What's Going On? January 28th through January 31st

Welcome to Second Semester!

Welcome back to school!  My name is Mrs. Kamenar and I will be working with you in your computer science class this year.  This is my fifteenth year teaching at Waukesha North.  This year I will be teaching Honors Geometry, App Development 1 & 2, AP Computer Science A, Programming the Web 1 & 2 and Yearbook.  In addition to teaching at North, I am also the women's cross country coach and the school's yearbook advisor.

I hope everyone is ready to have a great second semester!  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.

App Development 2

In this class, students will learn how to program for Apple devices using the Swift programming language.  This week, we will complete an introductory "hackwich" for the unit called "Shopping List", where students will get to experience making a table view to display a list of grocery items.


Web 1

In this class, students will learn the basics of web page design using HTML and CSS.  This week, we will talk about the basics of web design.  This course is offered in partnership with WCTC.  This means that students can elect to enroll in this class through WCTC and earn FREE COLLEGE CREDIT!  During this first week, we will take a look at the different techniques that may be used in designing a website.  Students will identify these layout types, complete a "jigsaw" reading activity, and will see 10 multiple-choice questions during class on Friday.

Web 2

This class builds on the work that students did during the first semester of Web 1.  During this first week, we will talk specifically about the design of a web page and learn about the design choices that can be made to improve the look and feel for our website.  These principles will help guide students are we create the home page for our portfolio site we will maintain throughout the course.

AP Computer Science Principles

This week, students will wrap up their in-class work time on the AP "Explore" Performance task.  We will end the week by talking about the makeup of the internet.  Specifically, we will take a closer look at how information is sent and received.

I am really excited to get to work with you this semester.  I hope we are all able to learn a lot and have some fun along the way!  If you have any questions as we move through the year, please don't hesitate to contact me.  If you have questions, feel free to e-mail me at kkamenar@waukesha.k12.wi.us.  You can also follow me on Twitter: @MrsKamenar.

What's Going On? January 21st through January 24th

No School Monday!

This is a reminder that students do not have school on Monday, January 20th.  This is a staff development day.  We will meet up again on Tuesday, January 21st.  This will be a "purple schedule" day which means that school will start at 7:35 on Tuesday.  Students will meet with all classes with the exception of AE.


Exam Week

This is exam week.  There is a review/conferencing time each morning of exam week.  This is a great time to get some extra help or have some extra time to work in the lab.  Students need to make sure that they are on time for each exam.  The atrium doors may be locked and students may not be permitted to enter an exam late.  Students should also pay attention to the schedule regarding the lunch period as it may not be the same as our traditional schedule.

App Development 1

This week, students will work on completing their two summative projects: our "Rock, Paper, Scissors" app as well as our Swift Technique Investigation.  For the investigation, students need to research how to use a new feature in Swift and create a video walking us through how to place it in our code.  This assignment is offered in conjunction with our curriculum partners, Mobile Makers.  Students who would like to enter the official contest and be eligible for fabulous prizes have until 5pm on Tuesday, January 21st to submit their projects.  Otherwise, all work is due by the end of our exam period.  Please see the following link for contest details: https://www.unchartedlearning.org/blog/mobilemakersedu-students-win-cool-prizes-enter-the-mobilemakersedu-winter-contest-2019/2020?utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=80889274&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-80gvGGQyX9iVjPUC3h0BfvqW9fE-JJ0k7KGjZwUnmdc-Y6rgQ9OteWjAFFfxv91l2GJ_2NnfXT7WTFvcA1iAy0vh_HwBGukBqV7lQBJWs0cJspFxA&_hsmi=80889274

AP Computer Science Principles

During class on Tuesday, we will spend some additional time reviewing for our semester exam that will be made up of our specific programming knowledge as well as language-neutral programming knowledge.  Students will have a 50 question multiple-choice exam during class on Thursday.

Programming the Web 1

Students will be working to complete their final web projects.  Students have until the end of our exam period on Thursday to turn in their final products.  We will also start the exam period with 20 multiple-choice questions that have been selected from the pool of questions seen throughout the semester.  Students who need additional lab time are encouraged to come in during the morning "review/conferencing" time.

What's Going On? January 13th through January 17th

App Dev 1

This week, students will work to wrap up their summative end-of-unit app challenge, "Rock, Paper Scissors".  For this challenge, students are designing a program to play "Rock, Paper, Scissors" against the computer.  We are paying special attention to the design of this app by incorporating "Stack Views" into the design to make sure the app will look good regardless of which device is used.






