Rubber Duck Debugging With Your Students #CSforAll #EdChat

I was working with my students on the Sphero Delivery Service Coding Challenge I had created. Students need to code their Sphero through the delivery route to deliver a package to the main office. They are provided the map below to guide their coding. 

Each square represented a carpet square in our common area. The students needed to do the math to figure out how far the Sphero needed to run at the correct speed to navigate the delivery route. Here is an example of what it looks like. 

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A post shared by Nicholas Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher)

Many students had no problem taking their time and working through their code. One even figured out the twist to the code that required the students to increase their speed or time of movement at the end because the final stretch was slightly up hill. 

However, others were stuck in very early parts of the coding. They had trouble going step by step because they were trying to do it all in their head. Despite suggesting to them they should write it out to see what it looks like, they refused to do it on their own. They wanted to talk through their code with me. When you have a full class of students all trying to code, you don't have as much time to debug every single line of code for every single student. The students that did start to walk me through their code would always catch the mistake before I said anything. They just needed to walk through it with someone. 

That is when I remembered something I had heard about a while back called Rubber Duck Debugging. Here is a link that walks through all of the history behind RDD. I realized that I need to order a bunch of rubber ducks for my students to help guide them through their code. Even better, I found blank rubber ducks they could decorate however they want! At the start of the next trimester, every student in my Innovation and Design classes will be given a rubber duck to decorate and serve as their coding mentor. Here is my rubber duck I will be using in class. 

This is a fun way to work through code that students and teachers will love! Give it a try and let me know how it goes! I will share student designs as they are created.

Hugs and High Fives, 

The NerdyTeacher

Beyond an Hour of Code #Coding #Education

There is feeling by teachers that teaching coding is not a valuable use of time in the classroom. As standardized tests ramp up in schools across the country, many teachers find it hard to fit coding into their curriculum beyond one houri n December. The biggest misunderstanding that seems to take place around coding is the belief that EdTech is trying to turn all students into coders. This could not be further from the truth. Here are some of the real reasons why teaching coding to students is valuable. 

1. Coding supports problem-solving skills - One of the biggest things I have encountered as I learned to code as an adult was how much I depended on my problem solving skills to figure out why something was not working in my code. Coding systems will spit out errors when your type the wrong thing in the wrong place. The coder needs to find out where the problem is, why it is a problem, and how to fix it. Working through a problem toward a solution is an important skill and students need help developing it. Watching students work through their code is always interesting because you can see the wheel turn as they go line by line. This takes me to the next good reason. 

2. Attention to detail - The answer to your coding problem is always in the details. I have seen students spend many minutes trying to debug their code, but will refuse to proofread their essay before submitting it to their teacher. Teaching students the value of taking their time, checking their code for errors, and making notes on anything that needs to be fixed are skills that translate to writing. ELA classroom teachers, which I was for over 15 years, have tried to get students to make proofreading a part of their writing process. It wasn't until after I left the ELA classroom that I found that coding is how I could encourage students to proofread. Proofreading skills improve with practice and proofreading code is a must if you want your code to work. 

3. They might become a coder - The goal of using coding is not to make every student into a professional coder for the rest of their life. However, there are some students who might never have considered coding as a career if they had not had a taste of what it is like in the classroom. Women and women of color and not represented across the coding world and if there is going to be a move toward more equity in this world, more opportunities need to be given to students to explore coding in fun and engaging ways. Bringing coding into the classroom can start the move to bring balance to the coding workforce. 

4. Basic Understanding of the world - Students will take biology, chemistry, physics, etc. and families and teachers generally do not think twice about this. We are not expecting all students to become biologist, chemists, or physicists. We want students to have a basic understanding of their world. Technology has become engrained into just about every facet of our lives. It is near impossible to go about your day without needing something that has been coded. Being able to look around and understand how things work and why they work the way they do can be helpful as you navigate your world. Asking students to explore coding to obtain this understanding is something that should no longer seem like a wild idea. 

These are just a few of the reasons why bringing coding into the classroom more than just an hour a year. Building in coding as part of the curriculum will bring positive results beyond just coding knowledge. Take the time to explore coding yourself and you will see how you use your own skillset to solve problems and create code. 

