INTERFACE Magazine, Issue 116, February 2023

Your thoughts revealed on teaching about sustainability.

Page 14

Bringing the world of code into your classroom

Explore ideas, insights and inspirational ways for using computer coding in your teaching.

Dancing to different tune at ETV.

Pages 16 and 17

Sink or swim? Students take on the Shark Tank!

Pages 28 and 29

23 23

Registrations are open. Book your FREE place. Keep ahead of the latest e-learning trends and developments by joining us in Dunedin, Lincoln, Cambridge or Auckland.

Don’t leave your digital technology decisions to chance.

DATES FORYOUR DIARY!

23 23

Are you interested in keeping up to date with digital technology in education?

Want to know the latest updates from Google or what Amazon Web Services has to offer?

Sign up and join us at INTERFACE Xpo 2023 to keep ahead of the newest e-learning trends and developments through a mix of workshops, presentations, exhibition, and networking.

Don’t miss this opportunity to not only find out what lies ahead for your school’s e-journey but also network with the digital learning community.

Choose from 4 locations in 2023!

Dunedin, Tuesday 16 May

Lincoln-Christchurch, Friday 19 May

Cambridge, Tuesday 23 May

Auckland, Thursday 25 May

INTERFACE Xpo is FREE for educators to attend.

Registrations are now open.

Places are limited. Don’t delay. Book your spot at

Cambridge

Cambridge Raceway

Tuesday 23 May

Auckland

North Harbour Stadium

Thursday 25 May

Lincoln

Lincoln Event Centre

Friday 19 May

Dunedin

Forsyth Barr Stadium

Tuesday 16 May

Gold Silver Plus:

Silver:

Supporting:

CONTENTS CONTENTS CONTENTS CONTENTS CONTENTS CONTENTSAND

2 INTERFACEXpo 2023: Registrations are open. Book your spot!

8 INTERFACE News and Views

10 Noticeboard

12 academyEX: Get ready to future-proof your career and continue learning

13 Accessit: Managing the evolution of your library

14 You agree there’s more to teach about sustainability INTERFACE teamed up with the Marine Stewardship Council to find out your thoughts on teaching about environmental sustainability. Thanks to

16 Dancing to a different tune in her new role at ETV ETV has appointed Courtney Robinson as its National Support Manager. From first position to her new position, here she tells us a little about herself, her role and the exciting resource packs she’s already creating for teachers.

18 Special feature: Bringing the world of code into your classroom From problem-solving and critical thinking to self-confidence and teamwork, there are plenty of reasons to for kids to learn to code. If you’re looking for ideas and inspiration to introduce or develop computer programming in your teaching, check out seven teachers who are already implementing engaging and successful coding projects. Bringing life, vibrancy and real-world connections to learning

Robotics is one of the best ‘fun’ lessons I

Learning and destruction collide in epic battle bots’ project

Sumo robot battles are some of my favourite lessons

There’s so much more joy in learning robotics alongside your students

Bringing a smile to people’s faces when they see their code working

•Having an absolute blast learning to code using Gamefroot

•Following the coding path, from blocks to text to robots

28 Students pitch jaws-some ideas in Shark Tank challenge Duunn dun… duunn dun… duuuunnnnn dun … dun dun dun dun … Late last year, the JIX Building in Christchurch was humming to the tune of creativity, excitement and mahi of ākonga participating in the inaugural Cloud Tech Shark Tank.

30 File Share: Two pages of online resources

32 Gamefroot lesson: Coding inputs and outputs with JavaScript

34 Competitions: Heaps of great prizes to be won!

Meet the team

EDITOR

Greg Adams

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Greg.Adams@interfacemagazine.co.nz

ADVERTISING

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A dvertising@interfacemagazine.co.nz

DISTRIBUTION MANAGER

Michelle Durbin

09 575 2454

Michelle.Durbin@interfacemagazine.co.nz

DESIGN

Design@interfacemagazine.co.nz

EVENT MANAGER INTERFACE Xpo

Paul Colgrave

Paul.Colgrave@interfacexpo.co.nz

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SUBSCRIBE TO INTERFACE

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NEW ZEALAND INTERFACE™

(ISSN 1177-973X) is published six times a year by G MEDIA PUBLISHING LIMITED

© G MEDIA PUBLISHING LIMITED 2023.

Editorial opinions are not necessarily those of the publisher. We do not endorse or accept responsibility for any third party featured in this publication, unless stated otherwise.

While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of information in this magazine, the publisher does not accept liability for inaccuracies, omissions or misinterpretations that may occur, and urges readers to always check online resources before using them in class.

HELPING

YOU BE YOUR

DIGITAL BEST IN 2023

Welcome to our first issue of 2023! Whatever the year has in store, INTERFACE will keep you up to date with the latest news and developments for using digital technology in your teaching. Our awesome resources –magazines, e-newsletters, website, social media, and event (see below) –will provide everything you need, starting with this latest issue.

It’s a year since we went full-time digital and, going by your reaction, it’s been a popular decision. We’re still bringing you all the news, articles, lessons ideas, and

online resources you love, but with added interactivity and super easy access. If you or anyone else in your school or educator group do not receive the link to the digital magazine and would like a copy, get in touch and we’ll set it up. Contact us at mydigitalcopy@ interfacemagazine.co.nz

Registrations have also opened for INTERFACE Xpo 2023 in May. Join us in one of four locations: Dunedin (16 May), Lincoln-Christchurch (19 May), Cambridge (23 May), and Auckland (25 May). Find out more on pages 2-5 and book your spot at interfacexpo.nz/register2023/

READER SURVEY: THANKS FOR TELLING US YOUR THOUGHTS

What’s important to you about environmental sustainability? How are you teaching about it in your school? We teamed up with the Marine Stewardship Council to find out. Our thanks to everyone who completed the survey. We review the results on page 14.

There were also some fab prizes, which we’ve split into three and drawn at random from all those participating.

Congratulations to Nicki Harding College, Wairarapa (who receives a Giant Airpod Speaker, John West Tuna Bowls and $100 Countdown voucher), Tiplady, Marlborough Primary School, Auckland (John West Tuna Bowls and $100 Countdown voucher), and Natasha O’Connor, West Melton School, Christchurch ($100 Countdown voucher).

WANTED: YOUR THOUGHTS ON

TEACHING WITH AI

Got a story to tell about or an opinion on Artificial Intelligence (AI)?

From chatbot software ChatGPT to sci-fi blockbuster M3GAN, it’s a subject that’s in the news and we want to explore more. What do you think? Are you using AI-powered tools and resources in your classroom? We’d love to hear from you for a feature we’ll be running soon on the future AI offers education.

WE LAUNCH A NEW SERIES OF EXCLUSIVE GAMEFROOT LESSON PLANS

Late last year, Gamefroot added IDE styling to the JavaScript block, making it easier to read, find and write. If you’re looking to learn JavaScript programming, give it go. And to guide you along the way, we’re launching a new series of Gamefroot lesson ideas based on JavaScript. Check out the first instalment on pages 32 and 33 – or download from interfaceonline.co.nz/ gamefroot2023

Bringing the world of code into your classroom – see our special coding feature on pages 18-26.

MEET OUR COMPETITION WINNERS

Thanks to everyone who entered out latest competitions. As well as our Reader Survey prizes, there were some choice items up for grabs.

The pairs of Wall Mounted Phone Holders are on their way to Matt Harrison, Westland High School, Hokitika, and Liz Hansen, Terrace End School, Palmerston North. And the winner of the Smartphone 12-Inch Screen Magnifier is Philip Waller, Papatoetoe West School, Auckland.

We also had a selection of three Make Your Own Kits to give away. These go to Richard Stuart, Bream Bay College, Ruakaka (Make Your Own Fibre Optic Light), Vicky Lambert, Oceanview Heights School, Timaru (Make Your Own Remote Control Dog), and Nicky Anderson, Tamatea High School, Napier (Make Your Own Coin Eating Robot).

Congratulations to all our winners. If you missed out this time, you could try our new competitions on pages 34 and 35.

Contact Editor Greg Adams at greg.adams@interfacemagazine.co.nz Did students survive the Shark Tank?

