Day 37 Deliberating the Introduction of Coding

February 6, 2015


It was our intention to include coding as part of our Girls Make It Day.

While Jill and Leah facilitated the group of 21 participants in creating circuit boxes and books, I worked with instructors on installing the Arduino software in preparation for the coding lesson and ran into a few issues with drivers.  I was prepared for the Mac driver problem,  but not for the Windows 8 interface.  (I'll have to get my hands on a Windows 8 machine to practice). We made our way through the anticipated challenges of installing drivers.

I believe that a  gallery of video tutorials for installing Arduino on different type of computers would be helpful and might make it possible for us to ask our participants to install the software ahead of time.   The tricky part with that is that this could be a barrier that  discourages participants before they attend, since installing the drivers is INDEED the hardest part to getting started with coding in eTextiles.

I had 6 Lilypad Protoboards ready to go and an activity where we would modify some code that would help the girls understand the role CODING could play in their design.

But the girls were so engaged in the "making"  of their 3 books that we chose not to interrupt the flow and let them complete their three projects. They left with a Circuit box, a recycled paper book and switch, and a felt book that used conductive thread.

 In our team debrief we will take a closer look at this on the spot  decisions and the decision of whether to include code as part of a ONE Day Girls Make IT activity.

 I think that we absolutely NEED to move into the concept of CODING early in the game, but is the first day the right session?  By doing a short INTRODUCTION to coding on the first day, the girls can leave understanding what CODING is and what it has to do with eTextile.  Without a scaffolded opportunity to see CODE at play,  they may never come back to a 2nd workshop to learn coding with eTextile.  Their preconception of what Coding is might actually cause them to not return for a Day 2 event focused on Coding.  Yet by adding a Coding session to the day, are we risking a state of overwhelm.

Perhaps cutting out one of the 'book creation activities"... but which one?  This will lead to some great discussion in our Team Meeting next week.

Day 36 High School Girls as role models

February 5, 2014

During our Girls Make It Day we were lucky enough to have discovered and invited some high school girls to work with our middle school girls for the day.   I can't say enough how important to have female role models who are just a little older  when you are working with younger girls.  Often we think of role models as being  high tech women who have technology careers.  While these type of models are important,  we should not overlook the impact that high school girls can have as role models.

High School Mentor Maxine models
working with conductive thread

One of the most successful parts of our Girls Make It Day  was inviting  high school mentors to be part of the day.  Not only did the girls benefit from hearing Maxine   speak of her experiences at Essex High School,  they also got to watch her confidence and skill level as she taught them to solder.  I'm sure that provided a "if she can do it, I can to"  or "I want to do that, too."

Our girls also got to learn from watching high school sophomore Amelia from Big Picture school as she worked along with them through the day's activities.


Because high school girls are often in a place where these girls will be in the not so distant future,  it is easier for the girls to picture themselves doing what Maxine or Amelia are  doing.  It's just around the corner for them.  It's within reach.

One of the coolest part of having Maxime  and Amelia there as a high school mentors was to be able to share the story of how we met Maxime. We did not meet our high school mentors through their high school classrooms.   We met Maxine and Amelia  at the Champlain Maker Faire in the Fall and once again at the recent monthly social that the Generator help.   This reinforces the importance of school-home-community connections in creating amazing  connections that are a valuable part or learning experiences.

My advice to our young girls is "get yourself"  involved with as many things as you can out in the community.  Not only does this open up doors for you,  it also provides you with experiences that will help you grow in ways your classroom experience can't.   This day provided our high school mentors an opportunity to practice her leadership skills.  It provided them with stories to tell in their college or job interviews and provides them with noticeable information they can add to their portfolios or scholarship applications.

Having our young girls hear this type of advice is one thing, but having them see it play out through our high school mentors (who are now on their radar)  models so much more than 'tech skills".  It models  confident young ladies' journey towards college and career - a journey that will be part of our middle school's journey very soon.

Day 35: More reflections from Girls Make IT Day preparations

February 4, 2014

Jill's very thoughtful post about Girls Make It Day lead me to some additional thoughts about the day.  It seems that no matter how well prepared you feel for a big day like this,  the first time through always leaves you with a list of things you might do to make the event even better.  Since the purpose of this blog is to "LEARN TOGETHER"  here are a couple of things that come to mind after reading Jill's blog and thinking through the preparations for the day.

Jill preparing packets for Gils Make IT Day

 I totally agree with Jill's comments that we had an overly ambitious agenda.  Yes we  did we have an ambitious agenda, but we were also very well prepared for it.   The supplies we put together  included supplies for both the day's activities and for followup activities back at their school.  We wanted this to be more than a one time learning opportunity.  Jill's hard work on creating custom printed instruction material was invaluable.  Yet despite our attempt to think of everything,  we've come up with some ways to be even better prepared.

Nance and Lucie welcoming teams at registration table 

Next time we will include the wifi password in the packets and have a computer set up at the registration desk for students to complete the ONLINE sign in (which was key to generating the certificates of completion). We understand that in a school setting,  events happen that result in last minute changes in who can and cannot attend an event.   Our use of Google forms as a sign in coupled with an Autocrat script that would create certificates for everyone who showed up worked well.