Hugs and High Fives, 

Nick

Interactive Fiction with Python! #MakerEd #Coding #ISTE21

Thanks to everyone that made it to the webinar. I was able to take the recording and add it to YouTube. You can watch it below. Feel free to share it with your students and with others around the internet. Here are the links to the resources used.

Trinket.io

Raspberry Pi Tutorial

My game with advanced elements

Here is my game I made. Press play to start.

 

 If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out and we can connect.

Virtual Hugs and High Fives,

NP

Gamer Fun with @MSMakeCode Arcade #MakerEd #PBL

Hello everyone! I wanted to share a great tool I used in my class this trimester for students to work on their computational thinking through coding. 

MakeCode Arcade is a program that allows users to create their own 8-bit arcade game for free! This Microsoft tool is free to use and does not require any sign up or login. Tutorials are provided and all of the games that are there already can be explored to see how their code works. You can build your game using block code or Javascript. This has been a huge hit in my design class and I wanted to share one project that really stood out and has taken the Middle School by storm. 

The assignment asked students to create their own video game and a commercial to advertise it. One student decided to make a game based on one of our teachers and it is very fun and the commercial is amazing. Here is the video,

Here is the game, 

Shademania!

What is great about this assignment is that the students can make the game as simple or as complex as they want. The commercial has the students explore design from a different perspective. One it is all done, the students have basically created their own game company. I'm a huge fan of MakeCode and think you should give it a try in your class. 

Coding Text-Based Gaming in ELA #NCTEChat

I am always looking for different ways to engage students in ELA classrooms. As a gamer, I've been looking for a fun way to engage student gamers in the classroom and I think I have found a very fun way to do that.

One of the oldest types of computer games were text based Role Playing Games (RPGs). You would be given test based descriptions of what was happening and you would have to type what you wanted to do next. You could travel from one place to another by typing in "go west" or some other direction. You could pick things up and use them as needed as long as you typed the instructions. I thought that creating a text-based RPG would be a great lesson for students for a few reasons;

• Story-telling - Students need to work on telling stories. Creating a narrative around a game they are creating is a fun way to practice their writing skills. Building a plot, creating a protagonist and antagonist, and working on their descriptive writing are skills that writing for a game can help enhance.
• Proofreading - Proofreading code to make sure everything is where it needs to be to run properly is crucial. These proofreading skills need to constantly be practiced. The importance of punctuation in coding is the same as the importance of punctuation in standard writing.
• Interactive - Writing a game and being able to play it and share it with friends to play is a more interactive way to write. Any errors in writing that are found while playing can be shared and debugged later. 
• Differentiated - Writing the code for this game can become a very complex game or a very simple game depending on the person writing the code. This allows all different skill level writers the chance to explore story-telling through code in ways that meet their skill set. 
• It's different - Sometimes, it is good to do a bit of writing that is different than just sitting and writing. This offers a nice way to change the pace of the classroom writing students are used to doing. 

The more that you have your students doing this, the more benefits you will find. Below are the steps I took to laying out the lesson. 

Note: You do not have to know how to code to do this lesson. Do not let the code scare you away. 

Day 1:

I introduced the Raspberry Pi RPG tutorial program to the students. This link is shared on Google Classroom so all students can access it. The program is very nice because it does not ask students to understand the bits of code that are provided, it only asks students to fill in some blanks and recopy what is already given to them. The tutorial is really helpful because it allows the students to work ahead if they are quicker in understanding what needs to be done. The tutorials takes students to an online code program called Trinket. You can have students create a free account so they can save their code and come back to it later. 

As a class, we work together to add one room to the program. By the end of one class period, the students should have added one room to their game. They are asked to try and add another room before the next class meeting. 

Day 2: 

For the second class meeting, we will have students learn to add an item to pick up as part of their game and we will add a monster. The tutorial walks the students through all of this and makes it easy for them to copy and paste in the Trinket website. 

For the next class meeting, I ask that the students have an item and a monster added to their game and 5 total rooms. 

Day 3:

For the third class meeting, we will focus on how you can win your game. After finishing their game, we discuss the different types of stories that you could tell with this type of computer game. Mystery, adventure, space adventure, spooky, etc are all possibilities. The students are asked to start brainstorming a story that they would be able to create a maze-based game around. 

