Constructivism, or learning by doing, is a classic approach to educational instruction that has generated renewed interest in the digital era. Constructivist practices such as apprenticeships have a long history, but in contemporary classrooms they and other hands-on programs often take a back seat to teachers telling students what they need to know rather than facilitating each person’s natural curiosity and learning style. Digital learning tools have the potential of being customized to fit the abilities of individual students and can engage them with interactive tasks and simulate real-life situations.
One approach to digital learning is to harness the broad appeal of video games for educational purposes. While research on the cognitive and behavioral impacts of violent video games have shown mixed outcomes, some nonviolent games have shown promise. Certain video games have been shown to improve brain functions, while others have the potential of reversing cognitive loss associated with aging. These “serious games” require players to make decisions to drive its progress, and they can range from the simple to the sophisticated.
Serious games harness the form and popularity of electronic entertainment to teach everything from the three Rs to public-policy issues, and it has been suggested that game design could even save the humanities through its emphasis on storytelling. Off-the-shelf games such as Civilization or The Sims have been used as a platform for students to learn a language and explore world history while developing skills such as reading, math, logic and collaboration. Emerson College professor Eric Gordon and his team designed an online platform that encourages community engagement through a game-like rewards process. Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor has invested in iCivics, which instructs players on issues of civil rights, voting and public policy, and MTV produced Darfur Is Dying, an online game that involves fetching water from a desert well without getting kidnapped by guerilla fighters.
While serious games have been embraced by educators in and out of the classroom, many questions remain. What are the possible effects of digital gaming, connectivity and multitasking for younger learners, whose bodies and brains are still maturing? Some research has shown that laptop use can hinder classroom learning, and critics assert that online learning disrupts deep reading practices. And where connections have been seen between students’ gameplay and improved cognitive abilities, boys and girls don’t benefit equally.
In a June 2013 article, Yale University School of Medicine researchers suggest how the future of these technologies is now evolving:
Electronic games are a promising tool for educating people and changing behavior. While the first wave of interactive educational games relied on what some call the “chocolate-covered broccoli” model, where the narrative was interrupted by tedious, poorly constructed tasks that proceeded like homework, the new trend is to integrate learning and fun. One of our primary goals is that more researchers and funding sources will emerge to take on the task of developing and rigorously testing evidence-based electronic games to find the best ways to encourage healthy behaviors among young people.
Below is a collection of recent academic scholarship that addresses the use and effectiveness of digital and game-based learning in the classroom and beyond.
“A Meta-Analytic Examination of the Instructional Effectiveness of Computer-Based Simulation Games”
Sitzmann, Traci. Personnel Psychology, Summer 2011, Vol. 64, No. 2, 489-528.
Abstract: “Interactive cognitive complexity theory suggests that simulation games are more effective than other instructional methods because they simultaneously engage trainees’ affective and cognitive processes. Meta-analytic techniques were used to examine the instructional effectiveness of computer-based simulation games relative to a comparison group (k= 65, N= 6,476). Consistent with theory, post-training self-efficacy was 20% higher, declarative knowledge was 11% higher, procedural knowledge was 14% higher, and retention was 9% higher for trainees taught with simulation games, relative to a comparison group. However, the results provide strong evidence of publication bias in simulation games research. Characteristics of simulation games and the instructional context also moderated the effectiveness of simulation games. Trainees learned more, relative to a comparison group, when simulation games conveyed course material actively rather than passively, trainees could access the simulation game as many times as desired, and the simulation game was a supplement to other instructional methods rather than stand-alone instruction. However, trainees learned less from simulation games than comparison instructional methods when the instruction the comparison group received as a substitute for the simulation game actively engaged them in the learning experience.”
“Serious Games as New Educational Tools: How Effective Are They? A Meta-Analysis of Recent Studies”
Girard, C.; Ecalle, J.; Magnan, A. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, June 2013, Vol. 29, No. 3, 207-219. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2729.2012.00489.x.
Findings: “Three of the 11 studied games had a positive effect on learning compared with other types of training or no training at all. These included two SGs [serious games] (Re-Mission and DimensionM) and one VG (SimCity). Seven games had no beneficial effect on learning, including three SGs … and four VGs (Indiana Jones & the Emperor’s Tomb, Medal of Honor Allied Assault, Rise of Nations, New Super Mario Bros.). Finally, the results for one SG (Triage Trainer) were mixed. Because of the lack of precise quantitative data in many studies, it was not possible to calculate the size of the learning effect.”
“Game-Based Learning in Science Education: A Review of Relevant Research”
Li, Ming-Chaun; Tsai, Chin-Chun. Journal of Science Education and Technology, February 2013. doi: 10.1007/s10956-013-9436-x.
Abstract: “The purpose of this study is to review empirical research articles regarding game-based science learning (GBSL) published from 2000 to 2011…. The results indicate that cognitivism and constructivism were the major theoretical foundations employed by the GBSL researchers and that the socio-cultural perspective and enactivism are two emerging theoretical paradigms that have started to draw attention from GBSL researchers in recent years. The analysis of the learning foci showed that most of the digital games were utilized to promote scientific knowledge/concept learning, while less than one-third were implemented to facilitate the students’ problem-solving skills. Only a few studies explored the GBSL outcomes from the aspects of scientific processes, affect, engagement, and socio-contextual learning. Suggestions are made to extend the current GBSL research to address the affective and socio-contextual aspects of science learning. The roles of digital games as tutor, tool, and tutee for science education are discussed, while the potentials of digital games to bridge science learning between real and virtual worlds, to promote collaborative problem-solving, to provide affective learning environments, and to facilitate science learning for younger students are also addressed.”
“Our Princess Is in Another Castle: A Review of Trends in Serious Gaming for Education”
Young, Michael F.; Slota, Stephen; Cutter, Andrew B. Review of Educational Research, March 2012, Vol. 82, No. 1, pp. 61-89. 10.3102/003465431243698
Abstract: “Do video games show demonstrable relationships to academic achievement gains when used to support the K-12 curriculum? In a review of literature, we identified 300+ articles whose descriptions related to video games and academic achievement. We found some evidence for the effects of video games on language learning, history, and physical education (specifically exergames), but little support for the academic value of video games in science and math. We summarize the trends for each subject area and supply recommendations for the nascent field of video games research. Many educationally interesting games exist, yet evidence for their impact on student achievement is slim. We recommend separating simulations from games and refocusing the question onto the situated nature of game-player-context interactions, including meta-game social collaborative elements.”
