Teacher Material

What is Lehrplan 21?

Lehrplan 21 is the Swiss Curriculum, a national competence framework that defines what students in Switzerland should learn across all subjects. These connections show how the activity supports the development of digital and computational thinking skills outlined in this curriculum.

Media Competencies

MI.1.1 a: Students can share their experiences in their immediate environment, their media experiences, as well as experiences in virtual worlds, and talk about their media usage.

MI.1.3 b: Students can create and present simple image, text, and audio documents.

MI.1.3 f: Students can assess the effects of their own media contributions and take them into account during production.

Computer Science Competencies

MI.2.2 a: Students can recognize formal instructions and follow them.

MI.2.2 b: Students can try out different approaches to find solutions for simple problems and check them for correctness.

MI.2.2 e: Students understand that a computer can only execute predefined instructions and that a program is a sequence of such instructions.

MI.2.2 f: Students can write and test programs using loops, conditional statements, and parameters.

MI.2.3 a: Students can turn devices on and off, start, operate, and close programs, and use simple functions.

MI.2.3 d: Students can handle basic elements of a user interface.

Transversal Competencies

Self-reflection: Students can apply conclusions drawn from self-assessment and peer assessment.

Independence: Students can focus on a task and work on it with perseverance and discipline.

Problem-solving: Students can identify new challenges and design creative solutions.

Problem: Some school IT systems may categorize ruler.game as a “game site” and block access.

Solution: Test the site in advance. If blocked, contact IT support to request access.

Problem: Students cannot load or save levels properly.

Solution: Test internet connection or switch from wifi to hotspot.

Problem: If the game does not load correctly in Safari or certain browsers.

Solution: Test in advance. If one device fails, switch browser or pair students with functioning devices.

Problem: iPads/laptops shut down during the activity.

Solution: Remind students the day before to fully charge devices.
Have extension cords and chargers ready in the classroom. Allow students to share devices in pairs if needed.

Problem: Students believe the AI is “broken” when walls or placements cause unusual movement.

Solution: Guide them to see this as a learning moment: The AI always calculates the shortest path based on available rules.

Use guiding questions:

“What does the AI know about the maze?”

“What rules is it following?”

Check if they placed blocks under the blue walls.
The AI spirits will see this as a path and will use it. -> Follow the guided step by step instructions.

Problem: The interface may feel confusing at first.

Solution: The tutorial should cover all the questions students may have during the process. If needed, demonstrate the first steps one by one using the projector. Encourage students to use the text-to-speech option if they find reading difficult.