2020 term 3: week 1: Computer Science careers and principles

Programming students will be starting their learning for term 3 right after Christmas break!  We will be doing some work looking at our career pathways and seeing how we are lined up with our current programs of study as we start to get career ready in computer science.  We will then start learning some fundamentals of computer science, and will then move into the software development cycle that we will be using this term for our programs.  This course has a lot of rigor, and students will be pushed more than they have been in most other courses they have taken, but students will be getting prepared for career and college experiences in their future.

2019 term 4, week 3: Robotic Motions

Students have been programming buzzers, lcd screens, buttons, and motor functions of our Arduino robots.  We will continue this next week.  We will learn about advanced motor functions, proximity sensors, line detectors, and more by the end of the week.  It will be exciting to see everything these robots will be able to do as students are able to dig deeper into our programming concepts!

2019 term 4, week 2: Intro Zumo Library

Students in Programming 2 have been able to review over computer science principles, and have been working on defining and solving computational problems.  The problem we have been working on most is the optimization problem.  Students have learned how to set up basic programs that can be looped using the Arduino microcontroller.  This week, we will apply what we have learned as we start working with the Pololu A-Star 32U4 Zumo Bot library.  Our first program will be incorporating a program that will utilize LED lights, on-board buttons, and an LCD display.  The display and buttons will be used as a menu to run our programs from when we start programming the microcontrollers.

2019 term 4, week 1: Welcome to Programming 2!

Monday starts our 4th term, which means we have a new Programming 2 class!  Students will be learning how to apply computer science principles and problem solving strategies to creating a variety of programs and computational solutions.  We will start off by discussing some topics in computer science careers, then will begin doing some learning with the Arduino programming environment.  We will be creating a variety of programs that will be run with robots that are assembled with the Arduino microcontroller.  Be ready to learn a lot and create a lot of real-world applicable programs!

2018 term 3: week 7: Lists, Dictionaries, Tuples

Programming students have been very impressive in their work they have turned in, and also with how they continue to find new tips and tricks to try with their programming.  We spent some time this week with if/else statements and also loops.  Next week, we will begin learning about Lists, Dictionaries, and Tuples, and how we can apply them as useful data structures for our programs.  Next week is Parent-Teacher Conferences on the 14th, so be sure to stop in our class to discuss our progress this term! 

2018 term 3: week 5: Python

Programming students need a little more time to finish up with their robotics, then we will be ready for our next section!  We will start learning Python programming.  Students will learn to install Python and our PyCharm text editor, then will learn some basics with the interactive interpreter.  Once we learn some basic Python fundamentals, we can start using the text editor to begin creating programs.  I love Python programming, so I am very excited to be moving into this section of class!

2018 term 3: week 4: Abstractions & Computational Artifacts with Robotics Assessment

Programming is about finished with our Finch Robots.  This week we have made obstacle avoidance applications, light following programs, programmed LED lights, and made music by programming the built-in buzzer for the robots.  Next week, we will be creating a Pong video game, where the image sprites are controlled by using Finch Robot as a motion controller system.  This is always a fun project, and it's crazy to see all the creative ways students find to program this assessment.

2018 term 3: week 3: Finch Robots

NPHS Programming 1 students have finished up basic fundamentals of computer science that we will be using this term in class.  We are using our software development cycle to create our first program, and will then be using our computers to program Finch Robots.  Some of the early programs will include the making of our keyboards as input devices to control the Finch Bot movement, timed motion, and self-automated obstacle avoidance systems.  Next week should be a lot of fun!

2018 term 3: week 2: Computer Science and Development Cycle

Programming students have looked at some career and college opportunities in programming and computer science.  We will next start discussing concepts of computer science with some "unplugged" activities that allow us to start getting in the right mindset for systematic problem solving.  We will then discuss the software development cycle that we will use for our projects this term, and will begin to put our first programs together.

2018 term 3: week 1: Careers in Computer Science

Hard to believe 2019 is here!  We are getting ready for term 3, which brings in a new class of NPHS programmers!  We will start off learning classroom procedures and expectations.  We will then talk about careers in computer science and programming.  Students will do a research project where they explore a career field related to computer science, then will present their findings to the class.  We will finish up with a reflection about the career field we learned about that we find the most interesting.  Programming is a tough course that requires a lot of work, but it is very rewarding when we are able to write programs that can solve a wide variety of problems.  I'm very much looking forward to another great term in programming 1 class!