“Intercultural Simulation Games: A Review (of the United States and Beyond)”
Fowler, Sandra M.; Pusch, Margaret D. Simulation and Gaming, February 2010, Vol. 41, No. 1, 94-115. doi: 10.1177/1046878109352204.
Abstract: “Intercultural simulations are instructional activities that engage and challenge participants with experiences integral to encounters between people of more than one cultural group. Simulations designed specifically to support intercultural encounters have been in use since the 1970s. This article examines the conceptual bases for intercultural simulation games, their history, contexts in which they are being or have been used, their efficacy, and the current situation for intercultural simulation games. The article concludes with a look at future directions, which will rely on technological advances and the creative work of promising young interculturalists.”
“Digital Game-Based Learning in High School Computer Science Education: Impact on Educational Effectiveness and Student Motivation”
Papastergiou, Marina. Computers & Education, January 2009, Vol. 52, No. 1, 1-12. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2008.06.004.
Abstract: “The aim of this study was to assess the learning effectiveness and motivational appeal of a computer game for learning computer memory concepts, which was designed according to the curricular objectives and the subject matter of the Greek high school Computer Science (CS) curriculum, as compared to a similar application, encompassing identical learning objectives and content but lacking the gaming aspect…Data analyses showed that the gaming approach was both more effective in promoting students’ knowledge of computer memory concepts and more motivational than the non-gaming approach. Despite boys’ greater involvement with, liking of and experience in computer gaming, and their greater initial computer memory knowledge, the learning gains that boys and girls achieved through the use of the game did not differ significantly, and the game was found to be equally motivational for boys and girls. The results suggest that within high school CS, educational computer games can be exploited as effective and motivational learning environments, regardless of students’ gender.”
“The Concept of Flow in Collaborative Game-Based Learning”
Admiraal, Wilfried; Huizenga, Jantina; Akkerman, Sanne; ten Dam, Geert. Computers in Human Behavior, May 2011, Vol. 27, No. 3, 1185-1194. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2010.12.013.
Abstract: “Generally, high-school students have been characterized as bored and disengaged from the learning process. However, certain educational designs promote excitement and engagement. Game-based learning is assumed to be such a design. In this study, the concept of flow is used as a framework to investigate student engagement in the process of gaming and to explain effects on game performance and student learning outcome. Frequency 1550, a game about medieval Amsterdam merging digital and urban play spaces, has been examined as an exemplar of game-based learning. This one-day game was played in teams by 216 students of three schools for secondary education in Amsterdam. Generally, these students show flow with their game activities, although they were distracted by solving problems in technology and navigation. Flow was shown to have an effect on their game performance, but not on their learning outcome. Distractive activities and being occupied with competition between teams did show an effect on the learning outcome of students: the fewer students were distracted from the game and the more they were engaged in group competition, the more students learned about the medieval history of Amsterdam.”
“The Relationship Between Design, Gameplay and Outcomes: Computer Games and Learning”
Schrader, Claudia; Bastiaens, Theo. Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 2012, Vol. 23, No. 3, 251-271.
Findings: “Overall, authors agree on the beneficial effect on learning of the engagement and motivation generated by games. They often refer to the Flow Theory of Csikszentmihalyi. According to this theory, the ‘flow’ state experienced by players (state of complete involvement or engagement in an activity that results in an optimum experience of the activity) during the game has a positive effect on their learning. Good games are particularly adept at keeping subjects in a state of flow by increasing the skill level involved in the game as the skill level exhibited by the player increases. However, our observations indicate that not all the experimental results support this theory and that further research is therefore required.”
“Digital Game-Based Learning: Impact of Instructions and Feedback on Motivation and Learning Effectiveness”
Erhel, S.; Jamet, E. Computers and Education, September 2013, Vol. 67, 156-167. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2013.02.019.
Abstract: “Although many studies have investigated the effects of digital game-based learning (DGBL) on learning and motivation, its benefits have never been systematically demonstrated. In our first experiment, we sought to identify the conditions under which DGBL is most effective, by analyzing the effects of two different types of instructions (learning instruction vs. entertainment instruction). Results showed that the learning instruction elicited deeper learning than the entertainment one, without impacting negatively on motivation. In our second experiment, we showed that if learners are given regular feedback about their performance, the entertainment instruction results in deep learning. These two experiments demonstrate that a serious game environment can promote learning and motivation, providing it includes features that prompt learners to actively process the educational content.”
“Evaluating Learners’ Motivational and Cognitive Processing in an Online Game-Based Learning Environment”
Hao-Huang, Wen. Computers in Human Behavior, March 2011, Vol. 27, No. 2, 694-704. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2010.07.021.
Abstract: “This paper describes the process and results of an evaluation on an online game-based learning environment (GBLE) by focusing on learners’ motivational processing and cognitive processing. The goal is to explore how online GBLE might initiate and support learners’ goal-setting activities and impact learners’ cognitive loads. The study surveyed 144 undergraduate students after their autonomous participation in the online game available at the Nobel Prize Foundation website teaching the Heckscher–Ohlin Theory on international trade. Grounded in the integrative theory of motivation, volition, and performance (MVP), the evaluation indicated that participants felt significantly confident in learning the subject. The perceived satisfaction, however, was lower than the rest of motivational components possibly due to heavy cognitive processing. The finding of cognitive load reported that learners perceived a significantly higher level of intrinsic load than the germane load due to the novelty of the subject matter. Data analysis further indicated a significant canonical correlation between learners’ motivational and cognitive processing. This particular finding could inform future research to investigate specific motivational processing components’ effects on learners’ cognitive load levels in online GBLEs.”
“Learning through Playing for or Against Each Other? Promoting Collaborative Learning in Digital Game-Based Learning”
Romero, Margarida; Usert, Mireia; Ott, Michela; Earp, Jeffrey. European Conference on Information Systems, 2012.