LAUNCH THE WONDER PROJECT ROCKET CHALLENGE AT YOUR SCHOOL

Blast ākonga engagement with STEM to the stars by signing up for the Wonder Project Rocket Challenge, aligned to Level 3 of the NZ Curriculum. It’s free, fun and supported by industry professionals.

Find our more and sign up at wonderproject.nz/ programmes/rocket-challenge/

Read more in ‘Launching an interest in STEM with the Rocket Challenge’ at interfaceonline.co.nz/issue102/

REGISTER TO GET EARLY ACCESS TO NEW DIGITAL SERVICES AND ADVICE FROM THE MINISTRY

During the next year, the Digital Team at the Ministry of Education has a range of new services that will be made available to schools and kura. This is part of the goal to improve overall cyber security and digital support to schools and kura.

“The team is looking to establish a schools reference group on digital challenges to help inform decisionmaking. The group would be involved in piloting new services and initiatives, and, importantly, providing feedback,” said the Ministry. “The benefits for schools will include getting access to digital advice and services ahead of launch, receive specific attention on your school’s security setup to understand where improvements can be made, and help shape the design of new services and support.”

Participating schools will be able to opt-in or out of being involved in specific development opportunities as they emerge.

“Spaces in the reference group will be limited. Ideally, the group will be genuinely representative of schools and kura of all shapes and sizes from across Aotearoa. So, if you are interested, get in quick!.”

To register your interest to be part of the Ministry’s digital reference group, please contact digital.services@education.govt.nz

HELP SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT SURVEY ON IT SUPPORT SERVICES TO SCHOOLS AND KURA

Can you help spread the word? As part of the Ministry of Education’s goal to strengthen cyber security and digital support in kura and schools, it would like to better understand what digital support services are being provided by suppliers into schools and kura and identify any potential gaps.

A request for information (RFI) has been published on the Governments Electronic Tender Service (GETS). To help get as many responses as possible, please can you share the link to the survey with your school’s digital services suppliers. Survey Link here.

SAY HELLO TO ACADEMYEX

academyEX is a new Tertiary Education Organisation registered to delivered NZQA qualifications. It brings together a range of courses from its three faculties – The Mind Lab, Tech Futures Lab and Earth Futures Lab. Among new courses on offer are Master of Change and Organisation Resilience and a suite of short part-time courses (online delivery, six weeks part-time) called Advancer courses.

Find out more on page 12 or go to the new website at academyex.com/browse/courses

5 WAYS TO SPOT IF YOUR SCHOOL IS BEING SCAMMED BY A PHISHING EMAIL

• The sender uses a common email domain or inconsistent address.

• Email subject line or content reads as extremely urgent or uses threatening language.

• The message states there is a prize, free gift, or delivery to be claimed.

• There are obvious grammar errors and misspellings throughout.

• The links or attachments look odd, suspicious or downright ‘phishy’.

Source: Using Technology Better (usingtechnologybetter.com)

RUBBER DUCK AWARDS WINNERS

Congratulations to the winners of last year’s Rubber Duck Awards, a competition for educators and ākonga, tamariki and rangatahi of Aotearoa New Zealand, to tell stories through game design. They were:

• Jake, Josiah and Flynn with Carbon Blast, Rolleston Christian School (teacher Christina Sands)

• Kash Duncan with Collect the Pounamu, Breens Intermediate, (teacher Haley Taylor) Learn more at rubberduckawards.co.nz

RESOURCES FROM SAFER INTERNET DAY 2023

A shout out to everyone who took part in Safer Internet Day earlier this month. Hosted by Netsafe, the event’s part of a wider global initiative, with 50 nations worldwide organising activities to encourage better online experiences and promote collaborative efforts to build a safer online world. This year was particularly special as it was the 20th anniversary of the observance.

Resources are still available for your school to use, including logos, newsletter messages, imagery, and posters . More at saferinternetday.nz

DID YOU KNOW?

Enabling airplane mode on your laptop or smartphone will speed up the charging of the battery, as it will turn off Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and network connection, which all consume power.

N4L RELEASES ANNUAL REPORT ON SUPPORT FOR SCHOOLS

Among the stats and information in its Annual Report, Network for Learning revealed its Customer Support Team fielded nearly 44,000 support cases in 2021/22. The Crown-owned technology company’s staff and contractors grew from 114 to 168, fuelled by expanding services that included an Email Protection product and a new Security Operations Centre. And its annual customer service survey revealed 94 per cent of schools and kura were satisfied with its service.

“In 2021/22, as COVID-19 further accelerated the shift to greater reliability on online learning, N4L’s services became more important than ever before,” said CEO Larrie Moore.

“N4L is proud to connect, protect and support schools and kura across Aotearoa New Zealand. The services we provide help alleviate some of the pressures on schools of maintaining their technology infrastructure and allowing busy teaching staff to focus on education.”

If you’d like to read the N4L Annual Report, it can be downloaded here

NEW PURPOSE-BUILT STEM CENTRE IN NSW

CENSUSATSCHOOL STARTS THIS MONTH

A $45 million New South Wales Government grant is being put towards establishing a STEM Centre of Education Excellence at Australian Catholic University in Western Sydney. The purpose-built centre will offer a range of courses for school students including robotics, coding, entrepreneurial thinking, and Girls in STEM, as well as homework and tutoring clubs. School teachers will also be able to access professional development opportunities in areas that include maths, science, technology, and literacy.

CensusAtSchool New Zealand – TataurangaKiTeKura

Aotearoa has launched its 11th biennial bilingual survey to chart students’ views of their own lives.

CensusAtSchool is a non-profit, online educational project that aims to bring statistics to life in both English and Māori-medium classrooms. Supervised by teachers, students from Years 3-13 anonymously answer 30 questions and later explore the results in class. The statistical project runs every two years, and in 2021, more than 35,000 students took part, representing approximately 600 schools and 1,200 teachers.

“We’re passionate about getting real, relevant data about New Zealand students into their hands,” said Co-director Rachel Cunliffe, “so that they can grow their data science superpower skills.”

Teacher Guides are available and teaching resources include workshops, presentations, classroom activities, research papers, interactive data analysis tools, real student data sets, and statistics website links. For more information go to new.censusatschool.org.nz

ARTIST’S IMPRESSION OF NEW STEM CENTRE

Get ready to future-proof your career and continue learning with academyEX!

Technology has disrupted the way we live, work, learn and earn, and, as a result, it’s more important than ever to continue learning to ensure our careers are future-proofed. But how can we do this? That’s where academyEX comes in.

Founded by Frances Valintine (CNZM), academyEX is an independent, globally-focused higher education institute dedicated to multidisciplinary postgraduate learning aimed at helping New Zealanders future-proof their careers. With over 28 study options, including short courses, micro-credentials, postgraduate certificates and Master’s degrees, academyEX offers a flexible and diverse range of learning opportunities.

Areas of specialisation

What sets academyEX apart from traditional education is its multidisciplinary approach, which focuses on four areas of specialisation – contemporary education, technology and innovation, sustainability and change leadership. The programmes are designed to be different from traditional education, and are contextualised in real-world work environments, delivered by a curated group of specialist academics, industry experts, and leaders who push the boundaries.

Our students are given the flexibility to learn what they want, how they want, and how they apply the new knowledge to their teaching practice. With stackable, NZQA-accredited programmes ranging from Level 7 and 8 micro-credentials to Level 9 Master’s degrees, academyEX is a perfect choice for

professionals who want to balance their learning and studies with a full-time job and career.

“It’s about giving people the skills, knowledge and capabilities to innovate and redefine what tomorrow brings,” explained Frances. “academyEX will help people into their future career with refreshed confidence and ability to create greater impact.”

Perfect choice

The world is rapidly changing, and with it, the demands of the workforce. academyEX is the perfect choice for anyone looking to stay ahead of the curve in today’s fast-paced world.

So, why not take the first step towards a brighter future today and join the academyEX community of lifelong learners?

Curious? Visit us at academyex.com

Article supplied by academyEX. •

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Managing the evolution of your library with Accessit

The traditional library – featuring rows of shelves lined with books and an atmosphere where you can hear a pin drop – is largely gone. But with the dusty being replaced with a more dynamic, diverse environment, is the way you’re running your library keeping up?