AP Computer Science Principles

This week, students will continue to work on their APCSP "Explore" Performance task.  This is part of the eight hours of class time given to complete this project that will be submitted to the AP board.  During class on Friday, we will start reviewing for our semester exam.

Programming the Web 1

This week, students will continue to work on their final web site projects.  Students have until the end
of the class period on exam day to submit their projects and host them live online.



Exam Week

The exam week is coming soon!  Check out the schedule for the week.  Please note that the morning for each exam day is marked as "Review/Conferencing".  This is a great time for students to get some extra time in the computer lab or to get help from other teachers.

What's Going On? January 6th through January 10th

App Development 1

This week, students will learn more about arrays and loops. Arrays help us to store several pieces of data within a single variable name and loops help us to move through the entire list of data within that variable.  Along with this week, students will see a coding challenge to help us practice the new skills.

AP Computer Science Principles

This week, students will wrap up their work on our practice "Explore" performance task.  For this, students are researching the Rochester Digital Cloak which is a digital version of an invisibility cloak. Students will complete some research, create an artifact, and write up some explanations about the purpose and functionality of the technology.  After students receive feedback on their responses, they will be able to choose their own technology innovation to research to submit to the AP board by the end of April.  Students will receive eight hours of class time to work on this portion of the AP Exam.



Programming the Web 1

From now until the end of the semester, students will have class time to work on their final web site. For this site, students need to choose a topic and create a four-page website that highlights their knowledge of HTML and CSS techniques.  This project will be due by the end of the exam period during exam week.






Final Exam Schedule

What's Going On? January 2nd and January 3rd

Welcome Back!

I hope everyone had some time to rest and relax over winter break!  Hopefully, we are ready to tackle the rest of this semester!


App Development

This week, we will participate in our pre-unit hackwich called "Three Letter Word".  This app will
give students a taste of many of the elements that may be included in our final summative end-of-unit app challenge.







AP Computer Science A

This week, students will begin work on their "Create" performance task for the AP board.  Throughout the next several weeks, students will define their own project and have 12 hours of class time to program the project, reflect on its creation, and create a video highlighting its features.  This program will be submitted to the AP Board by April as part of the AP exam.




Programming the Web 1

This week, students will officially begin work on our final web site project.  For this, students must

create a website that contains a minimum of four web pages.  Students should demonstrate their knowledge of proper HTML and CSS techniques in order to format the content in an aesthically-pleasing way.  Students will have until the exam date to complete this project and any other work that they would like to have considered as part of their semester grade.  Students who have signed up for the transcripted course through WCTC will need to earn a "C" or higher for the course and complete the midterm and final projects.



Planning Ahead

Here is the first exam schedule for January 22nd through January 24th.

What's Going On? December 16th through December 20th

Winter Spirit Week!

This week, we will have a spirit week with different themed dress-up days.  On Friday, we will run a modified schedule and there will be an assembly with a student-staff volleyball game at the end of the day.  Please note: Tuesday is also club picture day.  Students should listen to the announcements and report to the auditorium when their group is called.

App Development 1

This week, students will be working on their summative end-of-unit app challenge, Word Play.  This is a Mad-Lib style app where the user is prompted to enter a few words on the first screen.  After a button is pressed, the user is taken to a second screen where the words are inserted into a story.  Students will turn in this assignment before leaving for winter break.

AP Computer Science Principles

This week, we will wrap up our lessons on modifying images in Python.  Students have now had some time to work with modifying an image pixel by pixel using numpy and by working with the entire image in the Python Imaging Library (PIL).





Programming the Web 1

This week, students will be wrapping up their work on assignment 14a.  Students will be creating their sub-pages for the Clear Reflections Website.  When the assignment is complete, students will host it live online.  Students should also be prepared to complete our ten multiple choice question assessment during class on Tuesday. 


Planning Ahead

For those of you who like to plan ahead, here is the semester exam schedule for January:

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

App Development

This week, students will focus on investigating the properties of segues and how to create multiple
view controllers for our apps.  We have already applied this feature once in our pre-unit hackwich called "Intergalactic Travel".  This week will focus on reinforcing those skills.






AP Computer Science Principles


This week, students will take a look at the Python Imaging Library, or PIL.  This will allow students
to manipulate images as a whole using filters as compared to last week when we were able to manipulate images pixel by pixel.  Students will learn how to round the corners and place a frame around all images contained with in a folder.





Programming the Web 1

This week, students will learn about how to take their webpages that have been created locally on
their computers and learn how to host their pages live online on a web server.  Students will learn about the different components associated with hosting a page and will place their completed "Clear Reflections Photography" four page website online.



January Exam Schedule

For those of you who like to plan ahead, check out our exam schedule for January: