We're Down With HOC, Yeah You Know Me

December is a busy month, everyone thinks so. To ask teachers to try something new, something out of their comfort zone during this busy time is a border-line crazy thing for a person in my position to do. So, when I went into Pleasant View Elementary, my K-2 building, the first week of December, and asked them to entertain the idea of participating in the world-wide Hour of Code, I was a little worried about what their response would be.  I know teachers are busy covering all of the standards they have been required to cover prior to the semester break.  I know teachers are busy planning special holiday projects and events in celebration of this wonderful time of year. I know teachers are busy trying to get their own homes and families ready to celebrate the holiday. Yet, knowing all of these things, I asked them to learn to code and execute activities for the Hour of Code for which our district would participate.

As we all know, coding isn't exactly at the top of K-2 teachers' priority list. These are youngest students; still learning to walk in a line and recall sight words. So, when I began my Hour of Code PD session, I prefaced it with information about how the language of code is a literacy all children need to know. I shared that it may be the most important second language today's students can learn. I shared how as a nation, we are unable to fill jobs in the STEM areas with our own people, so we seek out employees from other countries to do so. In typical Pleasant View fashion, the teachers participated in exploring the coding apps. Some were genuinely excited to take on something like this, while others were a bit more hesitant.  I heard a couple of teachers say, "My mind doesn't work this way." but all agreed to participate in the scheduled Hour of Code for their building.

On our designated Hour of Code day, I spent my time visiting classrooms to see activities that I had planned come to life. All of the teachers worked with their children on these activities, doing exactly what I asked them to do during pour PD session the week before. During my observations, I found they all put their own style in the lessons, and some even added wonderful extras. They owned it! When I asked for feedback about the Hour of Code, the teachers were excited! All shared that they felt students learning to code was a good thing. They shared that the problem solving skills that students practiced while participating in coding activities were invaluable. But greater than that, all shared that this experience was FUN. Coding, fun? Thats right, at a time in education when teachers often feel the fun has been taken out of school, BAM! There it is. THEY WERE DOWN WITH HOC!!! During a time of year when many K-2 students spend the last days before break making Christmas gifts for their parents, singing Christmas carols, and stuffing themselves with gingerbread cookies, our PVE students are spending time coding. What's more, their teachers were asking for this type of instruction to continue in our classrooms beyond the Hour of Code event. That request may be the best "professional" gift I receive this holiday season. I am exited to continue to help teachers keep coding going with the little ones (and with our bigger kids as well), not to mention learning to advance my own coding skills. Boy, do I need some work in this area! I am excited to assist Stefanie with continuing with coding in our media centers as well. Want to see how Yorktown Community School students are exploring the world of code? Check out the Twitter feeds that are linked to this blog, as well as #ycsEDU.