Gap in learning, misconceptions
This is what I don’t know & can’t do YET

13. Feedback – Guidelines for using design
Pupil to pupil support
Use of talk partners or confident children.
Group children for teaching/reminder of a skill
Peer mentoring
Can they tell someone how to… or explain to someone else?
Resources support
Laminated blocks, use with TA or another child
(NOTE: too much scaffolding can hide level of knowledge/confidence)
Self help library (Scratch support cards or videos – Scratch or child made)

14. Feedback – Guidelines for using design
Adult support
Modelling design and how to RAG
‘If you need help with … come and see me …’
Common strategies to work on the bits they know they need help for
Children need practise – to do design several times

15. Somerset Design in action
How about adding
Model how to create a class design.
Children use this as a starting point and innovate from it?

16. Somerset Design in action

17. Somerset RAG Poster

18. Somerset Design example

19. Somerset Design Templates

20. Other Design Templates

21. Other Design Templates

22. Modelling designs – let’s do it!
Create a simple etch-a-sketch game in Scratch for year 2 to practise their keyboard skills.
Create an animation of a nocturnal scene for year 2 to learn about predators and prey.
Create a simple quiz, in Scratch, that asks 5 maths questions for year 2 to practise their 5 times table.
Create a simple driving game in Scratch for year 2 to practise their mouse skills.

23. Use – Imitate – Innovate – Invent
Create an animation of a nocturnal scene for year 2 to learn about predators and prey.
Idea
First show a mouse running from left to right, and then it stops and says ‘I like to eat bugs and beetles’.
Next show a bat, flying from left to right. Then it stops and says ‘I like to eat ….’ It then swoops down and eats the mouse.
Mmm I’d like the bat to appear its flying towards me – but I am not sure how to do that. I’d also like an ‘I use echo location and small to big cuvey lines’
How do we then

24. Use – Imitate – Innovate – Invent
Create a simple etch-a-sketch game in Scratch for year 2 to play.
Ideas
Use the arrow keys to control the drawing of a line.
Use the ‘R’ ‘G’ ‘B’ keys to change the colour of the line to red, green and blue.

25. Use – Imitate – Innovate – Invent
Create a simple driving game in Scratch for year 2 to practise their mouse skills.
Ideas
Control the car with the mouse
If the car touches the green grass make it go back to the beginning
If the car gets to the end a sound is played and a ‘Well done’ message.

26. Use – Imitate – Innovate – Invent
Create a simple quiz, in Scratch, that asks 5 maths questions for year 2 to practise their 5 times table.
Use – Imitate – Innovate – Invent
Ideas
Ask a question, get the answer, check if the answer is correct. If the answer is right say ‘Well Done’ but if the answer is wrong say ‘Sorry that is wrong’.

27. Aid memoire improve independence – tick/what next?
For Pupils design can be used
Initial study
Somerset Trial
Aid memoire improve independence – tick/what next? 
Completeness check – improve cohesion/quality
Contract for pair programming
Annotation - scaffold implementation
Self assessment - growth mindset – discover what the already know & can do & identify what they cannot yet do (gap)
To think about ‘do-ability’
Reminder of design patterns used (for next projects)
To teach abstraction
To think in MORE detail about their proposed solution and what is required to implement it

28. To know what to teach next
For teachers, design can be used
Initial study
Somerset Trial
To know what to teach next
(identify what next steps are & gaps and misunderstandings) 
Differentiation
Assessment
(identify current knowledge and skills and identify gaps)
To think in MORE detail about the possible solutions to the task and what learners need to know & be able to do to implement it.
To think in MORE detail about how they are going to teach next steps
- CHILDREN NEED PRACTISE to use design effectively

29. Progression – theory – general progression

30. Questions