Coding

This week, I experimented with coding. I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I have had no experience with coding up until this point. However, many of my middle school students show me their coding projects at school, so I was very interested to learn. I experimented with a tool on Code.org in which I animated a poem based on its tone and mood. You can view my final product here! I chose to animate the poem "Don't go into the Library" by Alberto Rios because it seemed highly appropriate for a MLIS student. I could see this activity being very well received with my current reading and writing students as well as any library students I may have in the future. It was fun and engaging. I really enjoyed that I was able to hone two skills at once; both poetry skills and coding skills. This would be great for a cross-curricular project as well between a technology or math class and a library or reading class. According to Moen (2016), "Computational thinking, math, design, engineering, and data analysis are considered essential skills to prepare students for the high-paying technology jobs that are open and currently unfilled" (para. 2). This coding website (and others, I'm sure) could be a great way to focus on literacy while still preparing students for those other essential skills mentioned by Moen (2016). According to the article "How Computational Thinking Fits Within Library Services" published by Libraries Ready to Code, "Library staff can embed CT in addition to traditional literacy in their work with children and teens; empowering them with the literacies they need to be lifelong learners and to succeed in college and career" (para. 5). As the world becomes more and more dependent on technology, these skills are essential. Going forward, I'll have to practice these skills more myself so that I can start integrating them into my curriculum. I want my students to be strong in literacy AND other real-world skills that will make them successful.

References:

Libraries Ready to Code. (2018). How computational thinking fits within library services. http://www.ala.org/tools/readytocode/how-computational-thinking-fits-within-library-services

Moen, M. (2016). Computer coding and literacy: Librarians lead the connection. International Literacy Association. https://www.literacyworldwide.org/blog/literacy-now/2016/09/30/computer-coding-and-literacy-librarians-lead-the-connection