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In this segment, you will…
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Discover the potential for engaging and extending student thinking through the intentional use of mathematics in the context of science and engineering. Delve into the core concepts of computational thinking, which, when combined with science, engineering, and other curricular subjects, can provide students with a diverse range of experiences that foster the application of these concepts and facilitate the expansion of critical thinking skills.
Mathematics and Computational Thinking (MCT) explores a set of fundamental concepts and tools used to represent physical phenomena and their relationships.
We can enrich student learning by providing foundational experiences with…
The integration of Mathematics and Computational Thinking in the classroom offers tremendous opportunities, not only within the science and engineering but also in connecting these disciplines with other subjects. These concepts and tools provide children with the means to extend their abilities, enabling them to comprehend the natural world through the lens of 3D science and apply engineering principles to address real-world challenges.
By providing students with foundational experiences in Mathematics and Computational Thinking, we can enrich their learning journey. They develop skills in recognizing patterns, abstracting real-world phenomena, describing, and quantifying observations, visualizing attributes and relationships, and establishing ordered steps. These experiences empower students to think critically, solve problems, and make connections across disciplines, fostering a deeper understanding and engagement with the world around them.
Cross-Curricular Opportunities
As you read this article, be on the lookout for ways computational thinking can be used to integrate math, science, reading and literacy.
[to access the article, click the image to the left]
As you read this article, look for Computational Thinking terms and concepts introduced in the preceding videos.
Identifying these concepts and learning about how they were applied in the early elementary grades will help you learn these concepts and see ways to practically apply in your own classroom.
These additional resources are available for those seeking further information about the practice of Mathematics & Computational Thinking. While it is not necessary to read or view all of the provided items, a cursory glance is recommended to identify those of particular interest. These materials can serve as valuable references and aids in enhancing one’s understanding and instructional inclusion of Mathematics & Computational Thinking.
You have viewed and read materials about Mathematics & Computational Thinking in the PreK-3rd classroom. You are actively involved in the Learning Architecture process, planning, and developing lessons for your 3D science unit. Your activity assignment is to find ways to incorporate Mathematics & Computational Thinking into your Learning Performances.
Brainstorming…
Review your Learning Performances in your Learning Blueprint.
Brainstorm ideas about how you could incorporate Mathematics AND Computational Thinking into your existing set of Learning Performances.
• Consider your Math & ELA standards for ideas
Design…
Design two new Learning Performances, one that uses a Mathematics concept and another that uses a Computational Thinking concept.
Add to your Blueprint…
Write your Learning Performances in sentence form and add* them to your Learning Blueprint
Examples from past NURTURES teachers…
• Students use counting and numbers to create, transmit, and decipher coded messages using sound or light waves.
• Students use algorithm design to create a daily routine to monitor the school-area weather so they can provide a recess forecast for the school.
*add – do not remove or replace established learning performances.
Your thoughts…
We are curious about your thinking and intentions with adding these MCT-based Learning Performances.
Please answer the following questions in the Response section below.
• How do these new MCT-based learning performances, fit with or enhance your current planning?
• How could they provide/support an ELA, Math or Social Studies tie-in to your unit?
You have had the opportunity to engage with informational videos, text, and resources on the practice of Mathematics & Computational Thinking. Furthermore, the Learning Performance activity provide you with a minds-on experience to develop additional learning opportunities that utilize these practices.
Now we would like to engage your thinking about how the science and engineering practices of Mathematics & Computational Thinking could impact your professional learning, instruction, and classroom student experience in the future. Please respond to the reflection prompts below.
In this segment, you will…
Be provided with introductory information explaining the Learning Architecture process, then try out our Padlet space, our web-based planning tool, with an introductory activity.
In this segment, you will…
Be provided with introductory information explaining the Learning Architecture process, then try out our Padlet space, our web-based planning tool, with an introductory activity.
For this first experience, you will…
Now that you have seen an overview of the process, the next step will be to get familiar with Padlet, the online environment we will use for this process. You will view a Padlet process guidance video, then access our Padlet space and complete the introductory activity.
Now let’s check out our Padlet space for Learning Architecture – and you can complete your Getting To Know Padlet activity
click the Padlet icon above to open our Padlet space
note: Padlet will always open in a new tab/window.
In this segment, you will…
Begin your planning experience by learning about NGSS Performance Expectations then get an opportunity to review and become familiar with NGSS standards for your grade level.
You will be designing a 3d-aligned science unit/set of lessons for your grade level. First, we need to chose target/end goals for our unit – the NGSS Performance Expectations.
