Session 7: Model Lesson 2 - U1L7: Storage
65 minutes
lesson exploration | role play
Purpose
Essential Practice: The teacher uses journaling for individual reflection and sensemaking along with discussion for group reflection and sensemaking Lesson Decisions:
- Have participants respond to prompts using a journal
- Have participants add key vocabulary to their journal
- Have participants add the key steps to of the IOSP sequence to their journal
- Facilitate discussion providing time for individual reflection before group sharing - the Think-Pair-Share strategy does not always need to include all three steps but at a minimum it should include some individual think time
Debrief Topic: Journaling and Discussion
Objectives
- Participants have reflected on the role of journaling and discussion as a metacognitive opportunity for students to make connections between the activities they are doing and the new knowledge and skills they are gaining
- Participants understand the role of the IOSP in the CS Discoveries curriculum
- Participants are able to describe how their identity, experiences, and beliefs shape how they see their role as a CS teacher
Supplies & Prep
Room Setup:
- Participants are seated in pods
- Put learners in groups of 2 to 3 - probably just at their table.
Facilitator Supplies and Prep:
- Decide which facilitator teaches the lesson
- Decide which facilitator debriefs the lesson
- Day 1 Slides
- Lesson Plan
Teacher Materials:
Agenda
Kick Off (5 minutes)
Lesson (40 minutes)
Debrief (20 minutes)
Identity Reflection (10 minutes)
Facilitation Guide
Kick Off (5 minutes)
Remarks
Just like shows provide recaps with highlights of previous events when joining part way through, we will give a 'Previously, On CS Discoveries' to highlight some of the lessons we are skipping over to reach the lessons we will look at this week. We will give a “Previously, On CS Discoveries” which gives the highlights of the lessons that we are skipping over to get to the lessons we will look at this week. This will help us to fill in some of the learning gaps.
Using the slides, go over the lessons in Unit 1 they will have skipped to get here.
- Lesson 4 - What is a Computer?:
- The class brainstorms possible definitions of a computer and works in groups to sort pictures into “computer” and “not computer” categories
- Key vocabulary is introduced and students are given an opportunity to revise their sorting
- Computer - a machine that works with information
- Lesson 5 - Input and Output:
- The class considers how computers get and give information to the user through inputs and outputs
- Students explore a series of apps and determine the inputs and outputs for each app
- Input - the information computers get from users, devices, or other computers
- Output - The information given to users, devices, or other computers
- Lesson 6 - Processing:
- Through experimenting with a series of apps, the class explores how processing is used to turn input into output
- Processing - the thinking work computers do to turn input into output
(1 minute) Role Reminders
Remarks
We will once again engage in a role play activity where you will play the role of the learner. During the last model lesson, you were asked to engage in the lesson through the lens of you as a middle or early high school student. As we continue to think about how our identity markers influence who we are as CS teachers, and by extension, how we engage with our students, you are challenged to once again take on the persona of you as a middle or early high school student.
Put your hats on and let's get ready to go!
Lesson (40 minutes)
Warm Up (5 min)
Analyzing an App (Outfit Picker)
Facilitator Tip
This is a great opportunity to model how students will be expected to access Code Studio during a lesson.
Journal Prompt: Go on Code Studio to look at the outfit picker app. What is one input, one output, and one kind of processing it might use? Let’s say you used this app every day. What information would you want this app to remember?
Content Corner
Students may identify the weather, favorite color, or season as the input, and the pictures of outfits as the output. Although the exact processing of the app may not be clear, students may point out that there are several likely if/then scenarios ("If the weather is rainy, then include an umbrella.") or matching between the user's input and features of the outfits.
Circulate: The first part of this reflection serves as a review of input, output, and processing. As students reflect on the prompt, check their answers to ensure that they understand how input, output, and processing are used in the app.
Discussion Goal
While it's not important that students agree on the answers, this discussion introduces them to the idea of storing information for later and prompts them to think about what information should and should not be stored in an app.
Ask participants to share out what information they thought should be stored and why.
Remarks
This example app asks for some information that won't change very often, such as your favorite color. Instead of being required to enter this data every time, it would be helpful if the app could remember our answers by storing it. All computers can save information for later and read saved information through storage.
Key Vocabulary: Storage - saving information to use in the future
Question of the Day: Why is storage an important part of the computing process?
Activity (15 min)
Apps with Storage
Remarks
We're going to look at a few apps that use a few kinds of information. We want to identify which information could be stored so that we don't have to enter it every time.
Group: Put participants in groups of 2-3. Each group will need access to one computer for this activity.
Distribute: Give each group one copy of the activity guide. As a class, complete the first section of the activity guide, which references the outfit picker app used in the warm up. Send participants to Code Studio to see the sample apps.
Assessment Opportunity
There is some flexibility about what should and shouldn't be stored, since that is a choice that the app designer could make. The most important part is their explanation. They should be reasoning about whether that information will change frequently.
