This course introduces the concepts of algorithmic thinking and coding for middle school students or brand new coders with no prior experience. It was created in alignment with Nebraska's state standards for Computer Science and meets Nebraska's upcoming Computer Science graduation requirement.
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Students will learn:
Fundamentals of algorithmic and computational thinking
Block-based coding in the Python Programming language
Data representation, collection and analysis
Networks and Internet Basics
Ethical considerations of computing and responsible digital behavior
How this course is structured
The course is divided into 3 units, each consisting of several lessons. Each lesson consists of steps with built-in assessments. Each step consists of instructional content and a practice activity for the student. Each step is designed to take no longer than 8-10 minutes to complete and each lesson is designed to take no more than 60 minutes to complete. The course includes mini-projects after each unit and additional projects to reinforce learning.
Course Syllabus
Unit 1: Introduction to Programming using Platypus
Lesson 1: Fundamentals of Algorithmic Thinking
Lesson 2: Iteration using While Loops
Lesson 3: Variables and User Input
Lesson 4: Conditional Statements
Lesson 5: Decomposition using Functions
Lesson 6: Comparing Algorithms
Mini Project 1: Crab Quest
Unit 2: Data Representation and Analysis
Lesson 1: Representing Data
Lesson 2: Hardware and Data Storage
Lesson 3: Recognizing Patterns and Data with Graphs
Lesson 4: Data Collection and Analysis
Mini Project 2: 2D Codes
Unit 3: The Internet
Lesson 1: The Internet
Lesson 2: Packets and Data Transfer
Lesson 3: Privacy and Security
Lesson 4: Impacts of the Internet
Mini Project 3: Space Rover: Zeal
Additional Projects
Mini Project 4: History of Computing Zine
Mini Project 5: Day in the Life Comic Strip
Mini Project 6: AI Topics Pamphlet
Mini Project 7: Computer Science in your Community