Abstract: “The process of learning through Game Based Learning (GBL) presents both positive aspects and challenges to be faced in order to support the achievement of learning goals and knowledge creation. This study aims to characterize game dynamics in the adoption of multi-player GBL. In particular, we examine the multi-player GBL dynamics may enhance collaborative learning through a relation of positive interdependence while at the same time maintaining a certain level of competition for ensuring multi-player GBL gameplay. The first section of the paper introduces collaborative GBL and describes the combination of intragroup dynamics of cooperation and positive interdependence and an intergroup dynamic of competition to maintain gameplay. The second part of the paper describes two multi-player GBL scenarios: the multi-player game with interpersonal competition and the multi-player game with intergroup competition. For each scenario a case analysis of existing collaborative games is provided, which may help instructional and game designers when defining the collaborative GBL dynamics.”
“Video Game–Based Learning: An Emerging Paradigm for Instruction”
Squire, Kurt D. Performance Improvement Quarterly, April 2013, Vol. 26, No. 1, 101-130. doi: 10.1002/piq.21139.
Abstract: “Interactive digital media, or video games, are a powerful new medium. They offer immersive experiences in which players solve problems. Players learn more than just facts — ways of seeing and understanding problems so that they ‘become’ different kinds of people. ‘Serious games’ coming from business strategy, advergaming, and entertainment gaming embody these features and point to a future paradigm for eLearning. Building on interviews with leading designers of serious games, this article presents case studies of three organizations building serious games, coming from different perspectives but arriving at similar conclusions. This article argues that such games challenge us to rethink the role of information, tools, and aesthetics in a digital age.”
“Dynamical Model for Gamification: Optimization of Four Primary Factors of Learning Games for Educational Effectiveness”
Kim, Jung Tae; Lee, Won-Hyung. Computer Applications for Graphics, Grid Computing, and Industrial Environment, Communications in Computer and Information Science, 2012, Vol. 351, 24-32. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-35600-1_4.
Abstract: “This paper proposes a dynamical model for the gamification of learning. The main idea of this model is based on the correlations of four primary factors (curiosity, challenge, fantasy and control) originating from digital games which are built on the foundations of separate theories: (1) Game Design Features, (2) Key Characteristics of a Learning Game, (3) ARCS Model, and (4) MDA framework. Through this dynamical model, we will show that the effectiveness of the gamification of learning is educationally superior to traditional ways of learning in a specific setting, after an elapsed adaptive time period with a reasonable relationship of the four primary factors. The model presents the meaningful positions of four primary factors on the equation for educational effectiveness of gamification. We posit that this dynamical model for the gamification can strengthen the ‘theoretical foundation’ of gamification as well as spread the idea of ‘the pure and right function of game.’”
“Gamification in a Social Learning Environment”
Giannetto, David; Chao, Joseph; Fontana, Anthony. Issues in Informing Science and Information Technology, 2013, Vol. 10.
Abstract: “Gamification has gained traction in recent years as an effective way of engaging users to perform actions in contexts that would otherwise be considered tedious and undesirable. Education is an area in which user engagement could have the greatest impact on success, with some advantages for students being improved grades or better comprehension. The authors of this paper have designed and implemented a three-part system for gamifying a social learning environment designed for use in higher education lecture classrooms. Our goal in doing so is to foster greater user engagement from the students using the system and thereby promote an environment better suited for active learning.”
“Gamifying Learning Experiences: Practical Implications and Outcomes”
Dominguez, Adrian; Saenz-de-Navarrete, Joseba; de Marcos, Luis; Fernandoes-Sanz, Luis; Pages, Carmen; Martinez-Herriaiz, Jose-Javier. Computers in Education, April 2013, Vol. 63, 380-392. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2012.12.020.
Abstract: “Gamification is the use of game design elements and game mechanics in non-game contexts. This idea has been used successfully in many web-based businesses to increase user engagement. Some researchers suggest that it could also be used in web-based education as a tool to increase student motivation and engagement. In an attempt to verify those theories, we have designed and built a gamification plugin for a well-known e-learning platform. We have made an experiment using this plugin in a university course, collecting quantitative and qualitative data in the process. Our findings suggest that some common beliefs about the benefits obtained when using games in education can be challenged. Students who completed the gamified experience got better scores in practical assignments and in overall score, but our findings also suggest that these students performed poorly on written assignments and participated less on class activities, although their initial motivation was higher.”
“Serious Games and Learning Effectiveness: The Case of It’s a Deal!”
Guillen-Nieto, Victoria; et al. Computers and Education, January 2012, Vol. 58, No. 1, 435-448. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2011.07.015.
Abstract: “Although the value of serious games in education is undeniable and the potential benefits of using video games as ideal companions to classroom instruction is unquestionable, there is still little consensus on the game features supporting learning effectiveness, the process by which games engage learners, and the types of learning outcomes that can be achieved through game play… Findings of this study demonstrate that the video game is an effective learning tool for the teaching of intercultural communication between Spaniards and Britons in business settings in which English is used as the lingua franca. In particular, whereas the game had a small learning effect on intercultural awareness and a medium learning effect on intercultural knowledge, it had a large learning effect on intercultural communicative competence. The study also documents correlating factors that make serious games effective, since it shows that the learning effectiveness of It’s a Deal! stems from the correct balance of the different dimensions involved in the creation of serious games, specifically instructional content, game dimensions, game cycle, debriefing, perceived educational value, transfer of learned skills and intrinsic motivation.”
“Learning in Serious Virtual Worlds: Evaluation of Learning Effectiveness and Appeal to Students in the E-Junior Project”
Wrzesien, Maja; Alcaniz-Raa, Mariano. Computers and Education, August 2010, Vol. 55, No. 1, 178-187. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2010.01.003.
Abstract: “The objective of this study is to present and to evaluate the E-Junior application: a serious virtual world (SVW) for teaching children natural science and ecology. E-Junior was designed according to pedagogical theories and curricular objectives to help children learn about the Mediterranean Sea and its environmental issues while playing. In this study, we present data about the E-Junior evaluation. A class in a serious virtual world (virtual group) was compared with a traditional type of class (traditional group) that contained identical learning objectives and contents but lacked a gaming aspect…. The results showed that the serious virtual world does not present statistically significant differences with the traditional type of class. However, students from the virtual group reported enjoying the class more, being more engaged, and having greater intentions to participate than students from the traditional group. The plausible explanation for this can be found in the qualitative data. The implications of these results and improvement proposals are also discussed in this work.”
