What's Going On? March 30th through April 3rd

Welcome Back from Spring Break!

I know that we weren't able to experience a normal spring break, but hopefully, everyone was able to take a step back and relax a little bit during our week away from school.  Like many of you, I was able to spend some extra time with my family.  I was also able to get some things done around the house, bake, and go on a few runs.  It's definitely been a change from the normal routine, but my family and I are doing our best to stay active and positive during these uncertain times.


What Is Expected from Computer Science Students?

As of today, we can expect to continue our virtual learning through April 24th, unless we hear otherwise from our governor.  This is longer than we had initially anticipated, and we must all do our best within our current changed circumstances.  At this point, I have been told that our class will continue to run according to our usual North schedule.  Each day of scheduled class, students are expected to complete the following:

• Complete the attendance form each day by 3pm.  Students who are enrolled in multiple classes with me should complete this form for each class.  
• See the agenda for the day.  At this point, I plan on creating an announcement on BlackBoard / Google Classroom and sending an e-mail through Infinite Campus with the daily tasks for the day.  
• View the notes video and/or attend a live lesson session.  The time for the live lesson session will be listed within the daily agenda.  
• Complete the assigned daily homework.
• Ask questions!  I am here to help.  At this point, my official office hours are from 9-11am, but I am available at other points throughout the day by appointment.  Just ask!  Questions can be asked through WebEx teams or via email.
• Be flexible and ask for what you need!  We are all navigating a new virtual learning system and we are all trying to figure this out.  Please let me know what you need!  I am here to support you and your learning through this time.

Monday's Agenda for all Computer Science Courses: Monday, March 30, 2020

To allow us a little time to reflect on our current circumstances, I have designed the same lesson plan for all of my computer science courses.  (No worries! Students who are enrolled in multiple computer science courses will only need to complete this assignment once.). First of all, all students should complete the attendance form each day.  Then, I would like students to find an article or social media post that talks about a positive impact that technology is having on our current situation.  For this assignment, find any current article related to how technology is being used during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.  I recently came across an article talking about how 3D printers have been used to print N95 masks for health care workers.  Once students find an article of interest, they will create a short "one pager", summarizing the technology, the need for technology, a positive impact the tech is having on the COVID-19 pandemic, and a link to the resource.  Students will be provided with a one-pager template and will submit it either through Google Classroom (AP Computer Science Principles), or Blackboard (Web 1, Web 2, App Dev 2).  I will be available through WebEx teams at 9am on Monday to answer any questions.  Here is my sample:

Programming the Web 1

After our Monday's class assignment, we will try to dive back into lesson 8 on using the "Box Model" for creating web pages.  Each day we have class, students should complete our daily attendance form.  Here is our day-by-day agenda:

• Monday: See lesson plan above
• Tuesday: Students can attend a live session at 9am on Tuesday or view our video lesson.  
• Thursday: Students should complete our reading guide that accompanies chapter 14
• Friday: Complete web assignment 8A and lesson 8 review questions  

Students are considered "on pace" for the week if all of the daily agenda items are completed by Friday.


Programming the Web 2

After our Monday's class assignment, we will try to dive back into working with Date objects in JavaScript.  Each day we have class, students should complete our daily attendance form.  Here is our day-by-day agenda:

• Monday: See lesson plan above
• Tuesday: Students can attend a live session at 10am on Tuesday or view our video lesson on creating a website using JavaScript and Date objects.  
• Thursday: Students should complete the assignment on using JavaScript and Date objects through the repl.it website and submit the link via Blackboard.
• Friday: Students should complete the assignment on using return statements in JavaScript through the repl.it website and submit the link via Blackboard.

App Development 2

After our Monday's class assignment, we will try to dive back into working with Swift.  Each day we have class, students should complete our daily attendance form.  Here is our day-by-day agenda:

• Monday: See lesson plan above
• Tuesday: Students can attend a live session at 11am on Tuesday.  We will be working with the Swift Playgrounds app and working through the activity "Learn to Code 1"
• Wednesday: We will be working with the Swift Playgrounds app and continue working through the activity "Learn to Code 1"
• Thursday: We will be working with the Swift Playgrounds app and continue working through the activity "Learn to Code 1"

AP Computer Science Principles

After our Monday's class assignment, we will try to dive back into completing our AP Performance Tasks.  Each day we have class, students should complete our daily attendance form.  Due to the changes to the AP Exam, we will need to adjust our next course of action.  If students haven't done so already, please complete the survey on Google Classroom to voice your option on what will come next in our class.  Here is our day-by-day agenda:

• Monday: See lesson plan above and complete Google Classroom survey on next course of action.
• Tuesday: Students should continue work on the AP Performance Tasks
• Wednesday: Students should continue work on the AP Performance Tasks
• Friday: Students should continue work on the AP Performance Tasks

Virtual Learning

Due to the Covid-19 virus, we will be moving our learning to the virtual space.  Parents, teachers, students, and the community are all doing their best to navigate this change together.  I would ask for your patience as we work through this adjustment period.  I will be doing my best to support students as we continue learning in this new environment.

Web 1, Web 2, App Dev 2
For this week, students are expected to work within their core classes.  This would mean that App Dev 2, Web 1, and Web 2 will continue work after our scheduled spring break.

AP Computer Science Principles
Students in the AP Computer Science Principles class can take this opportunity to continue our in-class work on our AP Performance Tasks.  Our "Explore" and "Create" tasks account for 40% of the overall AP score.  Currently, the due date for the tasks is April 30th.  Hopefully everyone still has access to all of their materials while away from school.  Please let me know if you have encountered any issues with access to your projects.  The AP board is aware of the many schools that have had to transition to a virtual learning environment.  I have heard that more information will come from the AP board regarding their plan in the future.

Please don't hesitate to reach out as we work through this change together!
~Mrs. Kamenar

What's Going On? March 9th through March 13th

App Development 2

This week, students will explore Composition and the Tab Bar Controller.  With Composition,
students will learn about how one object be a property of another object.  For example, we might write a class to define a "Job" object.  A "Job" might have properties such as a job title and a salary associated with it.  We might also write a class to define a "Person".  A person might have properties such as a name and a job.  To explore this, students will complete a reading, an introductory hackwich, and a code challenge.  Students will also complete a BlackBoard formative assessment on this concept.  Later in the week, students will explore the Tab Bar Controller which allows us to navigate between different screens via buttons on the bottom of our screen.

Programming the Web 1

This week, students will take on lesson 7 where we will explore colors and backgrounds.  For this lesson, students will need to read chapter 13 in our textbook and complete the accompanying reading guide by Thursday.  Students will also complete our traditional 10 question multiple-choice assessment during class on Friday.  Throughout the week, students will have 3 web assignments to complete to explore the different background and color properties that can be used via CSS.  Students are considered "on pace" for the class if lesson 7 web assignments are turned in by the end of class on Friday.  Students who need additional time to complete their work should come into the lab before school.  The lab is open on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 7-8am.  

Programming the Web 2

This week, students will continue to explore the idea of JavaScript variables and functions.  Students will complete a couple of check-ins via some short worksheets, quizzes, and short web pages.  We will continue to explore how we can add interactive features into our webpages via JavaScript.

AP Computer Science Principles

This week, students will continue to work on their "Create" performance task.  Students will be given a total of 12 hours to complete an app and a written reflection.  This task is due to the AP board via our digital portfolio and will account for 24% of the overall AP score.