As an early childhood educator, I would allow children to have free, open experimentation with computers as a precursor to explicit teaching. My ideas have changed somewhat, based on readings in this subject. I discovered, based on how children learn best, that sometimes experimentation is the way for them to discover things. Building on that, slow introduction of key metalanguage and explicit teaching is necessary to extend and build a knowledge base.
The unplugged activities that I ave seen are all wonderful entries to the concept building that is important with younger learners. The build a face activity is very adaptable to an early years classroom. The concept of a=b is important! The idea that n computer science, it is clear, objective input into a computer system that will result in an output. Even activities that are about early algebraic thinking are very good precursors to this style of thinking; can a student create a short message using shapes that correspond to letters of the alphabet, a code! So these ideas of abstraction, of algebraic thinking, are all very big cognitive elements of computer science and coding ability.
Unplugged activities allow for TRANSFER OF KNOWLEDGE back and forth from actual experimentation with computers in the classroom. I could introduce a concept with an unplugged activity and extend on it, as a formative assessment, when using computer programs. There has to be a balance of both.
The HOPSCOTCH program and app are great ways to introduce coding, as is the Angry Birds and flappy birds activities. Unplugged activities to strengthen these concepts are giving instructions to a blindfolded friend, playing real human bee bot adventures where the directions are solely controlled by an instructor to achieve a particular outcome.
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