Computer Science Expanding in TCS

In 2016, only 86 schools in Alabama offered a high-quality computer science course. Today, more than 175 Alabama high schools offer such classes. In September 2017, Governor Kay Ivey established the Governor’s Advisory Council for Computer Science Education.

In March 2018, Ivey and the Alabama State Board of Education approved the Alabama Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study and Standards. Currently, only 10 other states in the nation have computer science standards.

Trussville's own April Chamberlain was selected to be on the committee to write the Alabama Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study and Standards.  Mrs. Chamberlain says that one of the reasons she chose to work with a state group to write the new Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study was so she could learn from leaders like Dr. Jeff Gray, Computer Science Professor at the University of Alabama, and others.  

April Chamberlain Presents TCS Computer Science Plans at ALET

Many people think computer science is just coding, but it is more.  In the most basic of terms, computer science is systematic problem solving which occurs in science, math, history, and more.  If you have not already, please visit https://alex.state.al.us/browseDLIT.php to view the Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study.  On the ALEX website, there is also a document called Unpacked Standards which explains more in depth of what the students will be able to do and know for each standard. 

Below is an quick summary of what we are doing in Trussville to learn and grow in our understanding of digital literacy and computer science and provide opportunities for students.  We are excited about the growth of computer science in Trussville, but Mrs. Chamberlain and her team are always looking for more opportunities.

2016-2017

·         Courses taught in TCS

o   AP Computer Science courses taught at HTHS

·         Non courses/learning opportunities

o   HTHS Robotics Club

2017 Summer

·         Professional Learning

o   Michael Bufkin, HTMS, attends A+ College Ready Computer Science Discoveries training for 5 days in the summer and 4 follow up days throughout the year to get trained in teaching Code.org’s Computer Science Discoveries curriculum to 7^th and 8^th graders in one year long course.  The course consists of six units: problem solving, web development, animations and games, the design process, data and society, and physical computing.  https://studio.code.org/courses/csd-2018

2017-2018 School Year

·         Professional Learning

o   April and Ashley Waring, District Technology Integration Specialist, spent 1 year on the ALSDE Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study Committee and Task Force to research and write with a team the new course of study.

o   Governor’s Computer Science Summit, Montgomery – April, Ashley, and Erin Cornelison attended the summit to hear from Governor Ivey and others on their vision and commitment for computer science in Alabama.  Sponsored by A+ College Ready.

o   Elementary STEM teachers receive training and planning time to prepare to fully teach Computer Science Fundamentals course the next school year.  Code.org CSF training lead by Ashley Waring, Code.org CSF trainer.

·         Courses taught in TCS

o   AP Computer Science year-long courses taught at HTHS

o   Computer Science Principles year-long course taught at HTHS

o   Computer Science Discoveries year-long course taught at HTMS

·         Non courses/learning opportunities

o   CES EnRICh teaching 1 sessions of Google’s CS First Game Design to fifth graders, https://csfirst.withgoogle.com/c/cs-first/en/game-design/overview.html, where students using block based coding in Scratch 2.0/3.0 to program the following games: gaming story, racing game, maze game, platform game, escape game, launcher game, quest game, and cave surfing game

o   CES EnRICh teaching 1 sessions of Google’s CS First Fashion and Design to fifth graders, https://csfirst.withgoogle.com/c/cs-first/en/fashion-and-design/overview.html, where students using block based coding in Scratch 2.0/3.0 to program the following: fashion story, fashion walk, ultimate stylist, fashion innovation, fashion poll, window shopper, pattern maker, and fashion awards

o   HTMS Clubs: Robotics, Sphero, Ozobot

o   HTHS Robotics Club

o   Promote Tech Birmingham’s Kids Code Club at McWane Science Center, once a month Sundays.  Ashley and April volunteer for these events.