“The Effects of Modern Mathematics Computer Games on Mathematics Achievement and Class Motivation”
Kebritchi, Mansureh; Hirumi, Atsusi; Bai, Haiyan. Computers and Education, September 2010, Vol. 22, No. 2, 427-443. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2010.02.007.
Abstract: “This study examined the effects of a computer game on students’ mathematics achievement and motivation, and the role of prior mathematics knowledge, computer skill, and English language skill on their achievement and motivation as they played the game. A total of 193 students and 10 teachers participated in this study…. The results indicated significant improvement of the achievement of the experimental versus control group. No significant improvement was found in the motivation of the groups. Students who played the games in their classrooms and school labs reported greater motivation compared to the ones who played the games only in the school labs. Prior knowledge, computer and English language skill did not play significant roles in achievement and motivation of the experimental group.”
“Red Light, Purple Light: Findings from a Randomized Trial Using Circle Time Games to Improve Behavioral Self-Regulation in Preschool”
Tominey, Shauna L.; McClelland, Megan M. Early Education & Development Special Issue: Self-Regulation in Early Childhood, 2011, Vol. 22, No. 3, 480-519.
Findings: “The present study examined the efficacy of a self-regulation intervention with 65 preschool children. Using circle time games, the study examined whether participating in a treatment group significantly improved behavioral self-regulation and early academic outcomes. Half of the children were randomly assigned to participate in 16 playgroups during the winter of the school year. Behavioral aspects of self-regulation and early achievement were assessed in the fall and spring. Although there was no treatment effect in the overall sample, post hoc analyses revealed that participation in the treatment group was significantly related to self-regulation gains in children who started the year with low levels of these skills. Children in the treatment group also demonstrated significant letter-word identification gains compared to children in the control group…. The findings from this study provide preliminary evidence for the efficacy of the intervention in terms of improving preschoolers’ behavioral self-regulation for children low in these skills and improving letter-word identification. Although preliminary, these results have the potential to inform preschool curricula that emphasize behavioral self-regulation as a means of facilitating school readiness.”
“Students’ Perceptions About the Use of Video Games in the Classroom”
Bourgonjon, Jeroen; Valcke, Martin; Soetaert, Ronald; Schellens, Tammy. Computers and Education, May 2010, Vol. 54, No. 4, 1145-1156. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2009.10.022.
Abstract: “In this study, a path model to examine and predict student acceptance of video games is proposed, and empirically tested by involving 858 secondary school students. The results show that students’ preference for using video games in the classroom is affected directly by a number of factors: the perceptions of students regarding the usefulness, ease of use, learning opportunities, and personal experience with video games in general. Gender effects are found as well, but appear to be mediated by experience and ease of use.”
Tags: technology, cognition, children, youth, research roundup


Since man first began writing there has been a desire to send messages in secret: in code. Codes and ciphers are forms of secret communication. A code replaces words with letters, numbers or symbols. A cipher rearranges letters or uses substitutes to disguise the message. This process is called encryption. The art of writing and solving codes and ciphers is called cryptography.
Codes and ciphers have been used throughout time when people wanted to keep messages private. Cryptography has, and is still, used by governments, military, companies, and organisations to protect information and messages.
Today, encryption is used to protect data and data transfer between computers. Documents, data and messages are encrypted to protect confidentiality. Modern encryption methods are very clever but their underlying principles remain that of those ancient methods.
I’m writing a unit of work on cryptography which will be published to iCompute for Primary Schools computing scheme of work. Here, the children will unleash their inner spy and learn about how data can be transferred in secret over distances. They will learn how codes and ciphers have been used throughout history and explore a number of different ways that data can be encrypted and decrypted.
As part of it, I’ve been putting together resources on the history of cryptography. Here is a brief introduction to the Enigma machine and how the magnificent men and women at Bletchley helped shorten World War II with their code breaking skills!
The new cryptography unit – iCrypto – will be available for Key Stage 2 soon. Visit www.icompute-uk.com to find out more about our acclaimed primary computing scheme of work.
Not long to go now for the Hour of Code 2017 (December 4th – 10th) and we can’t wait to see how many pupils and schools participate around the world.
iCompute are delighted to partner with code.org again this year by providing lots of fun, creative, activities for schools to use as part of this event and throughout the year. We’ve put together, free, Christmas themed lessons and lots more, including saving Santa with Scratch, animating a snowman and delivering Santa’s presents with parrot drones! Included are detailed step-by-step lesson plans with built in differentiation and creative ideas for extension and enrichment.
The Hour of Code™ is a global movement and worldwide effort to celebrate computer science. Organised by Computer Science Education Week and Code.org it reaches tens of millions of students in 180+ countries through a one-hour introduction to computer science and computer programming.
In England, children have a statutory entitlement to a computer science education from the age of five. iCompute provides full coverage for the National Curriculum for Computing at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.
Each year, we offer free computing lesson plans and computing resources to support the Hour of Code™ and help raise awareness of and engagement in computing science around the world.
We really hope you join us this year for The Hour of Code and introduce your pupils to the joy of creative computing!
I’ve been teaching primary robotics for some time now as part of the computing curriculum that I write for iCompute. I teach with and have produced schemes of work for robotics from EYFS to Year 6 using BeeBots, LEGO WeDo, Sphero and parrot drones to name a few.
Whilst teaching computing itself can be daunting for many teachers, the prospect of the added pressure of actual things being whizzed around classrooms through code can push many to avoid the controlling physical systems aspects of the National Curriculum for Computing altogether!
The rapid pace of advances in technology means children are growing up in an age dominated by embedded computer systems and robotics. It is crucial they have an understanding of its impact on the world and their own futures. Teachers need to be in a position to provide pupils with the level of knowledge, understanding and skills they need to live in the modern world.
Including Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM subjects) in early education provides a strong motivation for learning and an improvement in progression. Teaching robotics is a great way of connecting with children and enables schools to engage the potential engineers and computer scientists of the future.
Most curricula in primary schools cover science and mathematics, but we need to do more in teaching problem solving, computer science, design, technology and robotics.
The use of robotic systems and robotics as a subject offers an introduction to the engineering design process and sets children’s learning in a fun, meaningful, contexts. The fundamental principles of computer science are applied and made easier as models and devices can be designed, constructed, programmed and executed in front of pupil’s eyes. This makes it much easier to learn what robots can and cannot do: their capabilities and, crucially, their limitations.
