Teach these four Scanner methods that allow students to write interesting code at the beginning of an introductory Java course to give students a feel for programming without overwhelming them. Share Teach these four Scanner methods that allow students to write interesting code at the beginning of an introductory Java course to give students a feel for programming without overwhelming them. with FacebookShare Teach these four Scanner methods that allow students to write interesting code at the beginning of an introductory Java course to give students a feel for programming without overwhelming them. with Twitter
Create notes that look like Javadocs instead of introducing Javadocs so students are scaffolded in reading Javadocs without being overwhelmed by all the material available. Share Create notes that look like Javadocs instead of introducing Javadocs so students are scaffolded in reading Javadocs without being overwhelmed by all the material available. with FacebookShare Create notes that look like Javadocs instead of introducing Javadocs so students are scaffolded in reading Javadocs without being overwhelmed by all the material available. with Twitter
Tell students they have to believe that some things just work before they will understand why it works because they need exposure to a lot of material before some concepts make sense individually. Share Tell students they have to believe that some things just work before they will understand why it works because they need exposure to a lot of material before some concepts make sense individually. with FacebookShare Tell students they have to believe that some things just work before they will understand why it works because they need exposure to a lot of material before some concepts make sense individually. with Twitter
Check out the Computing At School website for resources for a variety of CS courses. Share Check out the Computing At School website for resources for a variety of CS courses. with FacebookShare Check out the Computing At School website for resources for a variety of CS courses. with Twitter
Use popular, repetitive music to teach loops in a beginning course because this motivates the purpose and application of loops while keeping students engaged by referencing popular culture. Share Use popular, repetitive music to teach loops in a beginning course because this motivates the purpose and application of loops while keeping students engaged by referencing popular culture. with FacebookShare Use popular, repetitive music to teach loops in a beginning course because this motivates the purpose and application of loops while keeping students engaged by referencing popular culture. with Twitter
Start by having students transpose code from one loop type to the other when teaching all the different conditionals for the AP CS A exam. Share Start by having students transpose code from one loop type to the other when teaching all the different conditionals for the AP CS A exam. with FacebookShare Start by having students transpose code from one loop type to the other when teaching all the different conditionals for the AP CS A exam. with Twitter
Misconception: The update in the index in a for loop (i.e., the third part of the for loop control statement) happens after the all the steps inside of the loop have happened. Share Misconception: The update in the index in a for loop (i.e., the third part of the for loop control statement) happens after the all the steps inside of the loop have happened. with FacebookShare Misconception: The update in the index in a for loop (i.e., the third part of the for loop control statement) happens after the all the steps inside of the loop have happened. with Twitter
Explain nested for loops using a car odometer, the innermost loop controlling the ones digit must cycle fully before the outer loops steps forward, to help students better understand nested loops through a real world example. Share Explain nested for loops using a car odometer, the innermost loop controlling the ones digit must cycle fully before the outer loops steps forward, to help students better understand nested loops through a real world example. with FacebookShare Explain nested for loops using a car odometer, the innermost loop controlling the ones digit must cycle fully before the outer loops steps forward, to help students better understand nested loops through a real world example. with Twitter
Use note passing for explaining the difference between methods with no return (void methods) and methods with return to provide students with a relatable example. Share Use note passing for explaining the difference between methods with no return (void methods) and methods with return to provide students with a relatable example. with FacebookShare Use note passing for explaining the difference between methods with no return (void methods) and methods with return to provide students with a relatable example. with Twitter
Foreshadow arrays right after teaching for loops by showing students how to create a 1x6 grid using the rectangle object in the Java objectdraw library because visualizations built off of recently introduced material provide a useful transition. Share Foreshadow arrays right after teaching for loops by showing students how to create a 1x6 grid using the rectangle object in the Java objectdraw library because visualizations built off of recently introduced material provide a useful transition. with FacebookShare Foreshadow arrays right after teaching for loops by showing students how to create a 1x6 grid using the rectangle object in the Java objectdraw library because visualizations built off of recently introduced material provide a useful transition. with Twitter