School libraries are no longer simply repositories of paperbacks and periodicals. Increasingly, they’re a popular home for student clubs and committee meetings, Esports stadiums, a hub for internet access, and even makeshift classrooms. This is putting huge pressure on what’s needed from the school library space – which is where Accessit’s Library Management System is proving invaluable to those tasked with running it.

In a world where talk about literacy often comes in second place to what’s good for cost savings, Accessit Library is designed to support schools to achieve both. From streamlining workflows to helping build a connected community of learners, it makes the set-up and running of library services easy and straightforward.

This leaves library staff – whose ranks increasingly include teachers and even administration staff taking on the role of part-time librarian – free to focus on giving our kids great results.

Evolving demands

Developed here in New Zealand and used around the world, Accessit has seen many changes in the 25-plus years since beginning life as a start-up helping to give libraries and learners the systems they so badly needed. During this time, it’s been amazing to see the developing demands on our software mirroring the evolution on the ground in school libraries.

We’ve seen automatic syncing with student management and data management systems to keep student and class information up to date, plus the hugely popular auto-emailing of overdue reminders to softly let students and their parents know that they may need to have another look in their bag.

Most Accessit customers are now cloud based. This not only saves the schools on IT time and consulting costs, but also benefits learning as kids can easily access their library and all their resources to research, whether at school or at home. One person can scan and catalogue 100 new books in a minute

and have the book data automatically recognised and downloaded, so there goes the need for extensive and tedious data entry, meaning that teacher-librarians can get back their teaching (or lunch) time.

Focused investment

Accessit can help staff access and easily pull reports on a library’s usage to prove just how critical the library is, and this also means the investment in the library is better focused and can change with what students are looking for … graphic novels anyone?

It links with the EPIC media resources to save them from some of the less trustworthy search results they find elsewhere online. The system can even show them where the book they’re looking for is in the library, saving valuable staff time and developing more independent researchers.

We’ve spent our time making the often basic but timeconsuming tasks simple and easy to manage, so librarians and teachers can focus on students not admin, and that’s what has helped us make our name.

Literacy investment

While budgetary pressures on investing in libraries and librarians are tough, using Accessit Library means schools can balance the books while keeping up their investment in literacy and learning outcomes.

If there’s one thing we would ask of schools in 2023, it would be to take a look at how you’re using your library and consider whether it is reaching its full potential. Here at Accessit, we believe every school can and invite you to give us the opportunity to show how we can help. Ninety-nine per cent of our schools are still with us after all these years, so we must be doing something right!

By AJ Johnston, Library Legend, Accessit.

You agree there’s more to teach about sustainability

In the last issue, INTERFACE teamed up with the Marine Stewardship Council to find out your thoughts on teaching about environmental sustainability Thanks to everyone who participated in the reader survey. This is what you told us.

It seems that something we can all agree on is that environment sustainability is relevant to teachers, whatever subject they teach (73.7% strongly agree; 20.2% slightly agree).

Also, teaching about sustainability is important to you (59.7% strongly agree; 35.1% slightly agree) and it should be a given part of modern education to learn about sustainable lifestyles (60.5% strongly agree; 33.3% slightly agree).

Students’ interests

While you believe the curriculum guides what topics to teach that are related to sustainability (41.6% highly influence; 46.1% moderately influence), your students’ interests also play a significant part in the decision. More than half of you (50.4%) say they highly influence and two-fifths (41.59%) moderately influence what you teach where sustainability is concerned.

We asked you to choose what you thought were the most important issues in sustainability that should be taught in your school? The top five choices were:

• Waste reduction 68.4%

• Health and well-being 57.9%

• Oceans and ocean life 56.1%

• Climate change 55.3%

• Responsible consumption and production of food 51.8%

Influence of campaigners

Interestingly, only around a third of you (35.1%) believed that the actions of campaigners like Greta Thunberg had a positive influence on students’ motivation to take action on sustainable issues. Roughly the same again (33.3%) thought they had no influence and 4.4% believed campaigners had a negative influence on kids’ motivation to take action on sustainable issues.

75% of respondents did not know World Ocean Day is on 8 June 2023.

Ocean conservation

Many of you think you have a good understanding of the issues involved in ocean sustainability (strongly agree 17.8%; slightly agree 62.4%). However, you don’t think students fully understand how human activity is impacting ocean health (strongly agree 47.5%; slightly agree 35.4%)

While you believe it’s a subject that’s relevant to students (strongly agree 52.5%; slightly agree 34.7%), you also don’t

think it gets the attention it deserves in lessons (strongly agree 26.7%; slightly agree 55.5%) and believe you don’t have the resources to discuss and teach it (strongly agree 12.9%; slightly agree 44.6%).

95% of respondents have not used any Marine Stewardship Te Kawa O Tangaroa teaching and learning resources.

Four-fifths of you would like to improve your knowledge around ocean conservation and sustainability, with the things likely to be most helpful being:

• High quality teaching resources/downloads;

• Teacher training; and

• Programmes, events or themed days that get students involved.

If you were considering a visit to an aquarium or other oceanrelated exhibit with your class, the most important factors influencing your decision would be a workshop on ocean conservation run by aquarium staff (74.3%) and a clear curriculum-linked activity (35.6%).

Finally, two-thirds (64.4%) of you would like to use your power as an educator to prepare the next generation, as individuals, to make decisions for sustainable lives. And 92.7% want to help and support students to feel able to take positive action on ocean conservation and sustainability.

Check out Te Kawa O Tangaroa

If you’d like to learn more, Te Kawa O Tangaroa is an oceancentred learning programme from the Marine Stewardship Council. With a focus on solutions to overfishing and ensuring oceans teem with life, it’s designed for learners in Years 7 to 10, and aligned to the National Curriculum and Te Marautanga o Aotearoa.

Also, you can sign up for teacher updates and, each quarter, receive the latest education resources, upcoming calendar dates, competitions, and ocean-related stories.

Go to bit.ly/TeKawaOTangaroa

Who won the fantastic prizes for completing the reader survey? See page 8.

• Annotated Videos – ready to use in your classroom.

• Complete with supporting resources – Presentations, Reflection Activities and Information Sheets.

• Additional packs will be released each month. Follow us on social for updates.

• For access information contact Martin Drew at martin.drew@etv.org.nz or call 0800 438 388

Dancing to a different tune in her new role at ETV

ETV has appointed Courtney Robinson, previously teaching at Riccarton High, as its National Support Manager. From first position to her new position, here she tells us a little about herself, her role and the exciting resource packs she’s already creating for teachers.

Congratulations on joining ETV. Can you outline for us your new role?

There are three main parts. Firstly, support existing ETV clients with professional development opportunities to make sure each kura is getting the most out of their subscription. I have already met so many passionate teachers, IT staff and librarians. I am also available via the ‘Help’ button on ETV. You can meet with me every second Wednesday of the month in our Zoom support sessions. Also, keep an eye out for ETV workshops on specific tools or pedagogical practices.

Secondly, I manage ETV’s social media platforms. It’s important to me to engage with clients regularly and create a sense of community. A lot is going on when you’re teaching, so I’m excited to highlight new and relevant content through these channels.

Thirdly, I am building resource packs for educators. These use content that is on ETV and provides opportunities for deeper learning by wrapping the video content into wider contexts with supporting activities.

What attracted you to the job?

Working with ETV allows me to explore parts of education that I am passionate about. I get to share my contemporary teaching knowledge with educators and support them in intentionally integrating content into their classrooms. It’s important to me that teachers also think about their digital competency, so our students can dive past the superficial/surface-level instances of technologies in the classroom.

Also, working for a not-for-profit aligns well with my vision of what education should look like and creates a sense of connectedness with the people I work with inside ETV and out. The work ETV is doing around awareness of copyright licensing and equitable access to resources in education was a big drawcard.

Can you tell us a little about your background?

My background is in the performing arts, specifically ballet. I grew up as a dancer and completed full-time dance training before becoming a secondary school teacher in 2018. My first teaching role was a Paraparaumu College and in 2020 I joined Riccarton High School. I’m incredibly grateful that teaching gave me space to both dance and explore my love for learning.