·       HTMS receives $24,990 from ALSDE Middle School Computer Science Initiative Grant to future develop the following

o   Increase in clubs and mini course offerings

o   Resources for pre-engineering and computer science fundamentals course

o   Computer science kits available for students to check out from the library (They cannot keep them on the shelf for long as they are frequently checked out.)

o   Student camp opportunities (still in development)

o   Professional Learning (wealth of print resources and planning together)

2018 Summer

·         Professional Learning

o   Erin Cornelison, HTHS, attends A+ College Ready Computer Science Principles training for 5 days in the summer, https://studio.code.org/courses/csp-2018.  Computer Science Principle course consists of five units: the Internet, digital information, intro to programming, big data and privacy, and building apps.

o   April Chamberlain attends A+ College Ready Computer Science Discoveries training for 5 days in the summer and 4 follow up days throughout the year to get trained in teaching Code.org’s Computer Science Discoveries curriculum to better assist middle school computer science needs.

o   Lead Technology Teachers attended the International Society for Technology in Education Conference in Chicago focusing on sessions that would develop their knowledge in the five strands of Alabama’s Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study: Computational Thinker, Citizen of a Digital Culture, Global Collaborator, Computing Analyst, and Innovative Designer.  Those that attended are: Lauren Long, April Smith, Janet Benson, Susan Brandon, Erin McGuyer, Mandy McIntosh, Rachel Brockman, Jason Dooley, Ashley Waring and April Chamberlain.

2018-2019 School Year

·         Courses being taught in TCS

o   AP Computer Science year-long courses taught at HTHS, Erin Cornelison

o   Computer Science Principles year-long course taught at HTHS, Erin Cornelison

o   Computer Science Discoveries year-long course taught at HTMS, Michael Bufkins

o   Computer Science 6^th grade rotation (9 weeks) course taught at HTMS, Jada Burns

o   All elementary STEM classes teaching trimester of Computer Science Fundamentals K-5 using Code.org curriculum, https://code.org/educate/curriculum/elementary-school

·         Non courses/learning opportunities

o   PES EnRICh teaching 4 sessions of Google’s CS First Game Design to fifth graders, https://csfirst.withgoogle.com/c/cs-first/en/game-design/overview.html, where students using block based coding in Scratch 2.0/3.0 to program the following games: gaming story, racing game, maze game, platform game, escape game, launcher game, quest game, and cave surfing game.

o   CES and MES will also offer CS First curriculum within EnRICh this school year.  The themes that may be offered are: Storytelling, Fashion and Design, Art, Sports, Music and Sound, Game Design, and Animation.

o   CES Make and PES Make: students will learn and create interactive resources using Makey Makeys and programming within Scratch.

o   Code Who Code Clubs at each elementary school – currently awaiting approval and resources.  MES lead by Lauren Long, CES lead by April Smith, and PES led by Janet Benson.

o   High School Team participating in Tech Birmingham’s Teen Hack-a-Thon sponsored by Jason Dooley and Michael Bufkin

o   HTMS facilitation Google Code In, Oct. 23 – Dec. 12, as a club where students take part in Google’s global, online contest introducing students to the world of open source develop through a wide variety of bite-sized tasks.  This club will be facilitated by Jada Burns and Ashley Waring.

o   Promote Tech Birmingham’s Kids Code Club at McWane Science Center, once a month Sundays.  Ashley and April volunteer for these events.

·         Professional Learning

o   Erin Cornelison and April Chamberlain attend A+ College Ready Fall AP Computer Science Conference getting additional training on Code.org lessons and resources, Greenfoot programming software, and Microbit programming and projects.

o   Development of the TCS Digital Literacy and Computer Science Committee which will meet four times throughout the year to develop an understanding of the standards, the cross curricular nature of the standards, local resources and develop implementation plan for their school for 2019-2020 school year.  Members are:

§  CES – April Smith, Amy Prickett, LeDerricka Dickerson, Sara Wessel and Taylor Harrison

§  MES – Lauren Long, Rebecca Bishop

§  PES – Janet Benson, Susan Brandon, Amy Ramer, Nicole Jenkins

§  HTMS – Erin McGuyer, Mandy McIntosh, Rachel Brockman, Michael Bufkin, Jada Burns

§  HTHS – Jason Dooley, Laura Massey, Erin Cornelison, Chaney Bowers

§  BOE – Ashley Waring, April Chamberlain, Beth Bruno, Jennifer Cardwell

o   In conjuntion with Secondary District Math Committee, explore Code.org’s Computer Science in Algebra, https://code.org/educate/algebra

o   Explore Code.org’s Computer Science in Science, https://code.org/curriculum/science.  Modules include: introduction to computer moedling and simulation, water as a shared resource, ecosystems as complex systems, and chemical reactions

·         TCS applied for MS and HS Robotics Grant submitted by Joy Young.  Awaiting announcement.

