Hannah, Michaela, & Carol's Photosynthesis with Hopscotch Lesson

TSW- the students will

TTW - the teachers will

Lesson Objectives:

Science: TSW identify elements involved in photosynthesis, including: CO2, water, sunlight, oxygen, stomata Extension: chlorophyll, chloroplasts TSW be able to discuss and describe photosynthesis and reciprocal relationship between plants and animals.

Computational Thinking: TSW learn block-based programming on Hopscotch to design a program that models photosynthesis. TSW learn and apply computational thinking concepts and practices including abstraction, symbol systems and representations, flow of control, modularizing, conditional thinking as well as debugging and error detection. TSW use each other and other’s programs as resources while creating their model.

General structure for Hopscotch:

• Bottom toolbar: :) = your work
• After changing/adding code press play and test
• Code window: must be selected for object you are trying to code

Pre-made program:

• Tree with roots, person, CO2, sun, cloud

Meeting	Activity	Non-sequential opportunities & Notes	Assessment & Reflection
Day 1	Prior to lesson: Students will gather 2-4 leafs each and bring them to class. Intro: Review process of photosynthesis as a group. Use analogy of human needs and plant needs. Use leaves students gathered & microscopes to look at stomata. Use the concept map to illustrate basic elements involved in photosynthesis (CO2, light energy, water, oxygen). (5-7 minutes) Remix screen TSW practice moving CO2 from person as they breath out to the tree TSW discuss what can happen to CO2 when near a tree - it is absorbed through stomata → since it is inside the tree it would not be seen outside of the tree so we will make it invisible when near plant TTW make the structure of Hopscotch visible and explicit. Open CO2 (blue box shows character you are writing code for) Pink boxes tell when → this says when the game starts so anything inside of the pink box happens when the game starts.  What’s inside the box? (follow finger) We saw when the game started (after pressing play), when we touched the ipad the CO2 character followed our fingers.   Now let’s figure out how to write code to show the CO2 is absorbed by the tree. Add light energy, maybe as emoji lighting bolt, and program to follow finger	-Debugging the Sun: (Sun changes color and then sets to yellow) Why does the sun color change? Does that accurately represent real life? You found a bug in our program! Finding bugs, or bits of code that don’t do what you want, and figuring out how to fix them is called debugging. Programmers do this every day.  Let’s debug our program to make the sun look yellow.	Informal formative assessments through discussion and observation: students begin to develop preliminary understanding of hopscotch & know photosynthesis involves CO2, light energy, & water
Day 2	Explore Hopscotch: TSW start playing games and explore hopscotch (7-10 minutes) TTW prompt students to take notice of different actions the characters have been programmed to do.  TTW prompt student to look inside code Add water character - program to follow finger Add oxygen- program to follow finger Using finger on ipad TSW illustrate process of photosynthesis -- move light energy, carbon dioxide, & water to plant and then show oxygen leaving tree TTW: This is challenging to show all these moving parts with our fingers.  Could you program the elements of photosynthesis to do that on their own? TSW program CO2 to become 100% invisible when touching the tree. Program CO2 to clone when CO2 is touching tree	Can we do if/then for if water, light energy, & carbon dioxide enter the tree then oxygen is an output?
Day 3	TSW use their classroom resources text books, trade books, ect. To research photosynthesis. TSW record ideas from research on their photosynthesis concept map. TSW use these ideas to refine their program. TTW prompt ideas if needed and will provide encouragement for help with programming.  TTW not give step by step directions but encourage students to solve problems using their peers, exploration, and test runs. Ideas for extension: Add stomata to leaves.  Program CO2 to become 100% invisible only when touching stomata. Program fruit to grow each time carbon dioxide, light energy, and water are present in a plant. Randomize light energy, carbon dioxide, water → to show this is not a sequential cycle Tree leaves start to appear more yellow/red as less green when less light is absorbed. When light goes into tree → leaves appear more green
Day 4
Day 5

Ideas for extension outside of programming:

Since our programming project is focusing on the photosynthesis cycle, we have included ideas we had to address the other learning goals we discussed.  Although we likely won’t have time to complete the programming project and these extensions, we wanted to address your learning objectives beyond the photosynthesis cycle.

1. Leaf Cell Tessellations
1. Look at tessellations and images of leaf cells (even better if in microscopes). Discuss how the appearance of leaf cells resembles tessellations.  TSW create a leaf cell shape template for their tessellation. TSW use their shape template to trace a tessellation on yellow or orange paper. TSW add green dots inside their plant cells to represent chlorophyll in the leaves that covers up yellow & orange colors.
2. Resource for making tessellation template shapes. https://www.math.nmsu.edu/~pmorandi/math112f00/EscherRectangle.html

Concept map:

             

Assessment

Assessment Rubric -Inspired By: http://hopscotch-curriculum-files.s3.amazonaws.com/Hopscotch%20Curriculum%202015.pdf

