Oak Ridge elementary schools’ Hour of Code blends learning, mentorship

 

Learning to code teaches students more than they realize, and they have fun at the same time.

That is why the week-long Hour of Code campaign last month was a valuable experience for elementary school students in Oak Ridge.

“Kids learn best with games,” said Aleshia Wensell, K-4 technology teacher at Glenwood Elementary School. “When they can have fun with learning, they learn faster and have a deeper understanding. That’s what code does. Students are doing a process of elimination. They are doing higher thinking skills. All of this is important for their math or reading comprehension. Code helps in all aspects of their education.”

Glenwood, Linden Elementary School, Willow Brook Elementary School and Woodland Elementary School hosted activities for Hour of Code, a nationwide initiative to excite children about computer science. Code.org, a nonprofit organization that promotes computer science education, provided Hour of Code resources for educators.

Volunteers from Oak Ridge’s scientific community and from Roane State Community College worked with elementary school children as part of Hour of Code.

“We had volunteers from Roane State, ORNL, and DOE (U.S. Department of Energy) visit and tell the kids what they do with code in their jobs,” Wensell said. “The volunteers gave the kids an idea of what’s out there in the world. The students got a lot of insight into what’s happening in our community and just soaked it all up.”

While the volunteers mentored them, students worked through puzzles using processes grown-up computer scientists use.

“Some of our students who struggle in other academic areas were actually some of our best coders,” Wensell said. “The computer removes the barrier of communication for our students. Coding helps students come out of their shells and interact with peer mentors and adults in a new way.”

To learn more about Hour most of Code, visit http://hourofcode.com.