The Craft of Code | June 18th – June 22nd
Data for the Social Good | July 9th – July 13th
Language and Code | July 23rd – July 27th

This is the title of the summer camp program developed by the 2018 GLIMMER (Grinnell Laboratory for Interactive Multimedia Experimentation and Research) team. The project includes the development and implementation of three camps: the Craft of Code (CoC), Data for the Social Good (DSSG), and Language and Code(LaC). Curriculum from CoC and DSSG were adapted from previous summer camps (2017 CoC, 2017 DSSG).

The Craft of Code

Much like its predecessor (2017 CoC), this past summer’s implementation of the Craft of Code targeted 4th and 5th grade students. The camp leveraged block-based languages (Scratch, Turtle Stitch, and Beetle Blocks) with themed art projects in order to introduce fundamental computing concepts (conditionals, loops, functions, and user input) alongside their applications. The primary revision for this camp consisted of a stronger emphasis on activity-motivated learning rather than content-motivated learning. For example, we restructured an activity where campers program an art development environment. The new format of the curricula had campers develop the environment for other’s use. This encouraged them to consider purpose and usability.

My specific contributions to the camp include:

• the development and implementation of an Introduction to Scratch (Introduction to Scratch -Outline)
• the development and implementation of the Developing Art Tools Project (Re-ThINKing Art Tools -Outline)
• the development and implementation of the Camp Orientation
• testing curriculum made by other GLIMMER researchers
• contextualizing feedback from activities implemented last summer for other GLIMMER researchers
• being a counselor group leader of the “Awesome Coders (AC)”
• helping campers debug their code across all projects / activities
• developing a guide for the fabrication of the camps’ tangible crafts
• diffusing tensions between campers who have issues with partners during pair programming
• presenting findings about youth and pair programming to other student researchers

Data for the Social Good

Also like its predecessor (2017 DSSG), this past summer’s implementation of the Data for the Social Good camp targeted rising 6th through 9th grade students. The camp utilized both block and text-based languages. At the beginning of the week, campers learned coding basics using Micro:bits before transitioning to programming in Python using Numpy, Pandas, and Matplotlib libraries in Jupyter. Prominent revisions to the camp include trimming away lessons that were not applicable to analyzing a social issue using Data Science as well as reorganizing the final project so that campers could explore data within an area they were passionate about rather than seeking out data that shows a trend they agree with. These changes allowed campers to develop final projects possessing a greater depth of analysis and more complex visualizations.

My specific contributions to the camp include:

• the development and implementation of an Introduction to Programming Fundamentals in Micro:bits (Introduction to Micro:bits -Outline)
• the development and implementation of an Introduction to For-Each Loops (Introduction to For-Each Loops -Outline)
• the development and implementation of a Case Study for the application and review of previously discussed concepts (Case Study: CPI -Worksheet)
• testing curriculum made by other GLIMMER researchers
• helping campers debug their code across all projects / activities
• reflecting on the outcomes of camp curriculum

Language and Code

The Language and Code camp has no predecessor in the GLIMMER project. The goal of its implementation was to study the application of a Digital Humanities lens to the instruction of computer science fundamentals. Similar to the Data for Social Good Camp, this camp accepted rising 6th through 9th grade students.

We chose to highlight the manipulation, generation, and analysis of text in this camp. To do so, we utilized a combination of HTML, CSS, and Racket. This combination of languages was intended to make learning more relevant (HTML, CSS) as well as to “level the playing field” for those who had never programmed before (Racket). Overall, the breadth of content covered by the camp was countered by a final project that allowed campers to explore their own applications of the given tools in depth.

My specific contributions to the camp include:

• contributed to the identification of camp priorities and week organization
• collaborative development and implementation of an Introduction to Algorithms (Introduction to Algorithms -Outline)
• the development and implementation of a quick discussion about Racket Syntax (Syntax Warm-Up -Slides)
• collaborative development and implementation of an Introduction to Conditionals (Introduction to Conditionals -Outline)
• the development and implementation of an Introduction to Regular Expressions (Introduction to Regular Expressions -Outline)
• collaborative development and implementation of a Lab on Analyzing Text on the Web (Lab: Critiquing the Internet -Outline)
• testing curriculum made by other GLIMMER researchers
• communicating and designing desired functionalities for Racket library
• helping campers debug their code across all projects / activities
• being a counselor group and scavenger hunt leader