Session 1: Workshop Opener
50 minutes
discussion-based
Purpose
This session is designed to bring participants together to kick off the workshop, reflect on how things are going in the classroom, and introduce the theme for the day. This is a place to check in on specific lessons that people have already taught, as well as pacing and teaching practices that were modeled or discussed in the previous workshop.
It is common to surface concerns during this session that can be revisited and addressed throughout the workshop.
Objectives
- Participants collaborate with one another to share resources and ideas for their classrooms
- Participants work on developing the skills necessary to continue to build their CS content and pedagogical knowledge outside of the walls of the workshop through avenues like the forum, the community’s shared resources, online courses, peer collaboration,
- Participants engage in the “think, pair, share” teaching and learning strategy
Supplies & Prep
Room Setup (using the supplies provided by Regional Partner):
- Posters up for people to add post-its to as they come in
- “Where are we now” - On a piece of chart paper or on the board, create a histogram for teachers to note where they are in the curriculum. Remind teachers to take out their Curriculum Guides as a guide to unit progressions.
- “Question Parking Lot” - For people to post questions they have.
- Remake the Padlet Template for your workshop
Facilitator Supplies:
- Your Local Copy of Session Planning Template
- Your local copy of the CSD - Workshop 2 - Slides Template - 2019
- Your local copy of the CSD - Workshop 2 - Notes Template - 2019
- Facilitator Handbook - 2019
- Facilitator Tools Guide
- Chart Paper (Regional Partner Provides)
- Markers (Regional Partner Provides)
- Workshop Dashboard - Tool
- Padlet Template
Teacher Materials:
- CS Discoveries Curriculum Guide 2019 (teachers should bring this)
- Journal (teachers should bring this)
- Post-its
Agenda
Workshop Opening Logistics (3 minutes)
Warm Up and Check In (22 minutes)
Share Out (15 minutes)
Theme Introduction (10 minutes)
Facilitation Guide
Workshop Opening Logistics (3 minutes)
(0 minutes) Create a Padlet
In the last workshop, we used an anchor chart to reflect on the role of the teacher theme. During this workshop we will do something similar using a different tool. The purpose of using a different tool here is to model the idea that the same objective can be met using a variety of different tools and strategies. The tool we will be using is Padlet.
Padlet Set-Up Instructions:
Facilitator Tip
The template includes the three prompts that will be used throughout the day. You might prefer to delete the second two prompts and add them back when you are ready to use them with the group.
- Click on the Padlet Template link
- Click on the remake button in the upper right hand corner (If you do not have a padlet account, you will be prompted to create a free account. Your participants will not need an account to engage with this tool during the activity.)
- Check the boxes “copy design” and “copy posts”. Then click on the pink “submit” button in the upper right hand corner
- Click on the gear button in the upper right hand corner. Copy the address to your clipboard and insert the link into your copy of the group notes document.
Using Padlet:
- Add a new post - double click on the canvas space or click on the pink “+” in the lower right hand corner
- Connect ideas together:
- hover over the post
- click on the three dots (more actions) that appear in the upper right hand corner of the post
- Click “connect to a post”
- Click “connect” on the post that you would like to connect with
Additional Support Resources:
Facilitator Tip
Ways to Prepare for this Session: * Reflect on teacher needs at the last workshop — what were the most common concerns? How can you check in on those concerns here? * Make a plan with your co-facilitator for how you plan to divide up roles during the session.
(0 minutes) As Teachers Walk In
Have a slide up at the front of the room to direct teachers to:
- Add post-its to "Where are we now" poster
- Kick off the “Question Parking Lot” chart by asking participants to add in anything they need to talk about
(2 minutes) Attendance
Have everyone complete the attendance for the day
- Find your workshop in the Workshop Dashboard - Tool.
- Take attendance for your workshop using the directions in the Facilitator Tools Guide.
(1 minute) Review Norms
Remind the group of the norms you set at Workshop 1.
Warm Up and Check In (22 minutes)
Discussion Goal
Jog memories and think concretely about the lessons they’ve done so far and what’s coming soon.