I love Jill's idea that we should include an inventory list of what was in our packet, and would like to add a list of places where they can buy more supplies.  As a matter of fact,  I think it would also good to have a LIST Of  other supplies needed to replicate the workshop (i.e. felt, paper, glue, hot glue gun, etc)  And I love Jill's idea of adding a glossary of key terms in the form of a handout.


Jill's suggestion of adding video tutorials  to the handout might be a good next step to involve the girls in.  It would also help the girls when they are teaching others in their school.  Perhaps the girls could create the video tutorials as a way to pay forward.   We could then add QR codes on the instruction sheets.

A little more time for the icebreaker in the beginning and a more formal wrap-up and more opportunities for the girls to share their process is one thing we all agree needs to be part of our revised agenda.

Day 34 Jill's Reflection on Girls Make IT Day

An important part of  working as a team on an event like our Girls MaKE It day is not only  building together, but also debriefing together.  Unfortunately I had to get on a train a couple days after Girls Make IT which prevented a face to face meeting to debrief.   But thank goodness I have some very reflective colleagues and one of them (Jill Dawson has already) reflected on the day in her blog

From Jill's Blog
http://jillericksondawson.blogspot.com/2015/02/reflections-on-girls-make-it.html

"Seven schools, 21 participants, and two high school volunteers attended our Girls Make IT event on 30 January 2015! Although we ran out of time to get to the coding (we had an ambitious agenda), the creativity and perseverance of this crew was an inspiration!

Here's What Worked and Some Ideas for Next Time:
1.  The icebreaker was fun, but it went over the time we'd allotted for it.  I'm glad we didn't interrupt the creative process, though, because it was valuable for getting people talking, sharing, and problem-solving.

2.  Each person got a packet of instructions, so individuals and groups could work at their own pace and help one another.  A couple of my instruction sheets may need a few small tweaks.  Next time, we should consider adding links for "How to videos" to each hand-out. 

3.  Tag-teaming with Leah was fun and essential!  Having another instructor circulate and assist groups might be helpful in the future (unless we reduce the group size). 

4.  Each team got a bag of supplies.  Next time, we should put names of schools on the bags (and include an inventory checklist).

5.  The progression of skills used in the projects made sense conceptually, but we ran out of time for the coding.  The only way to get around this would be to reduce the total number of projects in future workshops or plan to do the coding in a subsequent workshop.

6.  Creating a word wall (or handout) with key terms such as circuit, short circuit, polarity would be useful.

7.  Having a high school mentor speak about her experiences at EHS and teach the girls how to solder worked incredibly well.  Thanks, Max!

8.  Ensure time for a proper wrap-up and more sharing.

9.  Post the wifi code (and add it to the girls' packets).

10.  The use of Google Classroom was a good way to give our girls digital copies of the projects.  Adding video instructions here would make sense.

11.  Sending out certificates was a nice touch.  Thanks, Lucie!

Day 33 Strong female presence at Student Tech Conference

Did you miss the first online Student Tech Conference?  If so,  its not too late catch the recordings of these student lead sessions.  And unlike many tech conferences.. this conference had a pretty even split of male and female presenters.  Way to go!

Check out  the sessions you missed. Listen to the Live recordings of these student lead sessions from January 31, 2015.

9:00am

 KEYNOTE: Parth Chug & Ameera Patheria on "Plugged In: A Student Run Digital Literacy Service Club"

10:00am

 How to Use Individualized Online Coding Resources Effectively - Anne Havlik, Sophmore

10:00am

 Is Google Drive For You? - Mikaela Pozo (student), Jenny Martinez (student), Kyle Dunbar (teacher)

11:00am

 Creating Great Projects with iMovie - Julie Ngo: Student

11:00am

 Growing Entrepreneurs - Christopher Armbrust,Student

11:00am

 The Evolution of The Student Technology Conference - Tylor Johnson

12:00pm

 Physics, Social Justice, and Design - Gabby Lennon

12:00pm

 Understanding Phone Usage of 8th Grade Students - Anushya Makam

12:00pm

 Working With "Old School" and "New School" Technology: The Benefits of Both - Cheyenne Brooks & Eunice Daudu

1:00pm

 KEYNOTE: Sydney Sheren on "How to Help Your Visual Students Learn Using Movie Magic"

2:00pm

 iBooks in the Classroom - Westhampton Beach Middle School Students

2:00pm

 Mentoring Middle School Students Lego Robotics - Aaron Petzold

2:00pm

 Unconventional Tech. within a grade 6-12 School - Don Frazier

3:00pm

 Building Agent Koala - Sophia Durso

3:00pm

 High School Students - Hardware Repair - Aaron Petzold

3:00pm

 Virtual Enterprises International Program - Frank Leotta, Freesia Ferrantino, Ashley Cunniff, Alex Kravitz, and Olivia Horbatiuk

4:00pm

 KEYNOTE: Isabelle Fitzgerald & Lillian Kennedy on "Say it with Social Media"

5:00pm

 Developing Your Product Ideas While In Highschool - Daniil Frants

5:00pm

 Including me with the iPad - Jared & Rylen

5:00pm

 Understanding Logic Gates in Software Design and Development Classes - Stephen Balogh-Caristo

6:00pm

 Everyday EdTech - Rayan Rizvi

6:00pm

 How to Build and Sustain a Student Tech Team - USM House of Technology

6:00pm

 TugaSat - Telma Espírito Santo

7:00pm

 Adobe Creative Cloud Entrepreneur - Andrew Peterson

7:00pm

 Video Pen Pals: Connecting Classrooms Around the World - Henry Harboe, Co-Founder of LumenEd

8:00pm

 KEYNOTE: Dylan de Waart on "Global Buddy—Lesson From a Student Initiative to Connec

Day 32: Who is Martha Madison?