·         Resources that support the DLCS standards

o   TCS Lending Library which offers items from children’s literature, circuit playgrounds, 3D printer, Google Expedition kits, Breakout kits, makey makeys, little bits STEAM kits, spheros, ipads, and more for teachers to check out for a week at a time.  New items will be added to support the standards each year.

 We are thankful for Mrs. Chamberlain for her vision and relentess passion for helping our students and staff learn and grow.  She has assembled a remarkable team to provide the support educators in the district need to make computer science a reality for each student.  

Dr. Cardwell, Ms. Waring, and Ms. Chamberlain Provide Training for HTHS Math Teachers on Utilizing their New Touch Screen Chromebooks

Ms. Waring Works with Students

Ms. Waring Provides PD for Teachers

TCS at AETC 2018

Several TCS educators attended the Alabama Educational Technology Conference at the BJCC last week.  Lara McClendon and April Chamberlain both presented several sessions.  We are proud of the work of Lara and April.

TCS@AETC 2018

One Hour Presentations

Designing practical StEAm lesson plans

Now you know why STEM/STEAM is so important for your students. Now you have amazing ideas! But how do you implement these ideas in your real classroom? Learn how to use your existing curriculum to design powerful STEAM lessons for your students. You will leave with a plan you can take back to your school and colleagues to use with your students.

Presenter(s): Lara McClendon, Art Teacher, Paine Elementary School, Trussville City Schools

Introduction to Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study: K-5 Computational Thinker

Come explore the K-5 Computational Thinker strand of the new ALSDE Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study. You will leave with a better understanding of the standards, many resources, and connect with other educators and organizations.

Presenter(s): Mollie Bounds, Elementary Instructional Specialist of Innovation and Initiatives, Madison City Board of Education

April Chamberlain, Technology Coordinator, Trussville City Schools

Introduction to Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study: K-5 Innovative Designer

Come explore the Innovative Designer strand of the new ALSDE Digital Literacy and Computer Science Course of Study. You will leave with a better understanding of the standards, many resources, and connect with other educators and organizations.

Presenter(s): April Chamberlain, Technology Coordinator, Trussville City Schools

Kelli Lane, Technology Integration Coordinator, Hoover City Schools

3 Hour Workshops

Problem solving using easy robotic coding for all ages

Learn how to integrate simple coding into your classroom to build problem solving skills. You will design challenges and write code for your robot to follow. These exciting little robots will spark your creativity and boost your confidence in writing computer code. No coding experience required!! Special Instructions: Make sure to download Sphero Edu App and Swift Playground from the App Store. Presenter: Lara McClendon

Computer Science in K-5

Are you new to computer science/coding and want to learn more to create coders in your school? Learn about the standards, free resources, connect with others, and see how one district is using a unique schedule to not only teach computer science through their STEM/computer labs, but also other opportunities.

Presenter: April Chamberlain

Stephanie Rosetta Awarded ALET's Technology Integration Coach Certification

Stephanie Rosetta, TCS Technology Integration Specialist and upcoming academic coach and assistant princial for Cahaba Elementary, was awarded the Alabama Leaders of Educational Technology’s Technology Integration Coach Certification at the recent Alabama Education Technology Conference at the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center.  Stephanie has spent the last two years with the team of coaches below in book studies, face to face meetings and other online collaborations.  Congratulations!

TCS Hosts Code.org Fundamentals Training

Trussville City Schools hosted Code.org Fundamentals training March 22 for Trussville and surrounding area teachers.  Participants included teachers from Trussville, Shelby County, Cherokee County, Birmingham City, and the ALSDE.  Ashley Waring, Hoover City Schools Technology Leader, facilitated the workshop that focused on computer science standards and resources to support the development of our students.  Computer Science is more than coding, it is a way of problem solving that will help students in many areas of their lives.