	Emergent	Competent	Proficient	Distinguished
Execution	Program has multiple bugs in coding that interfered significantly with the program displaying the key aspects of photosynthesis correctly.	Program has a few bugs but it has a little to no interference with the use  of the program in demonstrating the aspects of photosynthesis.	Program is functional and without bugs and demonstrates all the expected aspects of photosynthesis, but does not include any extensions.	Program is functional and refined. It includes extra features that expand upon the programs ability to demonstrate aspects of photosynthesis, or improve upon teacher guided design.
Content	Student can not identify elements involved in photosynthesis, including: CO2, water, sunlight, oxygen, stomata or discuss and does not know the reciprocal relationship between plants and animals.	Student identifies some elements involved in photosynthesis, including: CO2, water, sunlight, oxygen, stomata but not all and understands that there is a reciprocal relationship between plants and animals but can not discuss and describe it.	Student can identify elements involved in photosynthesis, including: CO2, water, sunlight, oxygen, stomata or discuss and describe photosynthesis and reciprocal relationship between plants and animals.	Student can identify elements involved in photosynthesis, including: CO2, water, sunlight, oxygen, stomata or discuss and describe photosynthesis and reciprocal relationship between plants and animals. Students can also elaborate on the parts of the leaf including chlorophyll, and chloroplasts, and why the leaves appear to be certain colors
Reflection	Student can not describe how their code works.	Student has some difficulty with describe the steps in their code.	Student can describe how their code works and what steps they took to make the character demonstrate the various aspects of photosynthesis	Student can delineate the entire process of creating the code for their program including all how they debugged issues they were having.
Habits of Mind	Student is not aware of the goal of using this program, student gives up when presented with a issue that needs debugging, can not explain rationale for their code.	Student is aware of the goal of the program, struggles to debug issues, but seeks help in order to work through them and has a basic ability to explain their rationale behind their code choices for characters.	Student is understands the goal of the program, attempts to debugs problems on their own before asking for help, and can provide clear rationale for their coding choices.	Student has an understanding of the goal of the program, and has expressed an interest and demonstrated an attempt to use the program to expand on their knowledge. They attempt multiple coding solutions to debugging problems, persist through challenges and work to improve their project with extension opportunities.

Hutchins - Physics & CT Project

Physics - Computational Thinking Project

Nicole Hutchins

Computational Thinking Definition: (Grover and Pea’s overview)

“Computational thinking is the process of recognising aspects of computation in the world that surrounds us, and applying tools and techniques from computer science to understand and reason about both natural and artificial systems and processes” (p.39)

Elements involved (green):

- abstractions and pattern generalisations (including models and simulations)

- systematic processing of information

- symbol systems and representations

- algorithmic notions of flow of control

- structured problem decomposition (modularizing)

- iterative, recursive, and parallel thinking

- conditional logic

- efficiency and performance constraints

- debugging and systematic error detection

Project: Collision in Upper School Physics

The collisions project will involve two or more sprites. Students will set the initial velocities, locations and directions and, based on whether the goal is to show elastic or inelastic collision - the program would model how the collision would happen. (See next page for assignment)

Students have previously done: Projectiles, 1D Motion, Forces

Collision Scratch Activity

Please complete the following survey: Programming in Physics - Part 1

For Inspiration - Take a Look at This Example

In this google document, go to File>>Make a copy

Name your copy “LAST NAME - Collision Scratch Activity”

On your computer, go to the Scratch website.

Part One: Elastic Collision

Your goal is to simulate elastic collision via three billiard balls.

Right click on sprite in the bottom left hand corner.  Click delete.

Add a new sprite by clicking on the tiny sprite character next to the words New sprite in the bottom left (your sprites should be circles/pool table balls).  

Go to the Events script in the top middle of the screen.  Insert the button When <Flag> clicked in the space to the right, your programming window.

Set the initial location, direction and velocity of each ball. Each sprite should have a different initial location, direction and velocity. You will need to use “variable” from the data category. Finally, you will need to make sure the balls to not leave the screen. Be sure to use the “if on edge, bounce” option that you have used in previous Scratch assignments.  Use the snipping tool to paste an image of your code for each sprite below:

Now you will need to take into account what happens when the balls collide! For each sprite, add additional “when [flag] clicked” as necessary to create the code needed to program what happens when the ball touches the other balls on the “table.” This may take a few tries for each sprite!  Paste your code for each sprite below:

Part Two: Inelastic Collision

On your computer, go to the Scratch website.

Your goal is to simulate inelastic collision via a crash! It can be - spaceships colliding, a car crash - you decide! The objects should be of two different “sizes.”

Right click on sprite in the bottom left hand corner.  Click delete.

Add a new sprite by clicking on the tiny sprite character next to the words New sprite in the bottom left (your sprites should be circles/pool table balls).  

Go to the Events script in the top middle of the screen.  Insert the button When <Flag> clicked in the space to the right, your programming window.

As before, set the initial location, direction (towards each other) and velocity of each ball. For each sprite, program what will happen when the two objects collide. It is OK if the sprites leave the screen after the collision. Use the snipping tool to paste an image of your code for each sprite below:

Please complete the second part of the survey: Programming and Physics - Part Two

Two-Fold Assessment:

CT Portfolio (a la Brennan and Resnick) -- Mr. Slovenski gave me the work of four students with varying performance levels on the past three Scratch assignments. With this fourth assignment I will be able to see if there were any improvements on the four elements described above over the course of the semester. How well does a “portfolio” structure work? How can it be improved to support development in CT understanding?

Class Performance on One Assignment -- Will give a quick survey on student confidence in CT prior to completing assignment (Part One). Students will then be asked to describe ways they utilize the CT elements noted in green (above) in order to assess their application of the computational thinking tools (Part Two). Links to the surveys are in the assignment, above. Content knowledge will be assessed based on their ability to accurately depict elastic and inelastic collisions.