What's Going On? January 31st through February 4th

 Thought for the Week

AP Computer Science Principles

For the first two days of this week, we will focus on parallel and sequential computing.  We will complete an in-class activity to take a look at how a computer may be able to complete a task.  For the last two days of the week, we will take a look at the legal and ethical concerns related to computing.  We will talk about licensing issues and other things to keep in mind as we develop software.  Students will check-in with a couple of AP Classroom Quizzes in order to prepare for the types of questions they may expect to encounter during May's AP Exam.

App Development

This week, we will focus on "Actions and Outlets".  In the most basic terms, an action allows our app to "do something" while an action allows our app to "display something".  We will spend Monday's class completing reading and taking notes on the general features of both. On Tuesday, we will complete a class-led hackwich to put our knowledge into practice.  The rest of the week, students will work more independently on our "Actions and Outlets Code Challenge" to further develop our skills.

Web 1

Monday's class will be devoted to summarizing our reading and completing our lesson 1 reading guides.  We will also spend some time planning the answers to the questions for our first set of summative multiple-choice questions about some of the basics of web design.  For the rest of the week, we will dive into creating a web page.  On Tuesday, we will go through our notes and create a sample page together.  For the rest of the week, students will start to put their knowledge into practice with our first two web assignments of the semester.  Students will complete Project 2A: Black Goose Bistro, a tutorial from our textbook.  Students will also complete Project 2B.  For this project, students will create a short personal web page about themselves.

It is important to note that this class is offered in partnership with WCTC.  Students may opt to enroll in this class with WCTC.  Students who choose this option and complete the semester with a "C" or higher based on the WCTC grading scale will earn free transcripted credit.

What's Going On? January 25th through January 28th

 Thought for the Week

Welcome to the second semester!

Welcome to the Second Semester!

Hello Computer Science Students!  My name is Mrs. Kamenar and I will be working with you during your computer science class this year. This is my 17th year teaching math and computer science at Waukesha North. This year I will be teaching Honors Geometry, Math Readiness, App Development 1, AP Computer Science Principles, Programming the Web 1, and Yearbook. In addition to teaching, I am also the head women's cross country coach and yearbook advisor. I hope that everyone had a great first semester and that we are ready to learn about computer science! 

My goal is to keep you up to date with what's going on in the classroom through this blog. Between the blog and our class schedule of events that will be posted on our BlackBoard class website, it is my hope that all students and parents will be informed about what's going on in the classroom whether we are learning virtually or face-to-face.

Where Can Students Find Everything?

One of the first things to keep in mind is that all of our class material will be found through our Blackboard class website.  This site will contain links to our content, assignments, and other resources.

AP Computer Science Principles

As we begin the second semester, we will continue with our lesson 2.2 activities.  This week, we will focus on Activity 2.2.3: Demystifying Data Transmission. In this activity, we will learn about how data is shared across the internet, explore how information is retrieved, and learn about how data can be compressed.

App Development

In this class, students will learn how to program for Apple devices using the Swift programming
language. This week, we will take a look at our programming environment and create our first app: a flashlight!

Programming the Web 1

In this class, students will learn the basics of web page design using HTML and CSS. This week, we will take a look at our coding environment and will talk about the different layout choices web designers can use when creating a website. This class is offered in partnership with WCTC, which means that students who enroll in this free program and complete the course successfully are eligible to earn WCTC college credit. 

What's Going On? January 18th through January 21st

 Thought for the Week

Exam Week!

This week is exam week!  Students will not have school on Monday.  Tuesday will be a "Monday-style" schedule where students meet with all of their classes.  For the rest of the week, we will be following the following exam schedule:

AP Computer Science Principles

During class on Tuesday, we will spend our class period reviewing for our first-semester exam.  Our exam will take place from 8:00-9:00am on Wednesday, January 19th.  Students who are late may not be admitted into the exam so PLEASE BE ON TIME!!!!  During our exam period, students will complete a 45-question multiple-choice exam that is in a similar style to the AP exam we will complete in May.  Students who would like additional work time or to ask questions are invited to come in during our "review/conferencing" time.

