The Hour of Code Experience at the Andover Innovation Lab / Help Desk / Zachary Griffin

     When I first heard about the Hour of Code, I wasn't quite sure what to expect from it. I assumed many of the students would be working on something that they may find overwhelming and it would turn out to be a very uneventful week. However, I couldn't have been more wrong. The Hour of Code proved to be a much more important experience than I would have anticipated. Our first role at the help desk was to assist Mrs. Reidy with creating a shared Google Form so she could communicate with all students efficiently. We also created the bit.ly link (bit.ly/ahshourofcode) so students could access the document with friendly URL. 

     Dan Downs and I worked in the Library and several other classrooms supporting large amounts we were assigned to during the Hour of Code. Our role was to provide students with the link to the Google form and to begin students with specifically assigned activities for the Hour of Code website. When working with these students, we had our students from the Help Desk like Eli, Viabhav and John assist us in guiding students through the various tutorials. Our Innovation Lab/Help Desk students provided pointers to student on how to use the code games effectively and provided necessary support to code newbies.

     Many of the students did not quite understand HTML, Javascript or CSS, so it was generally expected that they were going to struggle a bit. However, the links to the Hour of Code website that Mrs. Reidy provided made the lessons much more entertaining for the students. Some of these videos included navigating an Angry Bird character through a field using pre-built HTML that players would move over into a drop box. Indeed, the lessons were simple, but informative enough for anyone inexperienced in code to understand.

     Overall, the Hour of Code is something anyone should take a part in. It's both a great way to learn how to code and a good way of having a little bit of fun. All the students did an excellent job in providing students in working with the tutorials chosen for the Hour Of Code. Many of the Teachers around the school did a wonderful job proving support in teaching their students during the Hour Of Code.

If you are interested in seeing the Andover High School Google Doc used for the classes, click on the link below:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z34BsGqwdS9fFEeOaXKsLEMmnWsm6vaNlbjYMIo3RaY/edit

If you would like to learn more about the Hour of Code, click here:

http://csedweek.org/

If you learn the Hour of Code, you may also even be awarded with a certificate that you can add to your portfolio!

Learning Lua in the Andover Innovation LAB / Help Desk / John M.

Over the past month I have familiarized myself heavily with the programming language “Lua.” While it is mainly used for apps and video games, Lua can be used for a lot of other things. I go to the Help Desk multiple days a week for 45 minutes to work with Dan on understanding the world of Digital Design and computer programming. I have found some useful resources while at the Help Desk such as online compilers and tutorials. As of right now, I have 3 small projects due for the Help Desk before one big project.

            My first small project is to be completely fluent in Lua. I want to be able to read any Lua code and understand it thoroughly, as well as the ability to effectively write it. My second small project is to develop some tutorial videos (around three) to showcase what I have learned in Lua during my time at the Help Desk. My last small project I am currently deciding between making a mod for one of my favorite games “Garry’s Mod,” or create a medium sized program (more than 70 lines of code to make a game). My big project will to develop a video game of small or medium size.

            As this month was more focused on brainstorming, the next month will involve more coding and further brainstorming on projects to complete.