Circulate: Allow participants to complete the rest of the activity guide in their groups. As they fill out the charts, ask them to elaborate on why they thought each input should be stored or not.
Outfit Picker
The first app asks users to input their favorite color, the current season, and the weather, then outputs a picture of an outfit based on the user input.
Friend Finder
The first app asks users to input which friends should be on their friends list, then outputs a map that displays the locations of the friends on the list.
Choose a Kid's Movie
The third app asks users to input several preferences around movies, then outputs a movie recommendation based on the user's preferences.
Assessment Opportunity
Student answers may vary, but in general, they should realize that whether information should or should not be stored relates to how frequently it changes, at all.
Guidelines
As groups move on to the final activity, you may need to briefly explain what a guideline is and what the question is asking for. Make sure that all groups have time to come up with guidelines, even if they have to skip parts of the earlier chart.
Circulate: If groups get stuck writing their guidelines, ask them about which inputs they said should be stored in the other apps. Ask them to see if they can find any similarities between which inputs were stored and were not stored. Remind them that they can also write guidelines about which inputs were not stored. Once most of the groups are done writing their guidelines, bring the class back together and ask if any group would like to share one of their guidelines.
Introducing the IOSP Model (15 min)
Remarks
Now we can understand a computer as a machine that does four things: input, output, storage, and processing
Show them the video introducing the IOSP model. Prompt for discussion with two discussion questions. 1) Think of something you do on the computer. What sort of input, output, storage, and processing are happening? 2) What kinds of input, output, storage, and processing are used in a modern smartphone? Finally, look at the poster from the "What is a Computer?" lesson and check to see if any of the machines should be reclassified as computers or not computers based on this new IOSP model.
Wrap Up (5 min)
Question of the Day: Why is storage an important part of the computing process?
Sharing Findings
Prompt: Think of an app you would like to make. What information would it store?
Debrief (20 minutes)
| Suggested Debrief Plan | ||
|---|---|---|
| Be Sure to Model | Essential Practices |
The teacher uses journaling for individual reflection and sensemaking along with discussion for group reflection and sensemaking |
| Lesson Decisions |
|
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| If the essential practices, listed above, are present in the lesson we recommend the following for your debrief: | ||
| Debrief Direction | Topic | Journaling and Discussion |
| Goal | Teachers have reflected on the role of journaling and discussion as a metacognitive opportunity for students to make connections between the activities they are doing and the new knowledge and skills they are gaining. | |
| To reach this goal, consider using the following reflection and discussion prompts: | ||
| Debrief Suggestions | Reflection Prompt |
What impact did journaling and discussion have on your learning in this lesson? |
| Shares “Choices, Advice, and Takeaways” | ||
| Discussion Prompts |
Discussion Goal: Journaling and discussion should be purposeful. This is a metacognitive opportunity for students to make connections between the activities they are doing and the new knowledge and skills they are gaining. Journaling might mean different things to different people. In this context, journaling is intended to be a place for students to document their learning. This is more than simply note taking. Journaling in this context should involve some level of reflection. Some teachers might already have strategies and ideas for how to implement journaling and discussion into a lesson. This is a great opportunity to share those ideas with the group. Facilitator Note: THIS DISCUSSION HAS BEEN SHORTENED TO FIVE MINUTES BECAUSE PARTICIPANTS WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE DISCUSSING THESE STRATEGIES IN THE FOLLOWING SESSION. As you discuss this prompt, look for places to draw out the decisions for this lesson, listed above. |
|
Identity Reflection (10 minutes)
(2 minutes) Context Setting
Remarks
Now let’s come back to our conversation about identity. Our identities impact how we see and experience the world. Our students also have identity markers that impact how they experience and engage in our classrooms and with our teaching styles.
The facilitator shares a personal example of how an identity marker impacted their engagement with students to set the stage for the following reflection.
(8 minutes) Reflection
Facilitator Tip
Prompt participants to articulate one or two concrete examples of an identity marker connected to a student impact. (New teachers might reflect on a time when they were impacted as a student by an identity marker of a former teacher.)
Prompt: What identity markers do you have that might impact how you see and engage with students in your CS classes?
- (1 minute) Think: individual reflection
Discussion Goal
The goal of this share out is for participants to hear a few examples of concrete examples where an identity marker may have an impact on a student. This conversation is intended to set the stage for discussing bias. Sometimes experiences resulting from our identities can lead to biases. This connection will be made later in the workshop.
(3 minutes) Share: share and discuss with the whole group
Discussion Goal
This prompt is another opportunity for participants to connect back to the model lesson debrief as they continue to reflect on how their identity markers and experiences influence the choices they make in their classrooms.
Prompt: How might your identity markers coupled with your experiences as a student impact your expectations for how students engage in both journaling and classroom discussions?
- (2 minutes) Think: individual reflection
- (2 minutes) Pair: share and discuss with a partner