I'm not sure why,  but in high school and college I avoided science classes. As an adult, I'm constantly looking for ways to fill gaps of knowledge caused by those many years "avoiding science".  I'm also always looking for ways to engage students who might not find their way into a math and science class.  This is why I took notice of an inviting poster displaying  Martha Madison in the incubator section of the exhibit hall at FETC (Florida Educational Technology Conference).  

Not only did the visual appeal of Martha Madison catch my eye,  the content offered promise that someone like me (with many gaps in their science understanding) might not only gain better understanding of science, but I might actually have fun doing it.   What do you think?  Does Martha's message to you say "this is serious science made fun?" It did to me.  I'm gearing up to explore the free levels.

But the main reason I chose to include this is post today was to make a point that engaging both girls and boys in science, math, and technology is not easy, but it can be done, and it MUST be done.  And this product caught my attention because they understood the importance of engaging BOTH genders and at first glance, have caught my attention for their ability to speak to both girls and boys.  I'll keep you posted as I explore further.

http://secondavenuelearning.com/products/martha-madison/


Here's a press release, I found on the company site that provides a little more info about "Martha Madison".

For Immediate Release

ROCHESTER, NY 10/24/14 —Second Avenue Software, Inc. announced the launch of four physical science games for middle school students,Martha Madison: Simple Machines, Martha Madison: Optics, Martha Madison: Waves, and Martha Madison: Forces. Research studies demonstrate that students are able to effectively learn key concepts through gameplay and enhance interest in STEM careers.   Martha Madisongames provide the perfect backdrop for learning real science, while playing games that rival the quality of entertainment titles. All four games are available for purchase on Edmodo.

Students adventure through Martha’s world, working as scientists to solve authentic problems. All games promote scientific inquiry through exploration of multiple solutions—encouraging students to collaborate and play, try new solutions, and come back for more. Students win through problem-solving, building confidence and interest in STEM during the most formative time academically—middle school.

Games in the Martha Madison series are backed by proven research, best practices in teaching, and innovative game design. All of the games are correlated to Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards, and come with comprehensive instructional materials, allowing teachers to easily integrate the games into instruction that is already happening in the classroom. Robust data dashboards track progress and learning, offering analytics to all stakeholders—students, teachers, families, and administrators. Extension activities and worksheets are also provided for students and families, ideal for home and supplemental instruction.

Martha Madison is supported in part by National Science Foundation Phase I and Phase II SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) grants. Development was conducted under the direction of Second Avenue CEO and Principal Investigator Victoria Van Voorhis and Lead Producer Brian Regan, along with faculty from the School of Interactive Games and Media at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Our research results are based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation.  Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering.

 About Second Avenue Learning

 Founded by educators and gamers, Second Avenue Learning provides services to education technology clients such as Pearson, McGraw-Hill and W.W. Norton. Second Avenue builds effective, interactive learning products that are innovative, pedagogically accurate and visually compelling. Second Avenue applies expertise to innovate the learning process, and understands that technology serves as a critical enabler to achieve fully customized learning environments and unlock the potential of all students. It is time to reimagine learning.

For Media:

Jill Broikos

jbroikos@secondavenuelearning.com

585.419.6530 x118

Day 31 Women Who Code...It all Started with GRACE

As  we work diligently to introduce more girls and women to "CODING", we must make sure to include the story of one curious little girl who became one of the first women in the history of computer science~ Grace Muray Hopper.

Two tech savvy film makers  are working hard to make sure that story gets told through the production of a documentary about Grace Hopper ~ Born with Curiosity. An  Indiegogo campaign funded the research for the film, which is currently in production.  Learn more about their project at  http://bornwithcuriosity.com/






From the Indiegogo campaign website

Why This Film & Transmedia project, Why Now

"Steve Jobs and Bill Gates had over 12 films made about them, but their legacies are built on Grace's. Who knows, without Grace Hopper, they might have been door to door calculator salesmen! Even with that fact,there isn't one documentary about Grace and her legacy. It's time to change that." ~ Melissa Pierce, Director, Born with CuriosityMost of history has been written by and about men. Our aim is to bring to life the untold and lost stories of women. We believe shining a light on and humanizing role models like Grace makes them relatable in a way that inspires others to greatness. By taking a real look at the complexities of Grace’s rise to fame, we hope to dispel the myth of the anomalous hero and create the opportunity for women and girls to see themselves in Grace.