IN Fox Chapel Area Spring 2016 | Page 14

DMS Students Expand Computer Science Coding Principles FOX CH APE L AR EA SC H OO L NE WS ox Chapel Area Dorseyville Middle School business applications teacher Cathie Gillner helps a small group of sixth graders code using a simplified version of code called Blockly where they pull in blocks of code to help the robots perform a task. The students have to think through the process and problem solve how they will command the robot to complete a task. Dorseyville Middle School sixth grade students use Bloxels, a video game creation platform. Students use their district-provided iPads to photograph their Bloxel creation and it is then turned into a video game. Students create commands for coding tags (wireless electronic blocks that each have a different function such as motion or sound) that connect wirelessly to an app and are then used to build or create something. They brainstorm what they want to create and then code the tags through the app. Each t