We’ve recently put all of our robotics units into one primary robotics pack that covers the controlling physical systems aspects of the National Curriculum for Computing at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 (pupils aged 5-11).
I’m also including some free activities as part of our contribution to this year’s Hour of Code, adding to those already featured last year and still live. As the Hour of Code launches each year in December, I’ll be adding a nice festive twist to my teacher-led activities. Hint: Santa’s sleigh is broken but he has a drone! Here’s a sneak peek of the cover…
HOC iFly Cover
Check out my other blog posts for teaching tips and advice about how to manage programming physical devices with younger children. I cover:
Many teachers are tasked with planning computing schemes of work for their schools.
Having produced many for iCompute, I know how huge and time consuming the task is. Here I share my tips about how to plan a computing scheme of work which ensures your school has a broad, balanced, rich and progressive scheme of work that will engage and challenge pupils of all abilities.
Use free software and tools – you don’t need to buy a thing in order to meet the objectives of the computing curriculum
Practise – helps you understand the knowledge, skills and understanding the software and tools help develop
Look for progression – you will start to see that particular tools are suitable for specific age groups
Look for full coverage – Computing is not just about coding
Understand how to assess computing – know where your pupils are and where they need to go next
Adapt – make it fit your school, staff and needs of your pupils
I recently published two new 4-6 week physical programming units to iCompute’s Key Stage 2 scheme of work; which I blogged about in my post Teach Programming with LEGO™ WeDo
I admit to a rising sense of panic as I approached my first session: young children, small LEGO parts, computers and stuff that moves! However, we’ve been having a great time and thought I’d share some of the practises I’ve found necessary to manage these very active learning lessons.
First of all, get organised before each session. I’ve found it’s much better to work on the floor to prevent bouncing bricks, so book out the school hall if you can or clear your classroom of desks. I’ve assigned each pair of pupils a LEGO WeDo Construction kit and a labelled basket for their models. I also arranged space in the classroom for a ‘robot parking lot’. Whenever I need everyone’s attention, or if we’ll be working on the same model a few weeks in a row, we park the robots in their baskets on top of the construction kit boxes. This helps keep the kits organised so that, combined, the model and the kit = a full construction kit.
You need to be really firm about pupil movement around the space you’re using with LEGO parts! I use hula-hoops placed around the hall with big gaps between them. I explain the necessity of keeping the models and construction kits within hoops to that we don’t lose the parts. The children have been great, understanding the clear rules and why we have them.
Organisation is key!
In order to work on the floor, you’ll need either laptops or tablets. If you don’t have either, the children can transport their models in their baskets (always with their kits) to the desktops; but make sure they have plenty of space between them to program and operate the models.
I used the amazing LEGO Digital Designer to put together building instructions as a basis for each of the models the children would be making and programming. Don’t worry, you won’t have to if you are an iCompute school because I’ve done all that for you. Simply print and hand out to the children. If you fancy having a go yourself, you can virtually construct a model of your choosing and then opt to create the build instructions which your can display in a web browser or print. Love it!
Build Instructions for LEGO WeDo
Whilst build instructions can be vital for some pupils, there are still plenty of opportunities for creativity for others and I allow those the freedom to design, create and program their own models with only a rough guide.
I’ve been really impressed with how well the children have responded to physical programming and how smoothly the lessons have gone. I hope some of you find my tips useful and please let me know how your lessons go.
This week sees the launch of iCompute’s new six week programming unit for Year 3 and 4-5 week unit for Year 4 which uses LEGO™ WeDo to teach children how to program robots and models in primary computing lessons.
Lego WeDo is a fantastic opportunity for children to bring the physical world to life through code. They build models using the bricks they know and love and then program them interact with the world around them!
Using robotics promotes interest in science and engineering, as well as computer science and helps develop motor skills through model building. Mechanisms, built by and ultimately designed by, the pupils themselves set computer programming in a meaningful context. Children learn more quickly when a model executes a program, physically, right before them.
The robotics elements of LEGO WeDo include motors and sensors. Our new units do not require the full educational LEGO WeDo sets to be bought. Schools that already have plenty of bricks and parts can simply buy the robotics parts that will enable models to move, sense and interact with the physical world.
LEGO WeDo has two versions 1.0 and 2.0. Our units provide support for both and the principle robotic parts remain the same at their core (albeit with enhanced features for 2.0).
The Hub: The WeDo hub connects models to your device. You can connect up to two sensors (motor, distance sensor, or tilt sensor)
The Motor: When connected to the hub, the motor can be programmed to turn on/off. It can also be programmed to adjust power, direction and duration
The Distance Sensor: The distance sensor can detect how far away an item is in front of it
The Tilt Sensor: The tilt sensor detects how far it’s tilted from left to right.
You can also connect and program LEGO Power Function lights which do not come with WeDo packs as standard but can be bought on their own and connected to the hub too.
As already mentioned, you can buy the robotic parts separately if you have plenty of LEGO bricks; however it is still possible to pick up education sets of WeDo 1.0 at a fraction of the price of WeDo 2.0. Search online for LEGO™ Education WeDo Construction Set 9580 (make sure it’s the construction set you are buying). I managed to buy 6 sets of WeDo 1.0 at £70 each compared to £150 each for LEGO™ Education WeDo 2.0 Core Set 45300.
Programming LEGO™ WeDo
iCompute uses MIT’s Scratch to program models. LEGO WeDo does have it’s own software that comes as part of the kit, but I don’t feel it offers the same opportunities for enhancing physical programming through storytelling so have chosen to use Scratch instead.
There are two versions of Scratch: 1.4 and 2.0. Scratch 1.4 is an offline editor that you download and use without the need for web access. Scratch 2.0 is available as both an online and offline version. Regular readers will know that I prefer 1.4 for primary aged pupils as the interface is cleaner and the debugging options are better. Scratch 2.0 however does allow models to be connected to tablets, as well as computers. You can use both versions of WeDo with Scratch 2.0, however you need to install a device manager and extension in Scratch 2.0 for them to work.
The teacher guides contained within the unit provide comprehensive guidance on the options and their respective setups.
Using Scratch and LEGO WeDo enables pupils to create some amazing models and stories to accompany them.