Play musical chairs to explain while loops so students develop physical experience navigating through the structure of a loop to better understand while loops. Share Play musical chairs to explain while loops so students develop physical experience navigating through the structure of a loop to better understand while loops. with FacebookShare Play musical chairs to explain while loops so students develop physical experience navigating through the structure of a loop to better understand while loops. with Twitter
Misconception: Students may think that assigning one array to point to another array makes a copy of that array, failing to make a distinction between shallow and deep copies. Share Misconception: Students may think that assigning one array to point to another array makes a copy of that array, failing to make a distinction between shallow and deep copies. with FacebookShare Misconception: Students may think that assigning one array to point to another array makes a copy of that array, failing to make a distinction between shallow and deep copies. with Twitter
Misconception: Students have difficulty working with temporary variables in arrays. Share Misconception: Students have difficulty working with temporary variables in arrays. with FacebookShare Misconception: Students have difficulty working with temporary variables in arrays. with Twitter
Have students trace loops with break statements to reinforce the behavior of break because tracing is a powerful and straight-forward exercise. Share Have students trace loops with break statements to reinforce the behavior of break because tracing is a powerful and straight-forward exercise. with FacebookShare Have students trace loops with break statements to reinforce the behavior of break because tracing is a powerful and straight-forward exercise. with Twitter
Use technical vocabulary consistently and define terms repeatedly to help students gain competency and fluency speaking in technical terms. Share Use technical vocabulary consistently and define terms repeatedly to help students gain competency and fluency speaking in technical terms. with FacebookShare Use technical vocabulary consistently and define terms repeatedly to help students gain competency and fluency speaking in technical terms. with Twitter
Use 7-day 4-doses-a-day pill-organizers to introduce students to 2D arrays because these create an interactive, 7-by-4 two-dimensional array that helps students visualize this abstract concept. Share Use 7-day 4-doses-a-day pill-organizers to introduce students to 2D arrays because these create an interactive, 7-by-4 two-dimensional array that helps students visualize this abstract concept. with FacebookShare Use 7-day 4-doses-a-day pill-organizers to introduce students to 2D arrays because these create an interactive, 7-by-4 two-dimensional array that helps students visualize this abstract concept. with Twitter
Explain that when you ask an object to do something the proper syntax in Java is to say object [dot] method, sometimes there is additional information required. Share Explain that when you ask an object to do something the proper syntax in Java is to say object [dot] method, sometimes there is additional information required. with FacebookShare Explain that when you ask an object to do something the proper syntax in Java is to say object [dot] method, sometimes there is additional information required. with Twitter
Misconception: Students struggle with the jump from writing code in one method to writing code in two methods. Share Misconception: Students struggle with the jump from writing code in one method to writing code in two methods. with FacebookShare Misconception: Students struggle with the jump from writing code in one method to writing code in two methods. with Twitter
Misconception: Return is a mystery to students because they may not understand that functions have an entry point and an exit point. This results in mistakes such as assuming Python will return the right thing. Share Misconception: Return is a mystery to students because they may not understand that functions have an entry point and an exit point. This results in mistakes such as assuming Python will return the right thing. with FacebookShare Misconception: Return is a mystery to students because they may not understand that functions have an entry point and an exit point. This results in mistakes such as assuming Python will return the right thing. with Twitter
Show a variety of for loops conditionals (e.g., < vs. <=; different variable names, different start values, different increment operations) to avoid common misconceptions about loops. Share Show a variety of for loops conditionals (e.g., < vs. <=; different variable names, different start values, different increment operations) to avoid common misconceptions about loops. with FacebookShare Show a variety of for loops conditionals (e.g., < vs. <=; different variable names, different start values, different increment operations) to avoid common misconceptions about loops. with Twitter