Woven into my teaching career is my Master’s Degree. In 2019, I began a postgraduate certificate with The Mind Lab, which snowballed into a Master of Contemporary Education … and

sparked my love for digital technologies! I don’t think I will ever stop engaging in academia and being a part of communities like EdTech NZ. My research was focused on asynchronous collaboration between classrooms. I used project-based learning and this allowed me to explore ponderings around agile and lean methodologies in the classroom.

After completing my research, I continued to work on the implementation of digital technologies to increase student communication and the teaching of digital citizenship in secondary schools.

What do you think you bring to the job?

I’m excited to see what change I can create in this role and the community I can build. The rapid development of digital technologies over the last few years has had a huge impact on what and how we teach. I’m constantly a learner myself, which sounds a bit cheesy, however, I mean it. My focus in 2022 was learning more about software development and disruptive technologies like AI, Big Data and IoT. I will always be futurefocused in this role, and bring current and well-researched ideas to the team from either a pedagogical or technological perspective. If there’s a new OECD report, educational framework or Ed Tech review, you can bet I’ve read it!

Why should schools use ETV?

ETV provides great resources for educators. Currently, the extensive library houses well over 150,000 videos for educators to use (links will never expire), our EVA interactive annotation video tool helps deepen learning by utilising sight, sound, colour and movement. You can request to upload anything you can’t find on the site already. I haven’t even begun to talk about the collaboration functionality of ELINK either …

Did you use ETV as a teacher?

I did and it was a huge help in planning and creating colourful learning pathways for my students. We could use videos on ETV to identify and evaluate the effectiveness of choreographic devices or critique the technique of different dance

Meet EVA

EVA can turn any video into an enriched interactive experience with 17 different types of annotation and interactive tools that pop up while the learner watches the video. These can include labels, text boxes, links, images, quizzes, and more. The full range of no-response and response-enabled tools are available with your ETV subscription. It can also be used by schools that do not subscribe to ETV.

More at etv.nz/eva

styles. ETV also helped me learn about Haka and other dances that I was not so familiar with, yet I knew it was important to explore with my students.

There were also many times when ETV was there to save the day. Creating interactive videos in EVA helped me understand where my students were with their learning.

Can you tell us about ETV’s new resource packs for teachers?

ETV is wanting to help educators create engaging learning with modern ideas and topics relevant to our place in the world. We are seeing huge changes to the New Zealand Curriculum being rolled out and we want to help make these changes as smooth as possible.

These new resources use EVA to provide educators with pre-made interactive videos and surrounding content. Our packs are future-focused, designed to combine subjects in one topic, designed to support skills for the 21st Century, and support core

Each new pack will come with three pre-made interactive videos and a mixture of worksheets, presentations, infographics, group activities and reflection ideas. These packs are available once you’ve logged into ETV.

What resources are available now – and are more planned?

We currently have two resource packs available, entitled ‘Kaitiakitanga’ and ‘By Chance’.

Kaitiakitanga blends big ideas and learning objectives found in the refresh of the Digital Technologies, Chemistry and Biology and Social Studies subjects for Level 1 NCEA. It focuses on the concept of Kaitiakitanga (Guardianship), Kauri Dieback and the different

perspectives on the protection of Significant Natural Areas. Two subjects you may think are chalk and cheese have been explored in By Chance. Dance and Digital Technologies work together to explore the concept of chance by creating a randomizer to make movement patterns. This pack is designed to get junior secondary school students moving and exploring basic programming skills.

A third resource is under development and will support the teaching of Aotearoa New Zealand’s Histories for Years 7-8. The pack will give scope for teachers and students to explore local histories or personal experiences through the ‘Understand, Know, Do’ elements.

Critical thinking opportunities and digital technologies opportunities will give teachers fresh ideas on how to explore this content with their a - konga.

As ETV develops packs, we welcome suggestions and support from our community, so these resources are relevant and meaningful.

Are there any other plans that you can tell us about for ETV in 2023?

We are continuing our campaign to convince the Government to fully fund copyright licences for every school, as is done in Australia and the UK, and looks set to be implemented in Canada. Our teachers will then have peace of mind that they are covered under our copyright laws, and can use any print, music and audio-visual material that they want to in their classrooms. That means safety for schools, but also that content creators are being respected, too.

We will be expanding our free Library, available to all teachers without a subscription, to include content around water safety, road safety and mental health, as our contribution to the health and safety of all akonga from Early Learning through to Tertiary.

We are looking forward to attending the INTERFACEXpo conferences in Dunedin, Lincoln, Cambridge, and Auckland in May, and we will also focus this year on building relationships with the various curriculum associations.

And finally, we will continue to support any school who would like to trial ETV for three months at no charge, including unlimited PLD. For more information about a free trial contact martin.drew@etv.org.nz or call 0800 438 388

Thank you.

If you’d like to know more about ETV’s resources and training, Courtney can be contacted at courtney.robinson@etv.org.nz or on 022 010 7530

Bringing the world of code into your classroom

From problem-solving and critical thinking to self-confidence and teamwork, there are plenty of reasons to for kids to learn to code. If you’re looking for ideas and inspiration to introduce or develop computer programming in your teaching, check out these seven teachers who are already implementing engaging and successful coding projects.

Bringing life, vibrancy and real-world connections to learning

By Allie Hemmings, Takapuna Normal Intermediate School

We have six specialist subjects that students rotate through during the year. They spend 10 half-day sessions with two subjects (once a week, for 10 sessions), before moving on to the next pair of subjects.

Two years ago, Digital Technology paired with Performing Arts and we created some short films. Last year, we joined Materials Technology and spent the first four of these 10 sessions focusing on building up skills in our respective subjects. For DT, this consisted of learning block coding with Makey Makey and micro:bits, robotics with mBots, and a session on electronics (using a breadboard, micro:bit and adapter). For Materials, the focus was on material functions and associated tools, with plastics and metals, and also some CAD for lasering print a ruler.

After these four sessions, we combined our teaching groups to start our joint project, where they had to design and build a fully functioning remote controlled robot, bringing together the skills learnt in both subject areas to meet a given brief.

components, and code the controller and robot using micro:bits. This broke the project down into five full-day sessions, which would take students through the whole technological design process, including prototyping, building and testing their design. A Google Slidedeck was also set up to capture all of the evidence of the process.

Generally, it worked really well. Students were engaged and learned how to develop an outcome that was both fit for purpose and met a given brief. As teachers, we learnt a lot along the way, particularly as neither of us had done any electronics before. We continually had issues in the final stages of each rotation, as we often couldn’t get the motors to come to life. Through a lot of trial and error we managed to get a 70-80 per cent of working robots by the end of the year, which was far improved from our first rotation of robots. We had to Google a lot of answers about breadboarding, and what the likely issues would be. Even down to buying rechargeable 9V batteries to run the robots, which we thought would be a better use of funds, wasn’t successful as they can lose their charge extremely quickly. This is ‘insider’ knowledge that we could really have used at the outset of this project.

Self taught

day to the next our lesson structure was improving, and from one rotation to the next it was becoming more efficient, structured, and more successful.

Design process

We chose this particular project by looking at a few ideas online to get the kids building something in Materials Technology and embedding the coding knowledge that we were learning in DT. We found a tutorial on Instructables (instructables.com) that had a DIY robot made out of a tissue box. We adapted this to create a brief whereby learners would design and build the physical robot structure, build the electronics

We experienced other equipment issues, such as the micro:bit battery packs breaking and, while I taught myself to solder to fix these, for what appeared to be no logical reason, the repaired ones wouldn’t power the microbits. It turns out that the prewired connectors we had bought on AliExpress were opposite polarity to the connector on the microbit. Having a site to organise and store the lesson instructions for the kids was a great idea, as we had a central location to put all of content. This also made it really easy to adapt and update as we went.

We did the project with five groups of about 45 learners, spending a full day with each group once a week. We completed three rotations throughout the year, so by the end of the final rotation, every learner in the school had gone through the project, This meant from one

I think blending two subjects together brings life and vibrancy to the subjects, as students see connections to the real world, and how design processes are everywhere. Their critical thinking skills were put to use and they became reflective to support the success of their own projects. This was a group project and we found that their teamwork improved over time, as they became more committed to the outcome and success of their team.