Take a look at the NGSS (for K-3) standards. Find your grade level and look at the available Performance Expectations for each of the 3 domains – Physical, Life, and Earth-Space Science. Identify a few Performance Expectations that would fit with your curriculum pacing in the Fall of your upcoming academic year. Because we continue this lesson design work into our professional learning communities (PLCs) beginning in September – we want you to have the ability to teach your lessons in October/November so we can share and discuss experiences during our PLCs
If things don’t align perfectly or you are unsure of the pacing – no worries, just make your best guess based on your experience. Also, if there are standards that match your curriculum in other grade levels you can shift up or down to get standards that align better with your curriculum.
Key Terms related to the NGSS
Once you have made your choices, you can add the Performance Expectations to your 3D Specifications chart and start to unpack each into its dimensions. This will be explained and demonstrated in the process guidance video below.
Go ahead and enter the Padlet space for Learning Architecture and click on the ‘3D Specifications’ link under your name.
Your goal is to unpack your Performance Expectations into their 3D components
click the Padlet icon above to open our Padlet space
note: Padlet will always open in a new tab/window.
In this segment, you will…
Get hands on with the NGSS 3 dimensions, learning what they can look like at your specific grade level, then begin developing engaging questions and phenomena to support future lessons.
So you have unpacked your Performance Expectations (PEs) and started to get your hands on the 3D components.
The Disciplinary Core Ideas (DCIs) – or science content is clearly stated and probably familiar. But the Science & Engineerings Practices (SEPs) and the Crosscutting Concepts (CCs) are pretty big concepts. What does Analyzing and Interpreting Data mean to Kindergarten students? What does Cause & Effect mean to a 1st grader?
The NGSS Appendix F & G can help us get an idea of what these practices and concepts look like in your respective grade levels. Take some time and look through Appendix F (click link to access PDF)– to see what SEPs might look like for your students and Appendix G (click link to access PDF) for what CCs might look like. This will help you start to imagine ways these practices and concepts can be used in your unit/lesson designs.
Now that you have a better idea about how SEPs and CCs might ‘look’ at your grade level, let’s do some brainstorming. Specifically, you will be brainstorm some questions and related phenomena that can give you a hook or anchor to engage your students.
Start by thinking about questions that your students might pose that relate to the science content. For example, if your science content covers concepts relating to weather – how does weather impact your students lives?
These questions and their related phenomena can provide a student relevant anchor for learning about various weather concepts.
Go into the Padlet space, then enter your 3D Specifications. (reminder: click on the ‘3D Specifications’ link under your name)
Start to brainstorm ideas and add them under the Phenomena/Questions section of your 3D Specifications.
!! Don’t forget about the Session 1 posts in Padlet space! – You already listed 3 things your students were really interested or fascinated by last year – would any of these help give you ideas?
Your goal is to brainstorm some Questions & Phenomena, then pick out some SEPs and CCs that might be relevant.
click the Padlet icon above to open our Padlet space
note: Padlet will always open in a new tab/window.
In this segment, you will…
Begin brainstorming Learning Performances, the actions your students will take to gain experience and knowledge on the science learning journey you are designing.
Recall from the introduction video that Learning Performances are the actions your students will take to gain experience and knowledge on the science learning journey you are designing. They become the premise for your lesson(s) – guiding your lesson design process and supporting an engaging 3D-aligned experience. All Learning Performances have three Ds and a phenomena that tie into the questions you developed.
We have referred to your planning process as designing a learning journey for students- so think of the Learning Performances as the adventures that make up that journey, leading to the Performance Expectations (the end goals). By the time they arrive at the end goals, they should have been exposed to and applied various SEPs and CCs.
Back in Session 2, you unpacked the Performance Expectations (the end goals) and you identified the DCIs, SEPs, and CCs associated. You will want your Learning Performances to include those AND other DCIs (if indicated), SEPs and CCs.
Including a range of SEPs and CCs in your Learning Performances, those adventures on their learning journey, will give students experience and opportunities to use several SEPs and CCs to explore, investigate, and learning the science content (DCIs).
IMPORTANT:
Go into the Padlet space, then enter your 3D Specifications. (reminder: click on the ‘3D Specifications’ link under your name)
Start to brainstorm some learning performances. Just get several ideas down to start. Refer the examples above for additional guidance/support.
Your goal is to brainstorm several (~approximately 4-5) Learning Performances that have varied SEPs and CCs.
click the Padlet icon above to open our Padlet space
note: Padlet will always open in a new tab/window.
In this segment, you will…
Continue your work with Learning Performances, progressing from brainstorming to finalizing.
With your development of Learning Performances, you are about to conclude your 3D Specifications work and transition to the Learning Blueprint. This is a great time to check in with your NURTURES facilitators. We have asked that you schedule a 1:1 meeting after you have completed Session 4. During this meeting, we will discuss your 3D Specifications work, including your Learning Performances.