What Pupils Can Do with LEGO™ WeDo and iCompute
Programming, using software , designing and creating working models
Using the software to acquire information
Using feedback to adjust a programming system output
Working with simple machines, gears, levers, pulleys, transmission of motion
Measuring time and distance, adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, estimating, randomness, using variables
Doing narrative and journalistic writing, storytelling, explaining, interviewing, interpreting
Design: Use STEM principles to explore Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics and design models
Build: Improve motor function, communicate and collaborate with others in building working models and robots
Program: Create animated stories, and program models to interact with the story & physical world
Digital Literacy: Create factual and imaginative animations and narratives that explain, interpret and tell stories
Test : Use physical output as feedback to to detect errors easily
Debug: Correct errors found when models don’t behave as expected
Evaluate: Critically analyse work and that of others and discuss what is good, or not so good, about them
Improve: Revisit models and code then cycle through this process from ‘Design’ onward to make things better
Introduce your KS1 computing pupils to algorithms and programming in a fun, intuitive way, using Scratch Jr on tablets. I’ve put together a 6-8 week KS1 computing unit and associated teacher/pupil resources that uses Scratch Jr and am struck by just how quickly my pupils pick up some of the fundamental principles of computer science.
I based the unit around Michael Rosen’s “We Going on a Bear Hunt” to give the children’s coding context and purpose. Over the weeks the children move progressively from adding sprites and programming some basic movement to programming sprites to go a more complex journey in the form of a hunt – just like in the story. The concepts covered that I found they grasped really quickly are:
Everyone likes putting a festive twist on lessons during the approach to Christmas and I’ve been making festive computing lessons for my pupils.
I’ve recently produced a six week animation unit for Key Stage 2 (iAnimate) where the children learn about the history of animation, make their own flipping book animations, make thaumatropes and/or praxinoscopes, explore different animation techniques and, of course, design and make their own fantastic animations using apps and software.
This Christmas, I’ve put together a step-by-step computing lesson plan and teacher resources for creating an animated snowman GIF. You can download the lesson and resources and use them your own classrooms for a little festive fun!
Create an animated GIF
The lesson plan contains lots of ideas for differentiation, extension and enrichment: from making a very simple animated sequence to more able pupils:
animating backgrounds as well as characters and objects
adding 3D effects (e.g. shadows)
creating more frames for smoother movement
switching backgrounds to create scene changes
animating more than one object
A little festive flavour of what our full six week animation unit offers and another Christmas gift to you!
Now that Computing has been statutory in primary schools since the introduction of the National Curriculum for Computing at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 in 2014, many schools feel that they have got to grips with the objectives and have a view, if not a plan, of how to meet them. With computer science being at the core of the curriculum, its perhaps easy for schools to neglect the other aspects of it – including digital literacy.
I’ve covered a number methods for primary computing assessment in this post but, as I’ve been creating some pupil/teacher resources for video screencasting using, free, OBS (Open Broadcaster Software), I thought I’d go over the screencasting part of it again here. You can download the pupil/teacher support card by clicking on the image in this post.
Potentially one of the most powerful tools for assessment in computing is engaging pupils in creating screencasts – recording computer screen video with audio narration. Research indicates that by making learning visual and documenting thinking – through screencasting – pupils more naturally engage in self-assessment. Even when recordings are made without any intended audience and in the absence of prompting, pupils automatically listen back to themselves, reflect, assess and adjust (Richards, 2014)
This promising tool could be used to further develop information technology and digital literacy skills whilst also engaging pupils in the assessment process by editing screencasts for an intended audience with audio and creating visual effects such as captioning. The screencasts could then be uploaded to individual or class blogs, using categories and tags mapped to the appropriate strand of the National Curriculum for Computing, as evidence of learning or saved as a video file for storage on file servers either at school or in the Cloud. Similarly, teachers could use screencasts to provide audio/visual pupil feedback by making recordings when reviewing work. The screencasts could be cross-referenced against a project and uploaded into the pupil’s e-Portfolio.
Click to Download
Richards, Reshan. One Best Thing. iBooks, 2014. eBook [Available here]
We Computer Scientists like our jargon but now (due to the National Curriculum for Computing) we are teaching pupils as young as five about how computers and computer systems work; teachers need to know – and be able to explain to children – what a plethora of confusing words mean. As Kurt Vonnegut observed “if you are going to teach, you should either teach graduate school or fourth grade… and if you can’t explain it to fourth graders, you probably don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The primary computing curriculum has now been statutory since September 2014 with the introduction of the National Curriculum for Computing at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. All schools should now be teaching a broad and balanced computing curriculum that provides full curriculum coverage of the aims and objectives of the National Curriculum for Computing. But are they?
As I mentioned in a previous post, I have recently written a primary programming robotics scheme of work as part of my role as a primary computing master teacher with Computing At Schools and having been kindly loaned five Sphero. @cas_lancaster will be lending these lesson plans and resources out as part of their equipment loan scheme and the complete unit and associated resources, assessment guidance etc, now forms part of the iCompute for iPad scheme of work.
Today, I presented at #CASLancaster16 conference about my experiences of teaching with Sphero. Here is the free programming unit that CAS Lancaster included in their USB Key given to all delegates.
Download and use as a guide to primary programming skills progression with Scratch
Please note that children progress at different rates and this is intended as a guide only. iCompute’s whole-school primary computing scheme of work provides computing lesson plans that have built in differentiation, extension and enrichment activities to include, engage and challenge all pupils in primary computing.
Develop Primary Computational Thinking Skills With Puzzles
Computational Thinking Puzzle Workbooks
Computational thinking is at the heart of the statutory programme of study for Computing:
“A high quality computing education equips pupils to use computational thinking and creativity to understand and change the world” (DfE).
Since the introduction of the National Curriculum for Computing in 2014, schools now teach computing from the age of 5 and have developed curricula to meet their statutory obligations; however many lack a focus on developing computational thinking skills favouring, instead, to concentrate on the programming, or coding, objectives. In this post, I discuss computational thinking in more detail and how teaching it helps children become problem solvers which is important not just in computing but is an essential life skill.
There has been much research into the benefits of puzzle-based learning. Puzzles help children develop general problem-solving and independent learning skills.