I have loved this project, despite tearing my hair out at times, seemingly unable to come up with viable solutions to electronics and component issues. I feel so much more confident now to teach robotics, understanding the inner workings of robots. This was not my background, despite being the specialist digital technology teacher here, I felt more comfortable with digital media content.

I think to run this project again would be highly beneficial, and a massive drawcard for our department going forward, engaging kids in real world STEM projects.

Allie Hemmings is Digital Technology Curriculum Lead at Takapuna Normal Intermediate School in Auckland.

Robotics is one of the best ‘fun’ lessons I teach

By Malcolm Clarke, Ko-whai Intermediate School

Using micro:bits and Maqueen robotics as a way of exploring areas of Computational Thinking is one of the best ‘fun’ lessons I currently teach. It’s a great ‘leveller’ as all the students I have done this with will gain successful outcomes in a relatively short space of time, as well as gain a sense of achievement as a result.

Maqueen robots are relatively cheap to purchase and the use of micro:bits allows for innovative lessons to be devised, which especially encompasses the curriculum areas of Maths and Science. The combination of micro:bit and Maqueen provides the best ‘bang for your buck’ in terms of being so versatile. The value for money has also allowed me to run lessons with classes of 30 students at a relatively low cost and upkeep.

Grow and develop

The learning outcomes have grown as I have developed my programme over the last two years. The main objective is to develop student critical thinking. The first lesson is learning how to move forward, backward, left and right. I then set a challenge to move around a set track, which gets the students to develop control over distance, timing, angles, and direction. The next lesson is to build upon any previous knowledge to make the robot follow a line using the infrared sensors or to work out how to program a remote control to turn it. The following lesson is to get the Maqueen to avoid objects by using ultrasonic sensors. There are opportunities to incorporate all of this learning in authentic ways. In 2021, ‘Space’ was the theme of our Science lessons that year. One of my Year 8 classes wanted to use the Maqueen to simulate how the Mars Rover would move around the surface of the planet. They made some cardboard prototypes with the aim of eventually printing a 3D chassis in the shape of the Rover. What I liked about this project was the authentic learning that took place. For example, the teachers that I collaborated with would use the Maths lessons to get the class to think about the dimensions of the Maqueen. They would also encourage the students to think about angles, timings

and other measurements.

Overall, I’m happy to facilitate the students to allow them to have free reign in the direction of where each of their projects could go. Many of the ideas I have trialled in class over the last few years have been as a result of myself just ‘letting go’ and giving the power of learning to the students.

Broad programme

Coding has been a staple part of what I offer at school. It has allowed me to develop a broad programme over the last few years. I have made the conscious decision to provide learning opportunities that are not just valid within the four walls of my classroom.

I’m constantly seeking to make improvements to what I offer in class. My

main inspiration for lesson ideas is actually from my peers. I am an active participant on several forums, such as DTTA (Digital Technologies Teachers Aotearoa) and other user groups, mainly on social media. This is where I often get my ideas from.

The main challenge for anyone teaching Digital Technologies is the time to fit the lessons into the timetable. I am fortunate enough to be in the position to offer discreet lessons throughout the year.

The nature of Digital Tech means I have no definitive future plans for this project. My normal approach is to leave any specific activities open ended as this allows for teachers and students to devise the lessons and be flexible in which direction they decide to take their learning.

Malcolm Clarke teaches Digital Technologies at Ko - whai Intermediate School in Auckland.

CHALLENGE 2 - IR LINE FOLLOWER

CHALLENGE 1 - CODING DIRECTIONS

Learning and destruction collide in epic battle bots’ project

By Jeff Cochrane, Waihi College

Together with the engineering teacher here at Waihi College, we co-taught a group of Year 10s to develop battle robots. It was an awesome mashup of both coding and robotics.

We’d always been tinkering with various project ideas. We sat down together one afternoon and Ray said: “Hey did you see that robot battle show on Netflix?” The idea was born and we couldn’t stop ourselves.

To be honest it started as a full 100+ kg battle bots of destruction with chainsaws for motors … but we both had to temper our ambitions due to health and safety concerns. We decided to limit the weight and power to maintain some degree of control, and wrote some basic rules and regulations before pretty much turning the project over to the students.

Weapons and armour

Their brief was ‘Design and build a competition-winning termite class battle bot’. They were provided with a range of basic parts from the Arduino, wheels and Bluetooth controllers for movement but then they could take their design any way they liked, within the scope of the rules (including, max weight 1kg, no metal, water or fire-based weapons).

Teams used the laser cutter to craft their bot’s armour, weapons and chassis. For the coding part of the process, we used PictoBlox, an open source drag-and-drop style coding app. I knew many of my students had never been exposed to coding before and seeing lines of code would turn them off. We looked at a number of different platforms, like Sphero and Scratch, but these didn’t meet the

robotics and coding requirements. I’m pretty sure I just stumbled upon PictoBlox while looking at Bluetooth-controlled cars on YouTube.

It’s been great as it not only had the Scratch-style computer programming many of the students had used before but also showed the actual C++ code the scratch had generated.

Critical decisions

Seeing the battle at the end of the project was amazing. We had setup a ‘pit’ (ring of tables) where the battle bots would compete. One side was for the competitors, the remaining three were filled with students eager to see the action. The crowd was cheering; parts were flying. It was just an epic way to finish a project.

We may have provided the basics but they had to bring their creativity to develop their bots. The technology process, problem-solving, and teamwork were the key learning outcomes for the students. Teams had to design, test, re-design, refine and test again their various bots, weapons, and parts. From 3D printed weapons to the difference between two and four-wheel drive, students had to make critical decisions as a team to move their project forward. Problem-solving was a massive part of the project, from debugging the wiring and coding or refining the designs, students were in a constant state of flux.

Learned so much

The ease of the coding system was a huge help as it was easy enough for students to access the coding,

understand what each step/piece of code did and then make changes as they developed their robots.

It was pretty technical for sure. There were lots of issues getting the right Bluetooth settings and making sure the wiring was correct but, again, I think that the students just learned so much. Some of the teams were five and more, and too big. Groups of two or three would have been better. The start of the project was plagued with super technical issues but once these were resolved, it was all go. Overall, it was a blast, not just for me but the students really enjoyed it. There are a few images displayed in my classroom. One is Oreo, the winning robot, sitting atop a pile of defeated challengers, which serves as a reminder for all students who enter the battle bot arena.

We’re planning the next phase, which with a little more time, smaller team sizes and more weight and power, I think will be epic!

Jeff Cochrane teaches Digital Technology at Waihi College in Waikato.

For more on PictoBlox go to thestempedia.com/ product/pictoblox/

WINNING ROBOT OREO

Sumo robot battles are some of my favourite lessons

By Simon Mutch, Casebrook Intermediate School

When I arrived at Casebrook Intermediate there was money in the budget to purchase some equipment and I spent the year looking around at what was available. It’s paramount that in my classes the students are involved in creating, not just consuming, so that was the lens through which I viewed everything. In the end I decided on LEGO Spike as they were a replacement for the EV3s, which were always a robust technology and offered so much in the way of creativity.

The Spike app works on all platforms and has the option of block coding or Python, which was a big factor in my decision. There are a number of lessons in the app, with step-by-step instructions, and everything can be extended, offering natural differentiation.

One of the first activities I got the students involved in was building a ‘hopper’, a small robot that moves around on legs. We already had a sumo mat, so I thought it would be fun to take the hoppers and battle them in the ring. What appealed most was the way that sumo lends itself to the technology process of design, build, test, improve.

Hype and motivation

I have the Year 8s for two hours a week for 13 weeks. A good portion of this time is devoted to developing a sumo robot team. This involves a range of activities from composing music to designing a logo, to designing and testing their robots. At the end of the 13 weeks, each group gets a lesson to build, test, and battle their robots.

They work in teams and each team has their own kit. After each battle or couple of battles, there’s time for the teams to make modifications. Each battle is an ‘all in’ affair with all robots in one battle and there are points awarded for the top three. At the end of the lesson, the team with the most points wins; at the end of the semester, the winners from each class do battle. The finale to the year is a battle of each semester winner.

The competition went really well. The nature of the activity leads to high motivation to redesign and improve the robots. No two robots are the same but there’s a lot of ‘borrowing’ of ideas once a team sees something that works well.

