CS + Science Hour of Code Resources
Celebrate Computer Science Ed Week with an Hour of Code!
What is Hour of Code?
Want to change the world? Let's get started.
Computer Science for Good. #CSforGood
Inspired by the United Nationsβ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the 2019 Hour of Code will highlight how we can all use computer science to make a positive impact on our world, from writing apps to solve a local problem, to using innovative ideas in data science to address global challenges.
Post to social media with:
#CSforGood #HourOfCode #CSforGWAEA #CSforIA
How do I host an Hour of Code?
Or, you can follow the steps outlined in the video below:
You can also contact Gary Vogt from the Regional IT Sector Board at gary.vogt@kirkwood.edu to arrange a face to face volunteer from local computer science and information technology professionals.
Choose an Hour of Code Activity
We picked out a few unplugged (or offline) and online activities we really like for integrating Computer Science into Science content and shared them below.
Activities are listed from lower grades on the left to higher grades on the right. In general, you'll find PreK-5 examples in the left column, middle school examples in the middle column, and high school examples in the right column.
Unplugged Activities
Elementary π©πΌβπ» Middle π¨πΎβπ» High
If Flash, Then Clap!
Unplugged Activity
Flash! Clap! This hands-on, wild weather lesson teaches conditional statements with lightning and thunder. Students will learn about why thunder always follows lightning and will examine the logic statement "if there is lightning, then thunder will follow." Count the seconds between the two to see how far away the storm is!
Rock, Paper, Scissors
Unplugged Activity
This "unplugged" activity helps students learn how modeling and simulation works by having a group of students play different versions of the Rock / Paper / Scissors game, and see the results as different modeling experiments.
Brain-in-abag Activity
Unplugged Activity
This activity explores how computational modelling (a key part of computational thinking) can be used to help understand biological systems β here neurones. We see how the way our brains work has also been the inspiration for a new way to program computers and so give them intelligent abilities.
Beginner Activities
Elementary π Middle π High
Sea Creature Sequences
Self-led Tutorial
Alex and Lonnie create fancy fish and super sea creatures with blocks. Help them sort the sequences into order and debug by spotting and fixing the mistakes. Customize your own ocean scene and bring your characters to life by adding interactivity. Beginner coders and pre-readers welcome!
Astro Pi: Mission Zero
Self-led Tutorial
Code a message and check the ambient air temperature on board the ISS using an online simulator of the Astro Pi computer's Sense HAT.
Python + Biology: Build an animal classifier!
Self-led Tutorial
Develop your programming skills and build your own animal classifier! In this course you'll use the programming language Python to classify animals based on their characteristics. You'll learn about the differences between animals, and how biologists use programming to help them do science! This activity has some assumed knowledge (variables, print and input).
Comfortable Activities
Elementary 𧬠Middle π¬ High
Change the World
Create a project that shows how you would change the world! Whether you are passionate about recycling or have an idea to achieve world peace, share your vision with code!
Build a Catapult
Participants will build a catapult to launch a ball from one side of the stage to the other, as in the game Angry Birds.
Code the Eclipse
2017 gave us one of the most spectacular natural phenomena of our lives, and now we're going to simulate the solar eclipse with JavaScript! Looking at the eclipse as a system of moving parts, we can decompose the problem into bite-sized chunks, using objects with methods, loops, and conditionals to make an interactive app that models our observations.
Spread the Word Before and Celebrate After your Hour of Code
Questions? Contact Us!
Hour of Code is a wonderful way to build excitement and provide students and educators opportunities to code! Please contact Corey Rogers if you're interested in incorporating Computer Science and coding into your learning community.
If you have questions, please feel free to reach out to Corey (crogers@gwaea.org) or your district's Digital Learning Consultant for more information.
Email: crogers@gwaea.org
Website: dlgwaea.org
Location: 4401 6th Street Southwest, Cedar Rapids, IA, USA
Phone: 3193825902
Twitter: @dlgwaea