Day 4:

Students are asked to start mapping out their maze that will fit in the narrative of their story. By drawing out their maze room by room, it will make it easier to code. I drew out my map to help me and it made the overall design much easier to code. 

Days 5-7:

Students should be coding their game around the narrative they have created. This is where they can have fun and create the game they really want. By Day 7, they should have something that can be tested with other students in the room. 

Days 8 and 9:

Final proofreading and debugging should take place and the games should be ready to share with the class. Trinket allows users to share links to their games so others can remix them and try them out. Posting those links in a Google Doc or in Google Classroom would be helpful. 

Depending on your students, this can be done more quickly or you can spread it out over time. Since the tutorial is self-paced, this could be something you have students work on a little bit each day. 

Here is the game I created. It is far more complex than the ones that students are working on, but I thought I would really have a go at it. [Update: I added a search feature that can allow players to search rooms for extra treasure that is randomly pulled from a list, but there are rooms rigged with traps, so a search of a room with a trap will cause death unless you have found an amulet to protect you. There is so much more I can add and tweak. I'm becoming a little obsessed with it.]

The game is still a work in progress, but if you want to take a look underneath the hood of this code, follow this link.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to me on Twitter or leave a comment below. I have some very excited students working on this lesson and some of them have told me they have over 10 rooms after only a couple of days. I can't wait to see what they come up with and share them out with the community.  

Connecting Through Coding #MakerEd

I had the privilege to attend BETT 2018 and I spent my time in the Kano booth connecting with educators and students about using code. It was a tiring, but very exciting time in London and I really gained a nice perspective on what Coding looks like in other countries around the world.

The same.

That is what coding looks like all over. There are teachers that are interested in coding, but are unsure of where to start. There are students that love to Minecraft and work on Scratch. There are expert technology teachers that love to code but have never used Scratch or seen Minecraft in action. It is not like I was expecting things to be so vastly different in other schools around the world, it was just something I never really thought about before.

I've been spending lots of time with 6th graders as they have been building arcade games on Scratch and a fun little interaction took place as I was trying to help a student with their code. I was going through a string of blocks to make a ball bounce and another student walked over and said there was an easier way. He sat down and walked me through the easier way and I learned a couple of things along the way. The student I was trying to help said, "This is so funny. A students is teaching the teacher who is trying to teach me. I love it." I simply responded that we are all lifelong leaners and I will listen to anyone that has something new to teach me. When it comes to code, we can all connect and speak the same language no matter how young, or old we are.

I met some amazing educators from all over and I look forward to connecting with them and seeing how we can engage our students in the process of coding together on teams and creating some very fund and exciting games. I'm not quite ready to tackle this project, but I know it will be something that is going to happen down the line. If you code with other countries, please share it with me and the community on Twitter so we can all check it out.

Here are some pictures of me having a good time in London.

More Icelandic/British/American goodness at the Icelandic Embassy in London. Amazing conversations about Education in three very different learning communities. I felt very proud to be able to share the amazing things happening at @uniliggett. #BETT18 #LiggettLearns

A post shared by Nicholas Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Jan 28, 2018 at 3:57am PST

More Icelandic/British/American goodness at the Icelandic Embassy in London. Amazing conversations about Education in three very different learning communities. I felt very proud to be able to share the amazing things happening at @uniliggett. #BETT18 #LiggettLearns

A post shared by Nicholas Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Jan 28, 2018 at 3:57am PST

More art that is modern.

A post shared by Nicholas Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Jan 27, 2018 at 10:32am PST

Seeing friends and connecting is such a great part of being able to travel and connect with some many people dedicated to supporting education. Seeing @msclaragalan is always a bonus to any trip.

A post shared by Nicholas Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Jan 24, 2018 at 12:05pm PST

Seeing friends and connecting is such a great part of being able to travel and connect with some many people dedicated to supporting education. Seeing @msclaragalan is always a bonus to any trip.

A post shared by Nicholas Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Jan 24, 2018 at 12:05pm PST

Student Driven Learning in the Makerspace #MakerEd

One of my favorite parts of managing a Makerspace is the freedom it gives me to allow students to explore areas that interest them. I have no idea what might spark a creative fire in them, but I like to leave lots of things out so students can find things on their own.

