At the elementary level, there were many computer programming activities and concepts taught during Computer Science Education Week in the school library media centers.

This week, Mrs. Erin Battaglia, at Radcliffe and Spring Garden, used the Foos through codeSpark Academy with grades K-2. This program includes fun, online challenges geared towards teaching coding concepts to children ages 5-9. Ms. Johanna Hungler, at Yantacaw School, programmed Bee-Bots with her primary students, learning command sequencing. All the elementary library media specialists also used activities and units from Kodable and Code.org with grades 3-6. In particular, Mrs. Susan Bresnan, at Washington, introduced students to the basics of computer programming and what it means to code with a beach cleanup interactive game from Kodable. Ms. Janine Sarno, at Lincoln, used a new unit from code.org to introduce students to machine learning and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to classify data. Her students will participate in a tutorial about sea creatures and discuss the ethical use of AI.

“As a library media department, we are in the process of integrating computer science and coding language fluency as part of our core library media curriculum, which is currently under program review,” said Dr. Jessica Shoja, Coordinator of the district’s Integrated Technology. “We love Computer Science Education Week! It brings interest and raises awareness to the importance of computing, which we value as an essential part of well-rounded academic preparation. Aligned with 21st-century skills, computer programming activities are known for engaging students in critical thinking and problem-solving.”