Today was all about conditionals--meaning conditional statements in logic and coding!  We tried a conditional statement: "If everyone is silent for 30 seconds, we can have 5 minutes of extra recess."  Tried it twice in fact, and no extra recess.  The kids REALLY understand conditional statements now though! We practiced this skill through a card game and on Code.org.  Check out Conditional Card Game video.

​Next, we used the conditionals to program our Recon Rovers to offer and then deliver a snack.  Here are some photos of the fun:

Later, we learned more about Robots by playing a fun game called Buzz!  The kids move around the room examining & reading different resources including videos, infographics, and books to answer questions about robots.  Here they are in action:

We stretched our algebraic thinking with a review of our first Hands-On-Equations Assessment.  The kids did a good job, especially since this was a very different format than they are used to for algebra.  They are ready to move on to the next lesson in Level 1.

The last part of our day was spent reading our novel, House of Robots.  The kids are still trying to figure out what the black SUV is doing following E and Sammy.  That remains to be seen!

No Homework!

Have a great Spring Break!
​Dr. Kraeger

Convergent thinking:
Coding went well this week with lessons on Debugging.  The kids are getting the hang of more efficient debugging as they whiz through the practice tasks!  We followed up with a Robot Mission to program the Robots to say Knock-Knock Jokes.  Take a look at our video:  Robot Comedians.

We worked on our algebraic thinking with a math problems solving task.  Later, we stretched our divergent thinking skills with a Creative Problem Solving Task- "Future Toy".  Check out the results:

Affective Skills:
Our study of character traits focused on Wisdom this week.  We discussed how smart and wise aren't the same thing, and how we can use wisdom in our lives.  We continued our mindfulness practice with Cloud Breathing.

HW:  Edmodo Question

Until next week,
​Dr. Kraeger

We tremendously enjoyed seeing the results of our creative research project.  Even a simple question can lead to some very interesting results!  Great job kiddos!

Our coding lessons went very well also!  We started with an "Unplugged Activity-Relay Programming".  It involved working as a relay team to write the code needed to create the given image.  We followed that with a debugging lesson on Code.org.  That was VERY helpful.  Check out the fun below:

We finished the day with some novel reading, finding out that Sammy is a HUGE Notre Dame fan and his mom has fixed E, the robot!  Yikes!!!

​HW:  Edmodo Question
Until next time,
Dr. Kraeger

The kids did a great job in all areas today!

Convergent Thinking:
Our coding activity this week was about loops and debugging.  All you programmers out there know how important those two skills are.  The kids did a good job with the lessons.  

Then we moved on to the Robots with Mission 4: Security Patrol.  The kids learned to program the robots to patrol a set area and stop midway to deliver a warning message.  Check out the photos and videos of the action:

Algebraic Thinking:
We continued our Hands On Equations with Lesson 5-Combining Terms.  The kids are making great progress in mastering the basics of algebra!

During our Stations, we worked on critical, divergent, and logical thinking.  The kids tackled a reading response activity, F2OE, and Versatiles.  It's fun to test these skills in different ways!

We continued our affective work on character traits with "Love of Learning".  The kids found out how others pursue their curiosity about the world and then generated their own "I Wonder" mind maps.  

Later, we extended our mindfulness with a Mindful Practice video.

​Finally, we finished up our day with more reading from our novel.  We're wondering what's up with the black SUV.  Pretty suspicious!

Check out some pictures of Hands On Equations:

HW:  Choose 1 question from the "I Wonder" map to research for next week.

Until next time,
Dr. Kraeger

We told the kids several times today that they continue to impress us each week!  It is SO TRUE!  This group of kids works hard, shows great collaboration, and is ALWAYS excited about learning!  What a joy!

The kids powered through another coding lesson using loops in advanced ways to create art!  We followed this up with more work on convergent and critical thinking with Robot Mission 3.  Check out some of the fun below:

Later, we worked on algebraic thinking with Hands On Equations.  The kids are doing better and better with additional practice.  We followed this up with more convergent thinking in our logic puzzles.  We also worked on divergent thinking with our February F2OE (Fluency, Flexibility, Originality, & Elaboration) and a fluency reading response.

Affective thinking:
We worked on this with three different activities today.  First, we watched Book of Virtues: Tower to the Moon to tie in with our work on character traits that support creativity-diligence, teamwork, and leadership.

​We also practiced mindfulness with Finding Peace.

Finally, we continued our novel reading by learning more about how best friends can be super annoying, what to do about it, and how even dads can be weird--like their nerdy kids!  You know it's a good book when the kids beg for more every time we stop reading!  

HW:  "Missing Mom" poster-based on the mother in House of Robots

Until next week,
Dr. Kraeger