A perfect example of that is the GoPiGo3 from Dexter Industries. I had the kit in my room for a week or so when a student asked what it was. I told them it is a cool Raspberry Pi powered robot that you can control through coding on your computer through a wifi connection. For a novice student, that might have sounded like gibberish, but this young lady had already earned multiple badges programing the Raspberry Pi. She was strong using Python and had used block coding in previous years. She asked if she could spend her study hall time building it. I was happy to let her dive in.

It is always fun to watch a student explore something brand new. You can watch them encounter problems and find ways to solve those issues. You can watch their frustration turn into joy as they complete one step after the other. There were very few times that she needed my help to move her along. I was very impressed by her grit as a 6th grader having never built a robot before.

During the course of the build, I had an opportunity to meet her parents and they wanted to let me know that she is talking nonstop about the build. Every day she had gone home and filled them in on the steps she has taken to build the robot and she can't wait to drive it. As a teacher, it always warms your heart to hear a student talk so passionately about something to their family. That is always a huge win.

When I sat back and watched her drive the GoPiGo3, all I could think about was that this was because she wanted to do it. This was not a class assignment, this wasn't extra credit to bring a grade up, this was a student who was interested in something, dedicated the time to learn and explore, and then created something meaningful to them that they wanted to share with her family. This is what we want to see from our students and I'm glad the Makerspace is the spot where she could do that.

Sometimes teachers can get caught up in the need to cover the curriculum that they forget that taking some time to find out what interested them can make a huge impact on their learning over the course of the entire year. I know I have been guilty of that in the classroom. That is why reflection time for teachers AND for students is important. Find out what is meaningful to students and see if that can be incorporated into the classroom.

I'm very lucky to teach at a school that is supportive of student driven learning and the teachers here really afford their students the time to explore areas of their content area that interest them. It is a wonderful learning environment and I think the Makerspace adds that extra element that covers the things that classes do not. This is why I think Makerspaces are so important to the educational system.

The young girl is excited to keep coding the GoPiGo3 and see what she can do with the distance sensor. I might have a future engineer in my space on a regular basis and her love this area might have started from just pointing to the GoPiGo3 box and saying, "What's that?"

Thanks to Dexter Industries for sending me the kit. The student loves it and I think I will be creating a special badge just for her to show off the hard work she has put in for the project.

Check out the GoPiGo3 here and see how it might be a nice addition to your Makerspace. 

#MakerMonday Featuring @SparkFunEDU micro:bit Kits

I’ve been seeing micro:bit on the Internets for months now and I even own a few, but I have not found the time to really dive in and see what I can do with it. Sometimes, I like to just dive in with a device and see what I can hack together, but other times, I like to use a kit first so I can get an idea of what is possible and go from there. SparkFunEDU has the perfect kits for learning all about micro:bit and they are the feature of this week’s #MakerMonday.

I spent time playing with the SparkFun micro:arcade kit, micro:bot kit, and the micro:climate kit and I loved them. I am going to focus my thoughts on the micro:climate kit for the purpose of this #MakerMonday, but here are some quick thoughts on the other kits I played with from SparkFun.

Feratured: SparkFun

Focus: Electronics

Grade: All Ages

What is SparkFun:

“We’re here to help you start something.”

I love this line on their About Us page. It says so much about the Maker Mentality as I see it and how companies can support students and educators looking to open up to Making. They are here to help us get started and that is exactly what the micro:bit kits do.

Personal Thoughts:

Quick Thoughts on the micro:bot and arcade:bot kits:

The micro:bot kit was a fun build, but a little more complex than I expected out of the box. I have a good feeling it was my own fault because I tend to rush and can skip a part of the directions because of that. Once I got everything together and uploaded the coded provided, everything was awesome. It was cool to watch the bot roll around and change directions when it hit an obstacle. Following a black line is fun for a bit, but it is just a start to more complex coding fun anyone can have with a bot.

The micro:arcade kit is great for those looking to get started with gaming projects. I have already built varied projects that involved joysticks and found this to be very easy to assemble and use with an online game. Connecting this to a Raspberry Pi and playing RetroPie games is a fun starter project for those that are looking into starting small for their gaming projects.