According to Badger et al. (2012) engaging in puzzles means that pupils:
take personal responsibility;
adopt novel and creative approaches, making choices;
develop modelling skills;
practice recognition of cases, reducing problem situations to exercises.
Additionally, in solving puzzles pupils use and apply a range of strategies that cross disciplines in entertaining and engaging ways.
So what does any of this have to do with computational thinking? By selecting the right variety and complexity of puzzles, children will independently practise and develop the fundamental computational thinking skills of decomposition, abstraction, generalisation and developing algorithms.
This will enable them to find solutions and apply those already found to different problems, in different contexts. All of this helps lay the foundations for pupils to become effective problem solvers. Skills that are increasingly important, as discussed in this post, given the digital world we live in and the need to prepare pupils to solve as yet unknown problems using tools and technologies that do not yet exist.
Best Educational Book
UPDATE: iCompute’s Computational Thinking Puzzle Workbooks 1-4 have been shortlisted for prestigious ERA (Education Resource Awards) 2017 for Best Educational Book.
Badger, M., Sangwin, C, J., Ventura-Medina, E., Thomas, C, R.: 2012, A Guide To Puzzle-Based LearningIn Stem Subjects, University of Birmingham.
Enrich learning with a cross curricular approach to primary computing
Click to download the poster
Computing is one of the most fundamentally cross curricular subject areas in education. It’s about using technology, logic, creativity and computational thinking to solve problems that cross all disciplines. It requires the systematic breakdown (decomposition) of both the problem and the solution. We need to prepare pupils for how to live in an increasingly digital world by equipping them with the knowledge, understanding and skills to solve as yet unknown problems using tools and technologies that do not yet exist. We can work towards achieving this by using computing as a means of making sense of the world and using what the children learn in computing across the curriculum.
The best primary practice includes a blend of rigorous, discrete, subject teaching and equally effective cross-curricular links. Both approaches are needed for effective learning to take place, to enable children to make links between subjects and to set learning in meaningful contexts. Using computing throughout the primary curriculum offers a way to enrich and deepen learning through engaging, interconnected, topics.
I have put together a selection of free resources and links to others to help teachers get started with ideas and inspiration for enriching learning and exploring computing through a rich variety of media and technologies in cross-curricular contexts.
As part of my role with Computing At Schools (CAS) as a Primary Computer Science Master Teacher, I have recently been fortunate enough to teach using Sphero, having been lent a set by @cas_lancaster. The task was to produce a set of step-by-step Sphero lesson plans and associated teacher and pupil support materials for primary teachers to use. That is all now done and I’ve had great fun creating our new robotics unit – iCompute with Sphero – which forms part of our iPad pack , as well as being available separately. It will be lent out to other local schools by @cas_lancaster. Teaching progressive lessons using Spheros enables primary schools to meet a number of the objectives of the National Curriculum for Computing at Key Stage 2 Specifically:
design, write and debug programs that accomplish specific goals, including controlling or simulating physical systems; solve problems by decomposing them into smaller parts
use sequence, selection, and repetition in programs; work with variables and various forms of input and output
use logical reasoning to explain how some simple algorithms work and to detect and correct errors in algorithms and programs
select, use and combine a variety of software (including internet services) on a range of digital devices to design and create a range of programs, systems and content that accomplish given goals, including collecting, analysing, evaluating and presenting data and information
iCompute with Sphero
iCompute – Features Flowchart
Here, I share my experiences of using Spheros with primary pupils and give some general advice and classroom tips about how to use them effectively, engage and challenge your pupils.
What is Sphero?
Sphero is a robot ball with several features that can be controlled though apps and also includes the facility for pupils to create their own computer programs. The main features are:
Rolling – Sphero can roll at specified speeds and directions
Colours – Sphero can light up to a specified colour
Bluetooth – Sphero connects to mobile devices through wireless Bluetooth
As Spheros are connected to iPads via Bluetooth, preparing to use them in your classroom before your roll up brandishing them and creating general hysteria is vital! Make sure all are fully charged and that your have paired each to a particular tablet in advance. Each Sphero flashes a unique sequence of colours when they are ‘woken’ which can be used to identify them. A Sphero will appear on your tablet’s Bluetooth list using the initials of the three colours it flashes in order, Eg. Sphero-RGB for a colour sequence of Red, Green and Blue.
I added stickers to each of the Spheros with their unique name, as ‘YGO’, ‘RGW’ etc., and also to the corresponding tablet I’d paired it to. This made distributing them and the iPads much easier when in class.
You need lots of space to use these. I used the school hall. I refer back to ‘Preparation’ for this as it may be something you need to organise. I forgot on my first session and arrived with a very excitable class to a hall full of lunch tables. The first half of my lesson therefore involved getting those out of the way.
You can also buy covers called a ‘Nubby’ for outside use.
I tried this with one of my classes and we had to come back inside as it was sunny and therefore impossible to see Sphero’s tail-light: essential to be able to aim it to move in the direction you want it to go. Also, we had iPads and the children couldn’t see the screens.
Now on to the good stuff. My specialism is teaching primary pupils aged 5-11. I think Spheros are suitable for Key Stage 2 pupils, children aged 7-11.
I suggest your first session focus on teaching the children how to wake Sphero, Orient (aim) it and control it using the standard Sphero app. Each Sphero comes with, amongst other things, a pair of ramps and once the children have got used to moving Sphero forward and backward with reasonable accuracy, add the ramps and other obstacles to make things interesting and develop accuracy further.
A lesson, including step-by-step instructions for both teacher and pupil for this are available in our robotics pack.
iCompute with Sphero
The following lessons progresses to using the Sphero Draw N’ Drive app enabling the children to gain greater control and begin to understand that Sphero can be controlled to perform specific actions.
I then move things on for the rest of the unit to programming Sphero using Tickle.
We created quizzes that the children programmed Sphero to move and change colour to answer. This presents great cross-curricular opportunities. We create algorithms and program Sphero to be our dance partners for Physical Education. Also, mazes to navigate with excellent links to Mathematics for distance, direction and angle work. The children also program Sphero to travel the globe, linking to Geography, using a free floor map from National Geographic.