Facilitator Tip
While discussions are happening, one facilitator should circle the room while the other reads over the post-its that teachers posted as they came into the room.
(5 minutes) Personal Reflection
Have teachers reflect on the following questions individually, and be ready to share with someone else. They don't need to answer every question but participants can use these questions to jog their memory.
- How is it going with the topics we discussed at our last workshop?
- Debugging: How are your students doing with applying debugging process to programming
- Your role as the teacher: How has your role as the teacher shifted and changed as you have implemented various aspects of the course?
- How is it going with the class in general?
- What adaptations have you made for your students’ needs?
- What is on your mind?
- What concerns or issues do you have about the topics that are coming up soon?
- What questions do you have, and/or what do you want to talk about today?
Facilitator Tip
Some teachers have expressed feeling uncomfortable because of the name “speed dating” If you would like to use a different name for this activity, “speed networking” is a good alternative.
(10 minutes) Speed Dating
Have participants “speed date” their responses to the three prompts above, looking for advice or ideas on questions or issues.
Facilitator Note: In this activity, speed dating means getting up and talking with someone new about your thoughts. We recommend doing 3 rounds of 3 minutes each, where participants check in with someone new for each round
Discussion Goal
Bubble up what needs to be addressed by the whole group. Jot down questions or topics on post-its and then hold up for facilitators to collect.
Facilitator Tip
As teachers share in their groups, the facilitators are circulating to hear teachers' thoughts and are thinking about the topics to discuss in the whole group share out. Likely topics are assessments, facilitating discovery without telling students the “right” answer, learning material along with your students, etc.
(7 minutes) Share Concerns at Table
Head back to tables and share your concerns and what you learned from others.
As table members catch up and share, facilitators should review the post-it notes and decide what issues folks are having that others in the room can help solve. Other post-it notes that may be appropriate to answer later in the day can be added to the question parking lot.
Share Out (15 minutes)
Facilitator Tip
Consider having one facilitator run the discussion while the other takes notes in the notes doc For workshops with only one facilitator, you might consider either enlisting the help of a participant with note taking.
(15 minutes) Group Discussion
Facilitators prime the discussion with topics that have been brought up so far in the day, and put them to the group for everyone to answer. The goal is to pull out widely-held questions and to check in with groups on the following:
-
How are things going? Are there any specific needs that need to be addressed before we move on to Unit 4: The Design Process?
-
How are your students doing with applying the debugging process to programming?
Facilitator Note: If this session starts to run long, suggest that the remaining questions go on post-it notes to the question parking lot.
Theme Introduction (10 minutes)
(1 minute) Introductory Remarks
Remarks
In the last workshop, we focused on the theme of the “Role of the Teacher.” In today’s workshop, we will extend this idea to think about the “Role of the Student”. In a CSD classroom, students are meant to be active. Students learn through doing and exploration rather than through direct instruction. Today we will consider how we, as educators, can create and support a classroom environment that allows students to grow and develop in this active role.
Discussion Goal
Participants should walk away with a working definition of active learning and a clear idea of what active learning looks like in the CSD classroom. Examples of active learning include students collaborating with peers, students engaging in discussion, students working together to solve a problem, students exploring new concepts, etc. Active learning does not include passively listening to the teacher lecture or memorizing facts.
(8 minutes) Think, Pair, Share
Prompt: What does it mean for students to be active in the classroom? What sorts of things are students doing? What is the teacher doing?
- (1 minute) Think: individual reflection
- (2 minutes) Pair: discuss with a partner
- (5 minutes) Share: share and discuss with the whole group
Facilitator Note: As participants share out to the whole group, add ideas to the padlet. Allow participants to comment and “like” things are they are added to the group padlet.
(1 minute) Closing Remarks
Remarks
As we move through the day, we will continue to reflect on this idea of the “Role of the Student”. Our goal is to leave the day with a clear plan for how we can leverage our role as the teacher to support students in taking an active role in their learning.