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MicroWorlds EX
MicroWorlds EX is all any teacher would need to create a balanced,
At Columbia Grammar and Prep School we use MicroWorlds EX with 2nd
through 7th grades. Our youngest students learn drawing commands,
animation, and simple programming concepts. In the 5th grade we
introduce the kids to Lego Logo robotics with MicroWorlds EX Robotics
Edition. In 7th grade we use MicroWorlds EX to explore game theory and
design. MicroWorlds offers us a unique environment for channeling our
students natural creativity into exciting and thought provoking
projects. MicroWorlds EX combines a simplicity and power that lets us
use it with a variety of age groups. I would say it is the most valuable
piece of software in our Grammar School computer curriculum. Energizing classes is not a problem with MicroWorlds EX. Students naturally are excited about programming with the MicroWorlds text based language. At Lakeview we feel that using a text based programming language gives more substance to the programming and provides clear insight into how computers really operate. The software provides an unlimited creative expression for today's kids. Bruce Cattanach There is no better way to bring mathematics, science and coding to life than with MicroWorlds EX. The software's ease-of-use and remarkable flexibility makes it possible to create multimedia projects on the screen that can be programmed by even young children. In a professional development context, MicroWorlds EX provides educators with a rich minds-on context for understanding the power of project-based learning and recognizing the intellectual potential of their students.
"I have been successfully using LCSI Logo and Microworlds products for twenty years. There has never been a more powerful computer-based environment for students to think and learn." Dr. Dennis Harper G.W. Childs School, a K-4 school with approximately 700 students, has developed a Technology Education program that supports and fosters independent problem solving, critical thinking, and cooperative learning. Based on the Philadelphia Curriculum Frameworks, a guide for developing standards based projects and lesson plans, the Technology program strives to support a cross-curricular approach to computer education. Students are engaged in projects which incorporate learning from their studies in all subject areas. Students work in a computer lab once a week for 45 minutes. Students have access to computers throughout the school building, in the library, their classrooms, science lab and other instructional areas. The School District of Philadelphia Children Achieving Plan, maintains the use of Technology in all subject areas. Childs School continues to explore this idea in looking for open-ended problem solving software that supports critical thinking and collaboration. LOGO has been used at Childs since 1990. Students begin their LOGO instruction in first grade as a way to familiarize young students with "taking control of the computer," and to build a foundation for programming. Beginning in third grade MicroWorlds is used to challenge the students' thinking about technology and provide them with an opportunity to "stretch" their own thoughts about computers and technology in the creation of computer simulation programs which reflect their own ideas and imaginations. MicroWorlds was chosen as a software tool that demonstrates the objectives of quality technology education: Providing an open-ended programming environment in which students can explore, create and apply prior knowledge, while participating in a rich, authentic and meaningful learning experience. MicroWorlds provides the constructivist programming environment that allows students to apply their knowledge, share their learning, and gain valuable programming and problem solving skills. It creates an environment where the students are highly motivated to create and expand their thinking and learning. It has been used extensively as part of the computer lab program, in collaboration with the science lab program, for the past two years. For comments, contact: Paula Don |
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