At the start of the year, we focused on Digital Citizenship to ensure students are safe, respectful, and responsible online. We use Common Sense Media to guide us through these important lessons, and you can explore their resources too! Check it out at: Common Sense Education.
Once students are comfortable online, we jump into block coding using Scratch. This free site helps students learn the basics of coding through fun projects:
Kindergarten & 1st Grade: Get started with the basics by making a sprite dance!
2nd Grade: Animate their name.
3rd Grade: Create the classic Pong game.
4th Grade: Build a virtual pet.
5th Grade: Design a maze for a sprite to navigate.
Coding is foundational for many of the projects we work on throughout the year, so it’s important that students learn these basic skills early on. Scratch and Common Sense Media are both free and packed with resources—feel free to explore them with your child!
This month, we are excited to begin exploring engineering. Each grade level is introduced to the Engineering Design Process, where students:
Identify a problem to solve.
Imagine past solutions.
Plan a blueprint to solve the problem.
Create and build using materials.
Test and improve the project to meet criteria.
Here’s what each grade level is working on this year:
Kindergarten: Build sturdy bridges.
1st Grade: Design skyscrapers and learn about balance.
2nd Grade: Construct dinosaurs with makedo tools.
3rd Grade: Create Earth Dwelling habitats, focusing on resources and clean water.
4th Grade: Build a Propeller powered car to learn about thrust and inertia.
5th Grade: Design a helicopter to explore potential energy.
Dream it. Build it. Play it. Adventure Coders
Ever wanted to design your very own video game? Now’s your chance! In this club, we’ll meet twice a month to bring your ideas to life using Bloxels. You’ll create characters, worlds, and challenges—then watch your game come alive! Best part? You can keep building and tweaking your game from home between sessions.
Note: Students should already feel comfortable with basic programming and game setup.We will meet: September 18th,
October 2nd, 23rd,
November 6th, 20th,
December 4th, 18th,
January 15th, 29th,
February 5th, 9th,
March 12th, 26th,
April 2nd, 16th
***3rd-5th grade Walnut Hills students only
Please sign up on this google form: https://forms.gle/kMEDwk5YDn3zx3jL8
If you have any questions or want to learn more about what your child is working on, please don’t hesitate to reach out:
Email: jhager2@cherrycreekschools.org
We look forward to a great month of learning and discovery!