rob costello wrote:<br>
<p style="margin-left: 40px;"><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">I'm looking
for ways to attempt some maths teaching with programming technology and am not
sure of the best platform <br></span></font></p>
<p style="margin-left: 47.76pt;"><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">Eg
programming the graphics calc, or logo, logo-lego, picax, Alice, Scratch – maybe these cricket
things <br></span></font></p>
<p style="margin-left: 47.76pt;"><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">We
use picax in the traditional systems technology subject so that might be viable
</span></font></p>
<p style="margin-left: 40px;"><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> Feels a little odd
that is no established body of practice – at least that I can find - here<br><br>Seems to be
re-inventing it all over again – as though digital computers haven't
sat along side maths in schools for 30 years already </span></font></p><br><br><div class="gmail_quote">I'm using scratch to teach maths in combination with a booklet by barry newell called "turtle confusion"<br>
<br>this features 40 shapes starting from simple squares, triangles etc and progressively becoming more and more complex<br><br>great for geometry, variables and building complexity from simpler parts<br><br>I've written a couple of blogs explaining in some more detail (and will write more when I have completed more of BN's puzzles)<br>
<br><a href="http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2008/02/one-problem-with-scratch.html">http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2008/02/one-problem-with-scratch.html</a><br><a href="http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2008/04/late-binding-scratch-cat.html">http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2008/04/late-binding-scratch-cat.html</a><br>
<br>sadly the turtle is gone in scratch, replaced by a mundane cat, but logo lives on<br><br>-- <br>Bill Kerr<br><a href="http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/">http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/</a><br><br><br><br>On Thu, Apr 3, 2008 at 10:14 PM, Costello, Rob R <<a href="mailto:Costello.Rob.R@edumail.vic.gov.au">Costello.Rob.R@edumail.vic.gov.au</a>> wrote:<br>
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<div link="blue" vlink="purple" lang="EN-AU">
<div>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">Hi Sarah </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">Thanks for the links </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">That is an interesting paper on Scratch
and kindergarten play approaches </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">I'm started playing with Scratch with
year 9s as have many people – often at younger year levels – on this
list </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">That paper you sent says : </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p style=""><font face="TimesNewRoman" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: TimesNewRoman;">"Most electronic toys
are not in the spirit of Froebel's Gifts, since they do not provide
children with</span></font></p>
<p style=""><font face="TimesNewRoman" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: TimesNewRoman;">opportunities to design or
create. Most of today's electronic toys are pre-programmed by the toy
company. </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">…. </span></font></p>
<p style=""><font face="TimesNewRoman" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: TimesNewRoman;">"Even in today's
participatory culture, very few people are creating and sharing </span></font><i><font face="TimesNewRoman,Italic" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic;">programmable </span></font></i><font face="TimesNewRoman" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: TimesNewRoman;">media
(such</span></font></p>
<p style=""><font face="TimesNewRoman" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: TimesNewRoman;">interactive characters and
interactive games).</span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">Couldn't agree more … </span></font></p><div class="Ih2E3d">
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="navy" face="Arial" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial; color: navy;">> </span></font><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">It's fantastic to see discussion on girls and computing.
We are few and far between, that is for sure! </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
</div><p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">Its interesting - one
observation I've noticed is that the ratio of women in ICT curriculum and
policy positions often seems quite high … eg scanning the names in the Victorian
elearning unit suggests it might be as high as 13:1. </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">the general pattern of
gender and numbers in courses at school and uni level is often the other way …
don't know why … just interesting </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">Does STAP do any
work with Latrobe in Bendigo?
</span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">I'm looking
for ways to attempt some maths teaching with programming technology and am not
sure of the best platform </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p style="margin-left: 18pt;"><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">Eg
programming the graphics calc, or logo, logo-lego, picax, Alice, Scratch – maybe these cricket
things </span></font></p>
<p style="margin-left: 18pt;"><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p style="margin-left: 18pt;"><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">We
use picax in the traditional systems technology subject so that might be viable
</span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">Feels a little odd
that is no established body of practice – at least that I can find - here
</span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">Seems to be
re-inventing it all over again – as though digital computers haven't
sat along side maths in schools for 30 years already </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">Eg that paper you
sent also says of Logo – which should be the mother of all educational
programming in maths, that </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p style=""><font face="TimesNewRoman" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: TimesNewRoman;">In a critique of the Logo
programming language, for example, Marvin Minsky [10] noted that Logo has a
great grammar</span></font></p>
<p style=""><font face="TimesNewRoman" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: TimesNewRoman;">but not much literature.
Whereas young writers are often inspired by the great works of literature that
they read,</span></font></p>
<p style=""><font face="TimesNewRoman" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: TimesNewRoman;">there is no analogous
library of great Logo projects to inspire young programmers – and no
outlets where young</span></font></p>
<p style=""><font face="TimesNewRoman" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: TimesNewRoman;">programmers can share their
Logo projects with others.</span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">So we're back
to "scratch" ! </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">Really seems hard
work to me - no wonder its so hard to change maths teaching – if even
Logo doesn't have exciting "literature" to match its grammar
(that comment was 1986 though) </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);"> </span></font></p>
<p><font color="#1f497d" face="Calibri" size="2"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri; color: rgb(31, 73, 125);">Rob </span></font></p></div></div></blockquote></div><br>