If you have not already scheduled your check-in, please contact Grant Wilson (NURTURES project director) at this time to schedule. This meeting will take place via video-conferencing at a mutually agreed upon and convenient time.
Continue the work you started in your prior synchronous session. Work on building and refining your learning performances. The guidance information from Session 4 (examples & process guidance video) is repeated below.
Note, there is a new goal defined at the end – in the Padlet access section.
A few tips…
We have referred to your planning process as designing a learning journey for students- so think of the Learning Performances as the adventures that make up that journey, leading to the Performance Expectations (the end goals). By the time they arrive at the end goals, they should have been exposed to and applied various SEPs and CCs.
Back in Session 2, you unpacked the Performance Expectations (the end goals) and you identified the DCIs, SEPs, and CCs associated. You will want your Learning Performances to include those AND other DCIs (if indicated), SEPs and CCs.
Including a range of SEPs and CCs in your Learning Performances, those adventures on their learning journey, will give students experience and opportunities to use several SEPs and CCs to explore, investigate, and learning the science content (DCIs).
IMPORTANT:
Go into the Padlet space, then enter your 3D Specifications. (reminder: click on the ‘3D Specifications’ link under your name)
Work on refining and finalizing your learning performances.
Your goal is to have 4 engaging Learning Performances with varied SEPs and CCs that work together to provide your students a high-quality learning experience.
click the Padlet icon above to open our Padlet space
note: Padlet will always open in a new tab/window.
In this segment, you will…
Transition from your 3D Specifications to your Learning Blueprint, shaping your learning experience by sequencing questions and Learning Performances.
Okay! You have done a lot of great planning and you have a robust 3D Specifications chart. Now it’s time to start the Learning Blueprint.
Go ahead and enter the Padlet space for Learning Architecture and click on the ‘Learning Blueprint’ link under your name.
Your goal is to carryover key elements from your 3D Specifications, specifically…
Start off by copying questions and Learning Performances over to this next phase.
In your Learning Blueprint Padlet – add new posts for your questions and your related Learning Performances.
You can convert your “chunked” Learning Performances into one post that has the entire sentence. Use some of the Padlet’s in-post text features (e.g., bold, highlights) to identify your 3Ds and phenomena.
click the Padlet icon above to open our Padlet space
note: Padlet will always open in a new tab/window.
The first thing you want to do with the Learning Blueprint is think about how you will sequence your learning experience. Think about your Learning Performances and the SEPs (Science & Engineering Practices), those things scientists/engineers do…
During this process you might feel like another learning performance is needed to create an experience or fill a gap – just add it! (in your Learning Blueprint, you don’t need to go back to your 3D specifications)
As you progress and start adding tasks (Session 7), you might find a different sequence might work better – you can always adjust later.
Go ahead and enter the Padlet space for Learning Architecture and click on the ‘Learning Blueprint’ link under your name.
Your goal is to…
click the Padlet icon above to open our Padlet space
note: Padlet will always open in a new tab/window.
In this segment, you will…
Begin designing tasks that represent the steps and activities that will support your student experience, and learning outcomes which will help you check that your tasks and Learning Performances achieve their goals.
At this point, You have created a structure for your unit/lesson set based on your chosen Performance Expectations – your end goals. Then you unpacked the related 3Ds (DCIs, SEPs, and CCs) and came up with student relevant questions and phenomena that would peak student interest. Most recently you have combined these elements to create Learning Performances which define the actions students will take, using the 3Ds in the context of an engaging phenomena. Through these actions, and the lessons they will define, your students will gain the knowledge and experience they need to achieve your chosen end goal (the Performance Expectations)
Tasks are the steps and activities that will support your students experience in the lessons. This is where you get to design activities or apply ideas you have about activities – ones you have discussed, experienced, or put in your ‘parking lot’ when working on your 3D Specifications. Tasks become the instructional content or strategies in your lessons.
This is usually the part of the process people are most comfortable with because you are used to planning activities or adapting activities. All of the groundwork you completed to get to this point has given you exposure to 3D concepts and time to think and experience (in your Inquiry segments) parts of 3D and inquiry-based learning. Now when you are developing, adapting, or choosing activities/tasks you should also be thinking…
Your decisions on tasks should be purposeful and support the specific Learning Performance.
The last step in the learning blueprint is to create Meaningful Learning Outcomes. These outcomes help you to check that your tasks and learning performances work to achieve progress toward your intended target goals.
Ask yourself… does this experience build student knowledge and skill to an extent that they could engage with the learning goals established in the selected Performance Expectation (the end/target goal)?