App Development

During class on Tuesday, students will continue to work on their final projects.  Our exam period will take place from 9:10-10:10am on Wednesday, January 19th.  Students who are late may not be admitted into the exam so PLEASE BE ON TIME!!!!  For our final project, students will learn about something new related to the Swift programming language.  Students will then create a video, no longer than 7-minutes, explaining how to use the new feature.  In addition to submitting this project for our final grade, students also have the option to submit this screencast for the "Mobile Makers Winter Contest" in order to be eligible to win prizes, including meeting with a programming mentor, an Amazon gift card, or a Mobile Makers t-shirt.  Students who would like additional work time or to ask questions are invited to come in during our "review/conferencing" time.

Web 1

During class on Tuesday, students will continue to work on their final projects.  Our exam period will take place from 10:20-11:20am on Wednesday, January 19th.  Students who are late may not be admitted into the exam so PLEASE BE ON TIME!!!!  We will complete a 20-question multiple-choice test at the beginning of the exam period Students will have the exam period to finish up their final project: a website about their topic of choice.  The site must contain at least four web pages and demonstrate what we have learned about HTML and CSS throughout the course of the semester.  Students who would like additional work time or to ask questions are invited to come in during our "review/conferencing" time.

What's Going On? January 10th through January 14th

Thought for the Week

Upcoming Exam Schedule

On January 19th through January 21st, students will participate in our first semester exams.  Please note the time scheduled for each exam in the schedule below.  Students are welcome to come in to get extra help or have a quiet place to study during our review/conferencing time.  Students have one hour to complete their semester exam and must be in class, ready to work, at the beginning of the exam period.  

AP Computer Science Principles

This week, students will wrap up their "pHishy Fish Tank" security activity and dive into data representation.  We will focus on how different data can be represented using the binary number system.  We will wrap up the week by reviewing for our semester exam.  

App Development 1

This week, students will spend our first three class days developing the "Word Play" app.  This is a "Mad-Lib"-style app that will prompt our app user to enter in a few words onto one screen and then insert them into a story on a later screen.  At the end of the week, students will transition over to our final project.  For this final project, students will research and learn about a new programming technique, learn how to implement it, and create a 5 minute video explaining how to create it.  This final project can also be submitted to the Mobile Makers Winter Screencast contest.  You can read about more details of the contest here.

Programming the Web 1

This week, students will spend the first two days wrapping up our Clear Reflections website.  At the end of class on Tuesday, students will host these sites live online via 000webhost.com.  The rest of the semester will be work time for students to create and develop a website of their own choice.  As a reminder, this course is offered in partnership with WCTC.  Students who end the semester with a "C" or higher according to the WCTC grading scale will earn free transcripted credit from WCTC.

What's going on? January 3rd through January 7th

 Happy New Year!

Welcome back and Happy New Year! I hope that everyone found some time to rest, relax, and recharge,  Now that we're back, let's focus on making the most of what's left of our first semester!

AP Computer Science Principles

As we return from break, we will first focus on how to secure sloppy code.  We will analyze how to write and fix code to make it more efficient and less susceptible to hackers.  We will learn how to write efficient conditionals that join multiple boolean expressions.  At the end of the week, we will turn our attention to Activity 2.1.6: A pHishy Fish Tank where we will analyze a security threat to a business.

 

App Development

This week, we will continue our study of how to create multiple screens in an app and pass data between them.  We will talk more about segues, navigation controllers, and how to create an alert pop-up.

Programming the Web 1

On Monday, we will work on wrapping up our Clear Reflections Photography homepage.  Later in the week, we will talk about how to host our site live online.  We will also work on creating the subpages that go along with the Clear Reflections Photography homepage.