We are thankful to April Chamberlain, Technology Coordinator, for bringing this valuable training to our district. 

TCS Well Represented at AETC

Multiple TCS teachers and administrators attended the 2017 Alabama Educational Technology Conference this week at Hoover High School.  Several participated as presenters, co-presenters, and facilitators of sessions.

The keynote speaker Wednesday was Jeff Utecht, whose topic was, "Respecting Students and their Culture."  Utecht says, "It is a new digitally connected world and 'I'm not good at technology' is no longer an excuse educators can afford to hide behind."  He says schools must meet students where they are, and increasingly that place is in devices.  He also said in his speech that teachers are not facilitators;  they must be creators of learning experiences.

You can follow Jeff Utecht on Twitter.  @jutecht

April Chamberlain welcomes participants to her Technology Playground

Stephanie Rosetta helps participants with Makerspace circuitry

April Chamberlain facilitates programing Spheros 

Wiring up a Makey Makey piano!

Lara McLendon explores in the Technology Playground

Jennifer Cardwell and Stephanie Rosetta share how TCS uses Google Forms

Hour of Code

Elementary technology classes participated in Hour of Code last week.  Hour of Code is an event promoted to introduce students to the "code" behind software, videos, websites, etc. Students create basic code to program characters and run games. They have conversations with the teachers and peers about coding.  Hour of Code occurs during Computer Science Education Week each year.  Students at HTHS also participated in exploration during Husky Hour in Mr. James' class.

Social Media Concerns

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Second Graders Learn to Use Chromebooks

TCS District Technology Integration Specialist Stephanie Hawthorne worked with Paine Elementary second grade teachers to help students learn to use their new Chromebooks.  Students participated in a lesson on how to login and access various tools.  From the photos, it is evident that students were excited and thrilled to utilize Chromebooks with Ms. Hawthorne's support.

Elementary Technology Teachers Collaborate

Elementary technology teachers met at central office today to collaborate and to provide support to one another.  The technology teachers created assignments for potential elearning days and have those assignments ready in the event that schools are closed due to weather conditions.  The teachers also worked to create sessions in STIPD for each school.  Work was also done on the schools' websites.  

Technology Training

Elementary technology teachers, Janet Benson, Susan Brandon, Charlene Hallman, and Lauren Long worked with Jana Walls and Theresa Ray this afternoon to learn how to manage DreamBox Learning and to input teachers' professional learning hours in STIPD.  Many thanks to the technology teachers and Michelle Dawson and to Jana and Theresa for their hard work.

Science in TCS

Science in TCS

Weird Science?  Not in Trussville City Schools!  The new science standards have caused some of the most amazing conversations in grades K-12, and we are looking forward to an exciting school year.  With the help of Dr. Phyllis Faust, who has facilitated many PD opportunities, our science teachers now have many tools at their fingertips to help lead science discussions and labs with our students. 

All TCS science teachers are taking time out of their summers to prepare for the 2016-17 school year.  Our elementary teachers began meeting last week to learn more about their STEMScopes resources.  Their trainer, Heather Wilde, led them through multiple facets of their lessons in order for teachers to begin planning for their school year.  Our science modules’ specialist Rod Alex was also able to demonstrate the kits that will be available to the teachers that will create instant labs for students to experiment with the science standards in which they are mastering.  Stephanie Hawthorne assisted teachers in learning how Chromebooks can help provide the technology tool to assist students in virtual labs and exploration that will create additional learning opportunities for our students.  Dr. Faust and Stephanie Hawthorne will also be meeting with our secondary teachers this summer to lead them through similar PD. However, our secondary science teachers have already started meeting with their grade-level colleagues to begin collaboration on lessons and creation of resources to help our students be ready to master the new science standards.  Science teachers in grades K-12 are ready to lead this learning and are diving deeper to create science experiences that will help our students leave TCS with science skills that will prepare them for college and career opportunities after graduation. 