Go ahead and enter the Padlet space for Learning Architecture and click on the ‘Learning Blueprint’ link under your name.
Your goals are to…
click the Padlet icon above to open our Padlet space
note: Padlet will always open in a new tab/window.
In this segment, you will…
Continue your work on tasks and learning outcomes, then utilizing your learning blueprint, begin drafting your lesson plans.
If you need additional time to work on your Tasks & MLOs – please take that time. If you are finished, take a look back over your work for any opportunities to refine or revise based on your Institute experiences (e.g., your Inquiry TEACH experience gave you some ideas for your own lesson development OR you have added a new Learning Performance from the Mathematics & Computational Thinking session and want to develop the ideas further). The Tasks and MLOs guidance videos are repeated below for your reference.
You have done a lot of great planning and designing of lesson experiences, first with the 3D Specifications and now with the Learning Blueprint. The next step is to write actionable lesson plans you can use in your classroom. You will be writing a lesson plan for each Learning Performance.
You have experienced several NURTURES lessons throughout your Inquiry experience and will have a sense of how these plans are structured. You will use the NURTURES lesson plan template (provided below) to draft your lessons. Here are a few key points to consider as you prepare your lessons…
To begin lesson plan writing, check out the lesson plan examples below then the lesson plan templates. Your Learning Architecture segment for Session 9 will include additional work time for writing these lessons and you will submit your lessons in Session 10.
Note: The template is available in both Word .docx and Google Docs formats. For Google Docs: open the template by clicking the link above, chose FILE > Make Copy and save into your Google Drive. If you do not copy. it will be overwritten and your work will be lost.
Go ahead and enter the Padlet space for Learning Architecture and click on the ‘Learning Blueprint’ link under your name.
Your goals are to…
click the Padlet icon above to open our Padlet space
note: Padlet will always open in a new tab/window.
In this segment, you will…
Continue writing your lesson plans and learn about the process for presenting your Learning Architecture work in Session 10.
Continue your lesson plan writing. As a reminder (from Session 8)…
The next step is to write actionable lesson plans you can use in your classroom. You will be writing a lesson plan for each Learning Performance.
You have experienced several NURTURES lessons throughout your Inquiry experience and will have a sense of how these plans are structured. You will use the NURTURES lesson plan template (provided below) to draft your lessons. Here are a few key points to consider as you prepare your lessons…
To begin lesson plan writing, check out the lesson plan examples below then the lesson plan templates.
You will submit your lessons in Session 10.
Note: The template is available in both Word .docx and Google Docs formats. For Google Docs: open the template by clicking the link above, chose FILE > Make Copy and save into your Google Drive. If you do not copy. it will be overwritten and your work will be lost.
You have done a tremendous amount of work in Learning Architecture, learning, thinking, applying, and designing 3D inquiry-based experiences for your classroom students. Awesome! And now we want to hear from you about the epic learning journey you have designed for your students.
For session 10, you will be presenting your Learning Blueprint and discussing key elements of your lessons plans. During the Session 10 Learning Architecture segment, you will be logging into our CLASS Collaborate video conferencing system, sharing your Learning Blueprint onscreen, then recording a narrated tour of your Learning Blueprint and Lessons. We have a few prompts to help you prepare and focus this 10 minute presentation.
You should plan to discuss the following during your presentation…
Your goals are to…
In this segment, you will…
Submit your lesson plans and record your final presentation.
Please submit your lesson plans using the link below.
You will be presenting your Learning Blueprint and discussing key elements of your lessons plans. To do this, you will be logging into our CLASS Collaborate video conferencing system, sharing your Learning Blueprint onscreen, then recording a narrated tour of your Learning Blueprint and Lessons. This presentation should be approximately 10 minutes long.
You should plan to discuss the following during your presentation…
Please familiarize yourself the process logging into our CLASS Collaborate video conferencing system, sharing your Learning Blueprint onscreen, then recording your session – as demonstrated in the video below.
Once you are ready, please one of the CLASS Collaborate links below to enter the system and begin. Use the Padlet access link below to open access and open your Learning Blueprint in a tab to share during the presentation recording. Note: We have provided 3 separate ‘room’ links in case other participants are engaged in recordings their presentations when you enter. If that occurs, exit and try another ‘room’
Your goals are to…
Cross-Curricular Opportunities
As you read this article, be on the lookout for ways computational thinking can be used to integrate math, science, reading and literacy.
[to access the article, click the image to the left]
As you read this article, look for Computational Thinking terms and concepts introduced in the preceding videos.
Identifying these concepts and learning about how they were applied in the early elementary grades will help you learn these concepts and see ways to practically apply in your own classroom.