Deeper Thoughts on the micro:climate kit:

Out of the box, the micro:climate kit has everything you need to assemble a weather station to get tons of data. When I was opening the package, there was a weather system moving through in 30 minutes and I wanted to get this put together and on my deck as soon as I could.

Here is what I was able to assemble and code in that window.

The @sparkfun micro:bit climate Kit measuring the rain for me. Perfect type of project to do in Science class at @uniliggett. #LiggettLearns

A post shared by Nicholas Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Aug 3, 2017 at 4:09pm PDT

Here is another video I posted on Instagram. 

The @sparkfun micro:bit climate Kit. A bit windy with the rain right now. #MakerEd

A post shared by Nicholas Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Aug 3, 2017 at 4:04pm PDT

I was able to assemble the entire kit and mount it in place before the first drop hit. Once the sky opened up, I was able to see the the data on the bit LED matrix. The wires are long enough to come into the house so I could keep it dry for a longer period of time, but a simple plastic bag worked just fine. Long term, I see myself building a case for it to stay outside. More 3D design in my future.

I was connecting the micro:bit to my computer and changing the code, but that is not a very practical option if the bit is going to stay outside and is in a case of some sort. So, it made sense to me to hook it up to a Raspberry Pi 3 that I could VNC into and upload the new code as needed. (Note: I tried using a Zero W, but it was just too slow to do the things I wanted.)

I was able to combine some code that was provided by SparkFun and have the bit provide me with Temp and Wind Speed. It took some tweaking to convert the C to F, but I was pretty stoked when I was able to code it and get it to work. Sometimes it is the little success that really drive me forward, not just the big ones all can see.

The SparkFun website has a great manual and really guides the user though the creation of each possible project that can be made using the kit. They have direct links to the code that can be downloaded and added to the bit. This made using the Pi remotely so much easier. I just downloaded and uploaded in under 30 seconds and the bit was working.

Extras:

SparkFun is filled with amazing kits and pieces of Maker goodness for all interests. It is worth checking them out when you are in need of conductive thread, alligator clips, or any other supplies to help you get started with your project.

Final Thoughts:

I loved the kits and see exactly how they can fit in a Makerspace, but also how they can fit directly into any STEAM program. Almost all grade levels have some type of climate unit that the micro:climate kit can be used. The level of data collected will be dependent on the skill level of the students, but the teacher can modify as needed with this kit.

The micro SD board in the micro:climate kit that allows the user to store collected data directly to the bit is great for research. Students just need to grab the card and insert into a computer to get the data they need. SparkFun walks the user through the process as well.

The soil temp sensor and the moisture sensor are great add-ons to the bit that will continue to provide information to the user. Connected to a Raspberry Pi, I can see the camera module set to video or time lapse used along with the micro:climate kit to pull in a host a data that would fit perfectly in a multimedia presentation sharing important data points with class.

If you are looking for a diverse set of kits for your classroom, library, or Makerspace, I highly recommend checking out the micro:bot, micro:arcade, and micro:climate kits. Their diversity of application makes them perfect for K-12 STEAM exploration in and out of the classroom.

Yes, All Children Should Try Coding #EdChat

I read another wonderful post from the amazing Pernille Ripp the other day and that had me thinking. That is not unusual because all of her posts have me thinking at the end, but this one had me pushing back a little in my head, so I'm going to share it here. 

Pernille's post, Not Every Kids Wants to Learn How to Code, has some wonderful points that I cannot disagree with here. 

Pernille wrote, "not every kid wants to be a computer scientist." She is correct. Not every student wants to be a computer scientist. I would say that most students do not want to be a computer scientist. However, that is not why schools are teaching coding. There is so much more to it than that. 

I also agree when she wrote, "I wish that reading, playing music, creating, or anything else that seems to be so often on the chopping block was just as worthy as coding." Yes! I wish all of our students had more time and access to the things they are most passionate about at school. I want more money and time to help all of these students. I don't think it is fair to say we are cutting art for coding. It's not like coding came along and bullied art and took its place in line. I have been an advocate for the arts for many many years because I do know the value of them in our schools. I think there is room for all of them, but we might need to make room for one by cutting back on another. That sounds awful, but coding is important. 

