Week 6: Game Based Learning and Computer Programming

Hello again and welcome to week 6!

It is no secret that children like playing games and what better way to succeed at school than by having fun along the way? Combining playing games with learning allows children to learn and achieve at the same time. 

By games, i do not mean the educational benefits to the wii or the x box!!! I mean the educational benefits of modelling software and we got to explore a variety of modelling software.

ICT modelling is a term used for children to explore "what happens if...." and can support us to make decisions before committing ourselves to the real thing.

There are many different examples that can be used in the classroom:

• My modelling toolkit
• Purple Mash
• Tizzy tools
• My world
• 2Simulate
• 2Do-It-Yourself

Purple Mash

I had the chance to play around with the features of Purple Mash which provides a fantastic range of resources:

• 2Investigate
• 2Design and Make
• 2Paint Projects
• Mashcams
• 2DIY 3D
• Postcards
• 2Publish Projects
• 2Type 

This program has many benefits such as children having the chance to develop ICT skills, is regularly updated with seasonal activities and encourages independent learning. 

The video shows how to use 2Design and Make in purple mash

Scratch

Scratch is a website that allows children to create and share their own interactive stories, games, music and art. It allows for more decision making. There are many opportunities for creativity and gaming. Children will really engage with the big ideas of programming - problem solving, thinking mathematically and using logic and reasoning. Being able to learn the basic skills of writing simple computer programs is useful to understand how computers do what they do. It is a fantastic piece of software that all children should have the opportunity to learn how to use. 

The video below is an example of scratch in action!

LOGO 

We finally got the chance to to explore the LOGO program. This was quite difficult to understand at first as there were codes that needed to be typed up accurately for the command to proceed. LOGO is important to learning because:

• It involves more than just moving a turtle or using mathematics. It involves thinking about processes and being aware of how you know what you are doing. 
• The process of creating the product is more important than the finished product.

These tools are all great ways for children to learn without realising it so they will definitely be used with my future class. They are also advantageous in including each child!