It’s not a quiet activity and there is a lot of

hype in the battles. It’s not for everyone, of course, but it would probably capture 90 per cent of the students straight off, and usually the rest come round once they start to see some progress with their robot. There’s a lot of laughter and excitement, and at times some angst. It is an activity that always rates highly when collecting student voice through exit surveys and semester overviews.

The activity covers many of the Progress Outcomes from the Digital Technology Curriculum through the coding and the identification of inputs and outputs, as well as the role each part plays. The best learning would have to be the conversations had between the students as they design and build. When they analyse a battle or discuss how to overcome another robot, the ideas really start to flow and it is wonderful to hear and see the learning happening when they discuss, trial, refine, and experiment with ideas.

Technical issues

Naturally, there are always challenges. While the robots are easy and intuitive there is still a bit of preparation before getting started. It’s important to have some experience with the Spike kits and how they operate, so that when any issues arise you can be on to them quickly.

Another challenge was timing. Teams start off slow and methodical, and then, as time starts to run out, things get

frantic. I always feel bad ending the lesson as they don’t want to stop and they definitely don’t want to pull apart their masterpiece robot. Another issue is for the students who struggle to collaborate. As it can be quite an intense session, it’s important to cater to those that don’t work well with others.

Another issue would be equipment failure. Recently I’ve had a number of the motors fail. While LEGO has been happy to replace them, I have been waiting months to get them due to supply and delivery issues.

That’s why one of the most important parts of this is having enough kits. We bought 10, and with class sizes generally of 18 to 20 and students choosing to usually work in threes or sometimes fours, there are enough kits to have spares when things go down.

Oh, and keeping the kits together and tidy is always a challenge! Inevitably at the end of a session a group will bring me a kit for checking and inexplicably it has seven wheels in it instead of four.

Personal learning

I spend time researching and talking with my personal learning network to see what’s around and what everyone’s up to. I learn a lot from Scratch and working with my extension groups. Not everyone is a coder or has an interest in it, so I work to make things engaging and purposeful, hence the sumo battles. One of the things with block coding is that if

students are given the code to work with some of them are happy to just use it without bothering to read it through and develop the understanding of what it’s doing or how it works. If they’re told to drag this block and then put that block under it, they’ll do it and it’ll work but they don’t gain the understanding of why or what they are actually telling the computer to do. That’s where giving coding with an error is valuable as they have to work out what’s wrong and fix it.

Favourite lessons

The sumo battles are some of my favourite lessons. It’s exciting to watch the energy levels build as the lesson progresses and to listen to the students discuss and make decisions. I enjoy seeing the different robots they come up with and how they work to modify these after each battle. There’s a lot of excitement around the battles and students will often cheer their robot on, having taken careful time to name their robot beforehand, of course!

The frantic nature of it all has been good

for me in learning the nuances of how the robots work and many things to try where there are issues.

I’ve found it to be a valuable experience with all of the classes that have been through it to date, so it will definitely be something to keep and develop further. The students get a one lesson taste of it in Year 7 and I may look to develop that further. I’m also interested in taking it wider to become an inter-school competition.

As it stands, I don’t have any rules or limits on the size or shape of the robot so anything goes with the materials they have. I may look to put something in place there, as they do in the big leagues of sumo robotic competitions. Something simple like it must fit wholly inside the size of an A5 piece of paper.

There’s a lot to setting it all up and it’s obviously equipment intensive, but once you have the gear it basically runs itself. It’s important to understand the kits and the coding to be able to facilitate the sessions, so it all runs smoothly. There’s a lot to be learnt from the students and

there is a Facebook group to ask any Spike questions in general.

If there’s anyone else doing anything similar, it would be good to trade ideas.

There’s so much more joy in learning robotics alongside your students

I’ve been involved in VEX robotics competitions for 12 years and have taught robotics in Year 7-13 at various levels

The reason I keep doing it is the competition allows for the technology process to continue during the whole year/season and not just a one-off event. The various levels of achievement (success and/or disappointment) that students experience is always a joy to see and the

By Stephan van Haren, St Peter’s College

As quoted by a VEX official at the unveiling of the new game at VEX Worlds: “Where do you see 20,000 students screaming their heads off when they have been given a year’s homework.”

There are two VEX competitions in New Zealand. The VEX Robotics Competition is for students in high school (or university), where they build metal robots with motors and sensors, to score more points with their computer selected alliance partner (another robot team), than the opposing alliance of two robots.

The VEX IQ Challenge is for students from Primary up to Year 9. They build plastic robots, to score the most points with another team and/or by themselves.

Different responses

In my classroom, I have students build and code their robots to perform tasks for the competitions. They respond differently according to their interest. Some like the competition and not the building, others like building and/or programming, while some like to hang out with like-minded individuals. The learning outcomes are varied, from

learning technological skills, designing, programming, building evaluating, etc., to interpersonal skills like planning, collaborating, communicating and perseverance

The biggest challenge is for them to realise that, yes, they can do this. A couple of Year 10 students took a long time to become confident enough to enter their first competition, but once they competed they were hooked and are further developing their robot. The self-directed learning is something that they must get used to, but is very empowering

The main thing is do not be afraid to let your students give it a go. Buy the robot kits and point them to students.vex.com If you want to learn yourself go to teacher.vex.com

There’s so much more joy in learning alongside your students!

Stephan van Haren is TIC Physics and Robotics, St Peter’s College, Palmerston North

For more about VEX go to kiwibots.co.nz and education.vex.com

Simon Mutch is a Digital Technology Specialist at Casebrook Intermediate School in Christchurch.

Bringing a smile to people’s faces when they see their code working

I am accredited to provide PLD to support teachers in their classrooms or via workshops and video conferencing. Some of my favourite mahi is around building their digital fluencies and supporting them to integrate the Digital Technologies curriculum. For instance, unplugged computational thinking is already happening in every classroom but teachers might not be aware of the curriculum jargon or how to extend what they’re doing to other contexts. Other times, we use devices that the school owns, such as Bee-Bot or more advanced programmable robots or non-robot-based coding, like Scratch and micro:bit.

Micro:bit always brings a smile to people’s faces when they see their coding have an effect in the physical world. When I return to a school and have students come to me and show me what they’ve done since my last visit, that’s pretty cool.

Fast pick-up

There are less and less teachers who don’t see the point of digital tools now and there are so many fantastic tools available. Once they see students using digital tools to express their learning or to engage in learning activities, I find teachers are often surprised at the speed with which students adapt. I often hear ‘we’re holding them back’, in terms of students trying new tools and running with them. Teachers usually come to realise that they don’t need to be digital experts. Instead, they apply what they do with non-digital learning, such as allowing student leaders to teach others, setting up expert groups in the classroom, having students explain their process, and asking the student for advice on how to use a tool or feature.

Students pick up block-based coding platforms fast at any age, as long as we support them to use an age-appropriate tool, and this is often a complete surprise to teachers. I love showing educators the basics and seeing them make their own connections through the whole curriculum and ideate on the potential of these tools in their pedagogy.

Authentic contexts

As a science and physics teacher for 16 years, I seldom used any coding tools in my teaching. Outside of teaching, however, I started visual scripting when playing LittleBigPlanet 2 on PlayStation. I

By Stephen Ross, Te Whai Toi Tangata

have several levels published, including one called Singular Duality, which won an international competition. I really enjoy block-based and flowchart coding, and I am currently completing a visual scripting course for making 2D games in my spare time. Otherwise, I have supported students and teachers to use Sphero, micro:bit, Scratch and Scratch Jr, Edison, and mBot.

In my work, I try to show how these tools can be used in authentic contexts, so I talk with teachers about what students are learning and make some suggestions about what coding we could do, what device and so on, to fit in what they are already learning. We co-construct a plan and then I spend some time preparing an activity that I usually model in class for the teachers in 30-45 minutes. Afterwards I talk about what they noticed, what questions they have, any troubleshooting, and how they might use the tool or approach themselves. I check Twitter and various other online platforms often for new ideas but much of my inspiration comes from the school

contexts I work in.