As we move forward in life, certain things have become more complex than ever before. In Metro Detroit, you used to be able to leave high school and sign up with Ford and work the line. You would do that for 40 years and you would retire with a nice pension. Those days are gone. While some can still get a job in the manufacturing world out of high school, more and more of these jobs require more and more training. Are all of them code based? Of course not, but they are heavily tech based. To understand the tech, people need to understand how tech works. Tech works through code. 

While I do not expect all students to become Master Coders after some coding courses, I do think it is important for them to have the experience so they can have an understanding of how almost everything in the world works now. That exposure might lead them to a career in a coding related field, or they might just be able to troubleshoot some minor issues at their home. I liken it to learning a language. 

In Michigan, we require students to take 2 years of a language and recommend 3 for college bound students. Are we really expecting students to become fluent in three years of HS language? Are they going to become language teachers? Of course not, but they will have a better understanding of the language (coding is a language, many different languages) so they can interact a little better when they encounter it outside of school. 

I also do not think it has to be one or the other. Coding can, and should be, woven in to other subject areas. Coding in Art and Music makes so much sense! Learning the code for the various colors to show up on the display and create images using lines of code are completely possible. Adding music you record to that creation or music created without touching an instrument is possible. I'm not suggesting we abandon paints and violins, but there are ways to add in elements of coding to what we already do. 

My son, Leo, is turning 5 next week and he already has some experience with coding. He has been using Scratch for a few months and loves it. Does he understand that it is coding, no, but he is learning about he cause an effect relationship actions by using the Coding Blocks. As he grows up and if he wants, he will take the knowledge and explore more complex forms of coding. It will be his choice, but based on playing with it and seeing if he likes it. Some parents at home might not have the chance or the resources to support their kids in experiencing code and that is why schools need to support it. 

I am trained as a high school English and Social Studies teacher. I have spent the past 6 months learning how to code on the Raspberry Pi and now I'm learning something different as I play with a robot. I am teaching all of this myself because I find it interesting. Once I have a complete, or near complete, understanding of it, I can then think of different ways to merge that into a literature curriculum. Will it be easy? Of course not. I did not become a teacher because it was easy. It was because of the pay...wait...

I know Pernille is not suggesting dumping coding from schools, but I do think it is becoming more and more important that our students have more formalized instruction in coding so they can be prepared for the jobs that do not exist yet that will probably involve technology in a major way. 

What are your thoughts on coding in schools?

Quality Time with my @TeamKano Kit and my Son

I've had the best time playing with the Kano Computer Kit. I will just start right away by telling you that you need to order a kit right away if you are interested in getting your students or own children learning to code and assemble their own computer. You need to act fast and pre-order the new Computer Kit comes with a Raspberry Pi 3! Ok, let's get to the basics.

Kano Computer Kits come with a Raspberry Pi which is the computer that runs the OS. The OS comes on a microSD card that comes preloaded with the Kano OS. Here are some pictures of unboxing and putting the Kano Computer Kit together. Below are a ton of pictures that I wanted to share because this really is something that is important to see as well as read about.

The Computer Kit has a nice package

Keyboard dongle is plugged in and ready to go

Power ready to light up the Kano

Assembled and ready to go!

Once everything is assembled, you are ready to connect your Kano to an HD monitor. This can be a TV or another HD capable monitor you have access to at home or school. I connected mine to a large SMART board. Once I plugged in everything, here was the first message. 

Fun little picture

Made a mistake and they helped me fix it

 Once I set my user name and I followed the initial steps, I was then taken to some screens to help me get going. The tutorial setup was very easy to do and was wonderfully paced.

Working the keyboard

Killing bugs!

Setting up the desktop was sooooo simple

Karate Avatar

 Once the desktop is all set and you have created your avatar, you set up your online profile so you can access the great community that Kano has set up for users to share content and try new things others have created.

Once you have set up the account, Kano walks you through the different apps that can be found pre-installed on the OS.

Once you have done all of this, you will earn your first badge! I was so excited to earn my first badge. I'm not going to lie. I might have done a fist pump. 

First badge

 The first app i jumped into was the Snake app. I wanted to make my own Snake app and the game walked me through all of the code I needed to make it run. It was very simple to type out and establish in the system. I then was able to play the games I created.

 When I was done, I shared my creation to the Kano Community.

As I continued to play with Snake and try out the new levels, I earned a badge!

I continued to earn more badges as I played different games and learned different things about coding and creating on a computer. 