But, wait, there’s more!  We have had science teachers lead and attend additional professional development events.  Several secondary teachers attended the Science Summit held at Pizitz Middle School last week.  This learning opportunity was facilitated by the 2015-16 Teacher of the Year Jennifer Brown, who teaches science at Vestavia Hills High School.  The “unconference” format allowed for meaningful conversations between secondary science teachers from Homewood, Hoover, Mountain Brook, Trussville, and Vestavia Hills school systems.  This time to share and plan proved worthwhile in working to establish future collaborative partnerships.  Additionally, Jennifer Bruno and Angela Shorter led “Out of this World Workshop…No Really!”  Participants received real-world applications and activities based on ideas from NASA and ALEX. Teachers from the Birmingham-area attended and were able to get ideas to take back to their students.  Cynthia Thomas, an HTHS Physics teacher, led “Incorporating Engineering Design Challenges into the Science Classroom” workshop that utilized NASA STEM resources, and had science teachers from Birmingham City Schools and Jefferson County Schools come learn more about building the engineering strands into their science lessons.  We are thankful for our science teachers who are not only gaining more knowledge from their participation in PD, but are helping others through their leadership. 

I know this is SO MUCH, but we just can’t contain our excitement in sharing all of the wonderful learning opportunities in which our teachers are engaging, so I must tell you about one more.  Jennifer Gerhart (Environmental) and Angie Simonetti (Biology) attended a Legacy workshop called Mountains to the Gulf. This was an 8-day trip (almost 1,300 miles) throughout the State of Alabama exploring a variety of different state and national parks, rivers, streams, and estuaries, woods, and bogs. The teachers were provided fantastic interactive activities and resources for the students to utilize in the classroom that fit perfectly with the new state standards of modeling and discovery.  

As you can see, the summer professional development opportunities have continued to provide time for discussions, planning, as well as lesson development ensuring our students have science experiences that are engaging, rigorous, and authentic to give them skills preparing them for college and career readiness.

Virtual Field Trips

Virtual field trips are becoming more and more popular. According to SimpleK12, here are THE BEST free online virtual field trips.

1. Google Art Projects
A collection of 1000+ works from 17 highly acclaimed art museums in the world.  You can virtually walk the aisles of these museums and view high resolution images of paintings like Van Gough’s “The Bedroom” and even share your whole collection.http://www.googleartproject.com/

2. Google Sky
Travel the stars with Google Sky. You can explore constellations, and even watch the birth of distant galaxies. You can even change the view of Google sky to see what the sky would look like if we had the ability to view the universe in x-rays or infrared. http://www.google.com/sky/

3. Smithsonian
This is a complete virtual tour where all you have to do is follow the blue arrow around the museum to journey on a great tour of the museum that makes you’re feel like you’re actually walking the halls of the Smithsonian.http://www.mnh.si.edu/panoramas/

4. Panoramas.dkBring the 7 wonders of the world to your classroom with breathtaking panoramic which includes the Colosseum in Rome, The Great Wall in China, The Taj Mahal in India, and Machu Picchu in Peru.
http://www.panoramas.dk/7-wonders/colosseum.html

5. The Oxford University Museum of Natural History
This virtual tour is of The Oxford University Museum of Natural History. This museum is home to an extensive world-wide collections of zoology, entomology, geology, and mineralogy, including the local dinosaur finds, a 40ft Tyrannosaurus rex, the observation beehive and Alice’s Dodo. Also a part of the tour is the building itself; one of the finest examples of the Victorian Gothic style of architecture.
http://www.chem.ox.ac.uk/oxfordtour/universitymuseum/#

6. Inside the White House
Travel floor-by-floor as you take an interactive tour of the White House and browse through history. Learn the significance each room has in the day-to-day workings of the White House.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/interactive-tour

Preparations Underway for ACT Aspire Testing

Administrators and counselors met Friday to finalize details regarding ACT Aspire testing that will occur in April.  Schools will use a combination of wired computer labs and Chromebook sets.  All technology staff will be onsite during testing.  The testing schedule will be:

April 11-15     Hewitt-Trussville High School (10th Graders Only)
April 18-22     Hewitt-Trussville Middle School  (All Students)
April 25-29     Paine Elementary (3rd-5th Graders)

Students at Paine Intermediate are getting practice by taking ACT Aspire Interim Assessments on their Chromebooks this week.