I often see teachers point to a student and tell me how they are usually withdrawn or quiet and that coding has given them a voice and an avenue to display hidden strengths – I love the creativity coding unlocks for students. I get to keep learning alongside teachers and students, and I get a lot of joy from seeing other people learn new things. I also get to visit a lot of schools and meet a lot of teachers and students which, is a huge privilege. I also love the problemsolving nature of coding and exploring the different ways we can reach the same outcome or challenge.

Stephen Ross is a Facilitator at Te Whai Toi Tangata, a professional learning and development (PLD) provider based at the University of Waikato. More at waikato. ac.nz/professionallearning

Stephen recently published two Scratch projects on Science Learning Hub based on New Zealand’s space industry, Making digital space debris clean-up games

Having an absolute blast learning to code using Gamefroot

By Vicki Hagenaars, Whanganui Intermediate School

The students at Whanganui Intermediate School had an absolute blast learning to code using Gamefroot last year. Our school of 560 students is divided into four clusters, with each undertaking two specialist subjects per term, one of which was Digi Tech.

Dan Milward from Gamefroot visited us at the end of 2021 while I was contemplating how to ensure our students had a solid introduction to coding. I had previously undertaken two courses building my own knowledge of game design, which had Gamefroot at their heart. With a mix of Chromebooks and laptops being used, I knew I could not run the previously successful LEGO Mindstorms robotics option for every student. Scratch had been used by at least half of the student population already and I wanted something different. Gamefroot fitted the checklist on every count.

Alongside using the Gamejam card game that introduces students to the elements of game design, Dan also ran through the initial coding lessons, demonstrating how to use both of these tools with all of my students in a class who had members with additional learning needs. The visit gave me not only ideas to borrow but also prompted me along the path of what I really wanted to achieve with my classes. I knew I would have just as wide a range of abilities. It needed to grab, engage and encourage them to persevere. But most importantly I needed to make sure everyone could work at their own pace while engaging with the learning outcomes in the curriculum.

Instant feedback

With these ideas now sorted I explored Gamefroot over the summer holidays. I started each term with Mihi Maker as this allowed me time to get to know the students in front of me quickly, engage with them about their wha - nau and where they were from – the Maslow, relationship building stuff. Then we tackled Blooms and got into it properly with the use of the video tutorials for Platformer 101. The best thing about choosing this path was that even our students with additional learning needs and all of our dyslexic students experienced success. I soon became adept at debugging issues as the students built their playscape, coded a

character, added obstacles and had instant feedback from playing their game regarding their success (or not) with coding.

The biggest challenge has come with the change in pricing structure. I totally understand why this has been done. The price that originally covered a year for students now covers a term. With the size of our student population, the pricing change will now limit us to using the free sections only, apart from the students who take building on this platform seriously.

Surprise and enjoyment

The students worked collaboratively and often used their peers to test their game, taking on the feedback to restructure or develop their games further. The use of the video tutorials meant I could have them all working at their own pace, freeing me up to truly facilitate learning – including my own – as we debugged the issues students were having. As we finished each cluster’s time with me they wrote their self-reflections. Most have commented that they did not think they could build something like that and many were surprised by how much they enjoyed it.

On the topic of debugging, the Gamefroot Discord community is an amazing support asset for teachers trying to problem solve.

My own history with coding is long and patchy. I am not a gamer the way the kids are. I play games that stimulate my memory after having a brain injury a few years ago. I have some understanding of game design through the courses I undertook, my own game play over the years and watching what my now grown children play as well.

If you’re considering getting started with coding, I can totally recommend using the free parts of Gamefroot to dip your toes in the water. The video tutorials are clear and easy to follow, and will give you enough skill to build some simple games that will help your students in their learning, allowing you to gamify your classes.

Vicki Hagenaars teaches at Whanganui Intermediate School.

Following the coding path, from blocks to text to robots

Despite rapid changes in technology, coding remains a valuable future-focused skill and helps students to develop a problemsolving mindset.

One of the questions that teachers need to address is which tool(s) should be used in the classroom when learning to code. Those working with younger students will usually start with block-based programming using tools such as Scratch, but at some point, it is important to transition to text-based coding, since block-based coding has limits in terms of capabilities and efficiency.

Easy transition

One way to introduce text-based coding is to choose a tool where students can switch between a block-based coding editor and a text-based alternative. A good example of this would be the Microsoft MakeCode editor (microsoft.com/en-us/ makecode), which can be used for various types of coding,

easier to work in the text editor, so this sort of environment provides an easy transition between two ways of coding, and students can begin to see the advantages of text-based coding.

Different languages

Other possible tools for text-based coding include Grasshopper ( grasshopper.app), where students can learn small fragments of JavaScript code, CodePen (codepen.io), where students can experiment with web languages (HTML, CSS and JavaScript) in an interactive tool, and Replit (replit.com), which provides an easy environment for students to get started with a range of different text-based languages.

Another option for the transition to text-based coding is to use the integrated resources of sites such as code.org or Tynker (tynker.com).

Robotics and results

One useful context for coding in the classroom is robotics. The great thing about robots is that there is something for every age group. Plus, it’s easy for students to see the results of their actions in the real world if they have a physical robot such as Edison, mBot and Lego Mindstorms, etc. A common block-based coding tool for robotics is Blockly (developers.google.com/blockly), but again it is important to consider the path to text-based coding. edpyapp.com) for the Edison robot is one option, where students can use a version of the Python language. There are even tools like Miranda that provide options to code in multiple languages to both simulate and program multiple types of robots. Whatever tools are chosen, the important thing is to give students the experience of text-based coding and open up the full power of programming.

Article compiled by academyEX

Discover your potential and feed your curiosity at academyex.com

The BBC micro:bit is a popular pocket-sized, micro-computer that can be used to introduce introduces students to the collaboration between software and hardware through the MakeCode platform. It’s packed with inputs, outputs, sensors and radio communication features. microbit.org

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Toni Westcott, co-creator of newly launched NZ Teacher resource website, Digital Kete, describes her mission to help teachers across Aotearoa get better work life balance.

Students pitch jaws-some ideas in Shark Tank challenge

Duunn dun… duunn dun… duuuunnnnn dun … dun dun dun dun… Late last year, the JIX Building in Christchurch was humming to the tune of creativity, excitement and mahi of a-konga participating in the inaugural Cloud Tech Shark Tank.

Hosted by impactED and sponsored by Amazon Web Services (AWS) and the Ministry of Education, the two-day Cloud Tech Shark Tank competition saw 40 Year 9 and 10 students explore Cloud Tech ideas and solutions, while their kaiako engaged in related PLD for teaching and learning.

Day One opened with Brent Sarver, AWS Education to Workforce Senior Program Manager, outlining the company’s plans for New Zealand and challenging a - konga to design a way to impact future careers and education through Cloud Tech – then pitch their idea to a panel of expert judges, Shark Tank style!

Following a presentation from Banquer’s Kendall Flutey on the journey of Cloud Tech development, from prototype to real-world application in education, everyone went their separate ways. The young competitors were immersed in hands-on learning through workshops, visiting the PRAMA fitness room, and engaging with the design process led by ImpactED’s Arnika Macphail. Teachers were introduced to the AWS Spark Education resources.

Pitch and prototype

To kick off Day Two, NetSafe’s Paula Wistrand spoke about privacy considerations in Cloud Tech. Kaiako went for a session on futuristic foresight in education with Think Beyond’s Dr Cheryl Doig. At the same time, students developed their pitch, prototype, and presentations for judging.

In the afternoon, Sir Ian Taylor joined proceedings, talking about how cloud technology is used in sports and telling cultural stories through his Ma - tauranga Land of Voyagers resources (maatauranga.co.nz).

During the following day, teams had time to finish their projects, practise their pitch and prepare for possible questions, before the evening’s judging took place.

As wha - nau rolled in and surveyed the exhibition hall with a - konga, nervous energy, anticipation, and excitement built.

to sell their ideas, and they didn’t disappoint.

Timetabling app

All 10 teams presented solutions that were innovative and on point to address the challenges facing education today.

“The app that our team designed was a ‘subject booking app’ and gave students more freedom with choices about how their week was timetabled,” Heidi Lovatt, who took a - konga to the event from Oxford Area School.

“With the app, they would arrive at school and sign themselves in, and effectively choose their subjects from a list of available slots. Teachers would remain in their teaching areas, whilst students who had booked would come to them. Students had a minimum and maximum amount of times that they could book each subject, so they would have taken each subject for the correct number of periods by the end of the week.