Eventually, I leveled up to 2 and was very excited about this accomplishment. The more I played, the more I leveled up. It was a bit addicting. I spent my entire off period and lunch playing with the different games. I was hooked. 

The more levels I earned, the more content I earned for my avatar. 

I know I have shared many many photos, but I've done that to show you how beautiful the UI is on the Computer Kit. It is wonderfully designed and easy to use. The cartoon graphics are well rendered and look great on the HD screen. The UI is so important if you are going to get adults and children hooked on using a device. These are key and Kano has done an amazing job with it.

I played pong, did a text based Python script game, I played with Scratch for the first time and made the Cat dance around the screen, and I did all of this with a huge smile on my face. The true test was to give it to my son and see what he thought.

Leo is playing with the Computer Kit and the Screen Kit (That post will be coming later). He was hooked right away. He LOVES Scratch. He wants to play it all the time. My son is a few months shy of his 5th birthday, but he was moving around the Kano UI easily. He figured out how to do things on Scratch without any support. While Scratch is a different program not created by Kano, the Computer Kit allowed Leo to have easy access to the program. The keyboard was the perfect size for him to click the keys and use the trackpad. He was able to draw a submarine and make it bounce on the screen without asking a single question. Dropping the pieces together was simple for him and Kano allowed him the easy access to a great tool. That is what makes Kano stand out for me. 

The Kano Computer Kit retails for $149.99 and it is worth every penny. The new kit that will have the Pi 3 will not need for you to connect a wifi dongle or a Bluetooth dongle since they are part of the Pi. That will make it a little nicer for the set up. 

Leo continues to play with the Kano Computer Kit and asks me about playing the "Cat Game" (Scratch) all the time. He also loves to play Pong once in a while. He is slowly learning the different aspects of the Computer Kit and he is doing it with little guidance from me. These are such important skills for him to learn. He will be a coding expert if he keeps this up. 

I look forward to seeing the Kano OS grow, expand, and mature with its users over time. Kano will only improve on its stellar UI and offer new applications that will be easily downloadable and added to the desktop. Kahoot just announced that they have connected with Kano. Check out the story here. 

You need to hurry up and reserve your Kano Computer Kit before it is too late. 

Get Coding #MakerEd #EdTech

I've been playing with Raspberry Pi and Arduino for a few months now. I've had a great experience looking at what others have done and copying their code to make things blink or move. I've had a blast seeing how younger students can learn to code using Scratch. I made this guy move around playing with the program and I felt very accomplished when I was done. 

I made the cat dance! #Scratch #MakerEd @teamkano

A video posted by Nick Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Feb 9, 2016 at 7:15am PST

I learned how to do it using Kano. I will have a more detailed post in the coming weeks as I play with it more, bit I can say that I totally love it and see why kids around the world are signing up and learning to code using this wonderful piece of technology. 

I wrote my own code and made 4 different lights blink on and off and repeat. I was able to make them speed up and slow down and I understood why. I am so excited and proud of what I was able to learn on my own. I've run the code and programmed my Arduino to take the humidity and temperature of my room and display it on the LCD. I've been learning on my DuinoKit. I picked it up online and love it. Check it out at DuinoKit.com. I will have a more in depth post soon, but I wanted to recognize the tool that really helped me learn.

Temp and humidity in my room. @DuinoKit #Arduino #MakerEd

A photo posted by Nick Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Feb 12, 2016 at 7:50am PST

The reason I have been doing all of this is that I like to keep busy and learn new things. This technology is more accessible than ever. Growing up in the 80s and 90s, I never thought I would be able to build my own computer, 3D design a case, and run programs that I wrote. Heck, watching the movie WarGames made me a little worried that I would start Global Thermonuclear War by accident if I typed in the wrong code. Now, I have access to these tools and I want to learn them so I can share them with students and my son. I do not want Leo to be left behind because I chose not to engage in emerging technologies.

I encourage all of you out there to pick up something small and practice so you will feel comfortable sharing with your students.

Check out @duinokit on Twitter to get your own. This kit is awesome! #Arduino #MakerEd #Making #Education #EdTech

A video posted by Nick Provenzano (@thenerdyteacher) on Feb 11, 2016 at 3:50pm PST