I would love to have a “Brag Board” for students to share their accomplishments. I also like the idea of getting excited when students or I run into a problem. I hope that if I approach problems with a very enthusiastic “Great! Now we get to troubleshoot. How exciting!” attitude, the students will likewise see challenges as opportunities for learning instead of something to dread.
I use the above, or variations of, plus ‘time is your friend’. Step away from the work, coming back refreshed and with new ideas.
I think it’s a great strategy to tell them, “I don’t know, but we can learn this together.” It sets a tone for team work instead of “I’m the teacher and you’re the student.” In technology, things change constantly, and we’re all learners at some level. It’s ok for students to know that you’re not all knowing.
I like continuing to raise the bar:
First day or two, can ask for help
Then, have to at least say: I’m on puzzle X
Then, have to say what you are trying to do
Run in slow mo
Pair programming
Three and then me
Help 3 then “free” … this last one is for stewardship… if a student finishes a section early, they have to help 3 before they can go on. Builds collaboration/community/stewardship, etc.
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I find it helpful for students to explain the problem to the teacher. In working out the details when using Code.org’s courses for the student to also physically get out of their chairs to move like the bee or zombie or other character. I do plan on posting a class-constructed version of the Recipe for problem solving.
thank you, I’ll use it in my classroom.
I will be practicing pairing up. When students can explain to each other how the process works the can completely understand the concept of what they are doing.
I definitely like the sharing strategy. Sharing with other groups and other classes is a great way to build confidence as well as problem solve any issues they may see. Having 5 or 6 different classes in the same grade level over the course of a week allows for the opportunity to share across the grade level to build that confidence and problem solve.
In order to solve a difficult problem, it is necessary to write all possible solutions on a piece of paper. So it’s easier to think about everything.
I liked the advice “Ask 3 and then me.” I’ll try to put it into practice.
Policy:
Emphasizing attitude and behaviors of CS students or students in general on Day 1 helps your class run smoothly. I would definitely do that on Day 1.
Asking for Help:
I currently do something similar to the “ask 3 then me” approach in my class. In my approach, I also add the following steps:
- Try it anyway (it might work if you are lucky)
- Look for clues on the web
Collaboration:
There are times or tasks that require collaboration and times or tasks in which true collaboration won’t occur. Some of the conditions on which true collaboration seems to occur include:
- The task must be difficult enough
- The task must require creative thinking
- The task must require expertise of all members
- Students’ levels of experience should be at the same or close level
I will use unplugged activities to teach my students CS.
Using google classroom my students could provide links to share their accomplishments.
Being new to all of this, I really like the “ask 3 then me” concept. I think it will help take some off of me as the teacher and it will help other students to share and build their confidence in their learning and understanding.
I really like the “Ask 3 and then me” strategy. I also think doing more paired programming activities will help.
I like to start with an engagement activity (perhaps an unplugged activity), have the students explore/collaborate (pair programming if using computers), then come back together as a class to have a group discussion (review/closure). Incorporating growth mindset strategies are important to build students’ confidence, reminding students that they might not solve a problem right away, but to persevere because they can do it-they haven’t solved it YET, but they will eventually if they keep trying!
Journaling will be a useful strategy to see the progress each student is making through their unique, individual perspectives.
I definitely plan to use the unplugged activities to help students make connections between computer science principles with other ideas and concepts. The Ask 3, then ask me idea seems like a great one. Students in my classes, especially the higher level classes want to skip straight to asking me because they want validation or they want to move on quickly. However, this would force interaction between students.
I also use the c 3 b4 me. This will be a great way to reinforce the concept. I will definitely putting in some ways to solve problems on their own and unplugged activities to help relate to RL problems.
I would encourage students to work together to help each other figure things out. If they can’t figure it out, then I would work with them to work through the process of figuring out the answers to their questions.
I often have students work together to find mistakes, especially in math. Sometimes I’ll have two students compare their work without telling them which one of them is correct. This way, they’re looking at each other’s steps, and their own, very carefully to see where they are different. They usually figure out who is right and why.