“If teachers signed students off as having completed all work tasks for each subject, they could book to arrive later, for example 10am instead of 9am, or even take Friday off (at senior school). This allowed students to work at their ‘optimal’ time of day (and even get to sleep in!).

“The kids had a ball with developing their idea!” added Heidi. “It was a fantastic experience.”

An event like Shark Tank is no easy feat, so a shout out to the teams at ImpactED, AWS, the Ministry, and all involved in bringing it to life and for immersing everyone in the world of Cloud Tech.

By Katie Tullett of impactED

Other Shark Tanks are already planned for Dunedin (March) and Nelson (April). More at impacted.co.nz/events/

What is Cloud Tech?

Cloud Computing Technology allows the storing, sharing and using of digital resources in the virtual space by way of networks, without restrictions of physical location.

SIR IAN TAYLOR PRESENTING TO STUDENTS.

At 5pm, the judging panel, consisting of Simon Brown, Kim Ryan, Tracey Henderson, Kate Allan and Sakthi Priya Balaji Ranganathan, took their seats. Students had three minutes and three questions

STEM POETRY

Famous Poets and Poems (famouspoetsandpoems.com) has information on more than 600 poets and 34,000 poems. Browse by category (like poets, Top 50 poems, famous quotes) or subject, including family, death and love. Alternatively, search by keyword or check out the poem and poet of the month.

STEM Online NZ (stemonline. auckland.ac.nz) is a free interactive teaching and learning resource for NCEA external standards in STEM subjects. It combines interactive learning content, videos, animations, quizzes, game-based content, as well as classroom experiments and activities, all with a distinctly Kiwi flavour.

Engineer for the Week

(engineerfortheweek.fb.com) aims to ‘demystify the world for teens and help them understand what the day-to-day life of an engineer looks like’. Created by Meta, there are several projects where students can work with adult facilitators to build prototypes that teach various engineering skills.

Teen Ink Poetry (teenink.com/poetry) offers aspiring teenage poets a safe and welcoming place to share and talk about their poetry (and other writing, as well). A range of work is regularly contributed, which can be read, discussed, liked, shared, and voted on by the community.

From MakerBot, Thingiverse (thingiverse.com/education) offers a huge collection of 3D printing designs and lesson ideas for teaching STEM. Search, browse by subject category or filter by age group. Alternatively, explore ‘Things’, ‘Designers’ and ‘Groups’. (Some docs are MakerBot specific but may still provide ideas and inspiration.)

Women in STEM (womeninstem.co.nz) is a collection of videos from various women working in STEM fields across New Zealand. Including Nanogirl Dr Michelle Dickinson and #She founder Dr Mahsa Mohaghegh, each shares their journey, the challenges they faced, and advice they have for school students.

With a collection of more than 8,500 poems by amateur, contemporary and famous poets, Family Friend Poems (familyfriendpoems.com) is a useful resource for students to learn about and explore poetry. Poems are organised by theme, or search by keyword, collections, featured, and new.

STEM it up! (nzqa.govt.nz/maori-andpasifika/pasifika/stem-it-up/) is a resource booklet aimed at encouraging Pacific secondary school students into STEM subjects. The story follows a young man called Toa as he teaches his friends about the benefits of STEM and how Pacific people use it in their cultural practices.

Find digital resources created to cultivate collaboration, problem solving and STEAM skillsets in your students through real-world explorations at Innovation Generation (innovationgen.com). As well as a downloadable Educator Guide, there are videos, virtual field trips, career profiles, and classroom activities to explore.

GLOBAL DATA MATHS

From poverty and internet usage to global warming and economic growth, Gapminder (gapminder.org) measures the accuracy of our views of the world. It matches answers against reliable data and identifies the most common misconceptions, where people’s ideas differ most from reality.

Corbettmaths (corbettmaths.com) has a collection of videos, with associated practice questions and worksheets, as well as quizzes, puzzles and activities. From 2D and 3D shapes, to algebra and angles, to decimals and factorisation, there’s plenty to choose from. Plus, a new primary level site (corbettmathsprimary.com).

MUSEUMS ON YOUTUBE

From early flight to Apollo 11 space missions, lectures and presentations to STEM activities, the YouTube channel of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (youtube.com/@ airandspace) is a great place to find aviation-related videos to use in class. Watch playlists or search by category.

From World Bank, the Open Knowledge Repository (openknowledge.worldbank. org) has 34,875 reference publications on a range of global issues, all available to access and download. Search by Collection (like annual reports, journals and technical papers), Topic, Title, Author, and Date.

For a selection of maths-related resources try TKI’s NZMaths (nzmaths. co.nz). Search by keyword or category, or use the Resource Finder to locate resources by curriculum level/strand/ AO, by number framework stage or by PaCT aspect. Log in to save resources into a teaching and learning plan.

Learn about our capital city through videos at Museums Wellington (youtube.com/user/ museumswellington/videos). Covering the Museum of Wellington City & Sea, Cable Car Museum, Space Place, and Colonial Cottage Museum, discover Wellington through social history, science and space, colonial settlement, and transport.

A collaboration between researchers at the University of Oxford and the Global Change Data Lab, Our World In Data (ourworldindata.org) provides free research on the world’s largest challenges, including health, food, and the environment. Search by topic and explore 3,343 data charts across 297 subjects.

Freckle (freckle.com) is an online learning programme for students to practise Maths. Formerly called Front Row Education, it adapts to each student’s level to provide the appropriate challenge. It includes lessons, assessments, and reports. The basic site is free; there’s a subscription for premium content.

During the COVID lockdowns, the British Museum turned to staff to take people on video tours of their displays when no one could visit. Curator’s Corner (youtube.com/@britishmuseum) is a collection of these fascinating short and long videos within the channel, each hosted by an expert guide.

BITS & BYTES CODING CARD GAME

Help to develop logical foundations for coding computers with Bits & Bytes, a card game that’s designed to teach children computational thinking and basic programming concepts, like algorithms and the sequencing of instructions. It’s simple to play and is for two or more people, ages four and up. Players take it in turns with an instruction card and move accordingly around the grid – it may be blank or have a problem they have to solve. In the advanced version of the game, players create a computer program using the cards.

We have a game pack to give away. If it would help you kick off coding in your classroom, be in to win it by entering online.

Entries close Tuesday 14 March.

BRINGING THE WORLD OF CODE INTO YOUR CLASSROOM – SEE PAGES 20-27.

Get professional sound quality in your classroom recordings with a Desktop Condenser Microphone. Designed to minimise background noise and isolate the main source, this microphone’s high-frequency response makes the vocal performance clear and vibrant. It comes with 3.5mm stereo cable(185cm) that’s suitable for most PCs, laptops and smartphones with a stereo microphone jack, as well as an easy-to-use tripod that makes it simple to set up just about anywhere.

If this sounds like your kind of device, go to our website to enter.

Entries close Tuesday 14 March.

We have some awesome prizes up for grabs this issue.

3D HOLOGRAM VISUALISER

Turn your smartphone or tablet into a hologram projector with a 3D Hologram Visualiser. Based on the Peppers Ghost illusion technique, this kit allows your device to become a hologram projector by casting an image (or animation or video clip) onto the clear underside surface of the hologram visualiser that captures the impression. Three visualisers, full instructions and a history of the technique are included as part of the package.

There are two Visualiser sets up for grabs. Enter on our website.

Entries close Tuesday 14 March.

2to WIN!

JVC PORTABLE BLUETOOTH SPEAKER

Listen to your favourite sounds anywhere with a stylish JVC Portable Bluetooth Speaker. Measuring just 6.2 x 6.2 x 5.6 cm, it’s compact and super easy to carry around. Connect it via Bluetooth to your phone, tablet or laptop, up to a distance of 10 metres (or use the 3.5mm audio cable if you prefer a wired connection). The rechargeable, built-in Lithium-ion battery offers up to eight hours of play back. We have two to give away – you simply have to choose if you want it gold or black. Tell us your preference on the entry form on our website and be in to win!

Entries close Tuesday 14 March.

2to WIN!

To enter any of the competitions just go to our website.