Using robotics in the primary classroom presents creative and engaging opportunities for the children to extend what they have learned about algorithms and programming in Computing by understanding that physical systems can be controlled too. With the right blend planning and imaginative resources, using Sphero’s in your classroom has the potential to inspire the next generation of software designers and systems engineers! The possibilities are exciting…
Assessment presents particular challenges for computing and many schools have not yet addressed how to accurately assess pupil progress and provide evidence of it. Let’s see what David Brown, former HMI Ofsted’s National Lead for Computing, had to say about computing in schools.
Mr Brown’s message is overwhelmingly that of outcomes with no specific advice about how to achieve them. Having taught Computing in primary schools since 2013, I have found that the time required to cover the programmes of study for Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 is one hour of computing each week for Years 1-6, coupled with cross-curricular work to practise and consolidate skills in other subjects.
Assessing Computing Summary
Evidence – Use e-Portfolios such as SeeSaw or maintain individual folders on the network for each pupil to contain digital work
Teacher Feedback – Face-to-face or by using digital ‘marking’ strategies such as adding text comments in digital work or adding audio of your comments
Self/Peer – Blogging, Vlogging or Video Screencasting provides excellent opportunities for pupils to reflect on work
Diagnostic Testing – Creative online interactive quizzes (e.g. Kahoot) provide engaging opportunities to assess pupil understanding and bring a gamification aspect to assessment
Assessment Projects – Using end-of-unit open-ended project tasks allow pupils to demonstrate learning
Progress Tracking – Understanding where pupils are and planning next steps to meet age-related expectations
Computing – Including Pupils with Special Educational Needs & Disabilities (SEN/D)
We passionately believe that Computing has the potential to empower pupils with SEN/D and transform their lives. With the right blend of progressive, imaginative planning, exposure to a broad range of tools and technologies, and comprehensive support it is possible that all children can be fully included and fulfill their potential – in computing and throughout the curriculum.
Computing and Information Technology are essential tools for inclusion. They enable children with SEN/D, whatever their needs, to use technology purposefully in ways that make the curriculum accessible and fully include everyone in activities and learning.
iCompute offers children with SEN/D varied and engaging ways to communicate, collaborate, express ideas and demonstrate success. From making and editing video/audio footage, programming animations, games and apps to creating rich web content – all pupils have an opportunity to participate, be challenged, learn and progress.
iCompute supports children with SEN/D by providing:
Familiarity – Lessons follow similar patterns and all involve aspects that appeal to various learning styles and include ‘unplugged’ activities to support children’s understanding of abstract concepts
Progression – Structured, termly/yearly, progressive units of work providing full coverage of the National Curriculum for Computing at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2
Flexibility – All units have Core, Easier, Harder activities as well as a number of Extension/Enrichment/Homework ideas allowing teachers to cater for the individual needs of their pupils
Resources – Colourful pupil support materials; engaging worksheets; video screencasts; imaginative unplugged activities and interactive online activities support pupils learning enabling them to achieve
Assessment – Comprehensive end of unit assessment guidance supported by detailed pupil progress tracker spreadsheets matched to CAS (Computing At Schools) Progression Pathways enable teachers to accurately assess progress and set targets. If appropriate, end of unit assessment guidance and/or year group progress spreadsheets can be tracked back to find more suitable performance descriptors from earlier year groups. In addition, for those children working below levels expected of their age, iCompute offers a progress tracker with descriptors in line with P-Scales
Rich variety of software and tools – A wealth of free software and online tools allow SEN/D pupils to demonstrate skills and progress, express ideas, improve digital literacy and boost self-confidence


Reading and Responding Unit One Outcome One Key questions to ask when analysing how the author constructs meaning. • How are symbols used to represent the prejudice that the children learn about? • How is dialogue used to create characters? • What impact does narrative voice have on the ways in which characters are presented to readers? • How does the novel’s structure help to shape their development from innocence to experience? • How is setting used to establish a theme or provide essential background information about characters or events? Character Study: Atticus In the novel, what is the role and function of the character of Atticus? -Moral centre of the novel (touchstone) -Teacher (primary role in the relationship with his children) -Provides a backstory and offers important perspectives on various characters -Provides insights into the type of community that is Maycomb -Facilitates readers’ understanding of key themes in the novel: justice, empathy, prejudice (class/race), -Key protagonist in the unfolding of the pivotal storyline of the court case Character Study: Atticus Take note of how Atticus is depicted by Harper Lee, as well as how he is described by Scout and other characters in the novel • related by blood or marriage to every family in the town (5) • Atticus said dryly • “Atticus is real old, but I wouldn’t care if he couldn’t do anything-I wouldn’t care if he couldn’t do a blessed thing.” • “nigger-lover” • “born to do our unpleasant jobs for us” • “one-shot Finch” • “is the same in his house as he is on the public streets” (51/220) • “whether Maycomb knows it or not, we’re paying him the highest tribute we can pay a man. We trust him to do right. It’s that simple.” (261) Atticus-Integrity The events before Tom’s trial show different facets of Atticus’ character: he admires courage, believes his skill with a gun is an unfair advantage and desires to treat damaged people, such as Boo Radley, with respect. However, his essential character remains unchanged for much of the novel. Atticus is the same man during and after Tom’s trial as he was before it: courteous, well-read, drily humourous, an attentive father, a fond brother and above all, a man who believes that ‘you never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view’ (33). Atticus-Fatherhood • Atticus treats his children as intelligent young adults - he speaks in a clear matter-of-fact way, and answers questions directly (including technical points of law and definitions of rape). • He is very fair - he tries to hear both sides of an argument. • He does not beat his children, but is firm in some matters as when he insists that Jem read to Mrs Dubose, or makes them obey Calpurnia and Aunt Alexandra. • He does not stereotype people - he is quite happy for Scout to be a tomboy. • He sees that the children need a mother figure, and recognizes that Calpurnia is far better able than he is to be a homemaker. Atticus-Diplomacy and Grace • Atticus is frequently criticized by others people. He does not take advantage of his social standing to retaliate or rebuke them. • Atticus remains calm when provoked directly - look, for example, at how he handles Bob Ewell's challenge: “Too proud to fight?” “No,” says Atticus, “too old” (Consider the ambiguity - on the surface it seems to mean that Atticus is no longer strong and fit enough to fight; but also it might mean that fighting is not something that adults should do - which could imply that Bob has not grown up). • Atticus understands the importance of allowing people to pay for his services, even though he has no need of their gifts - as when he accepts payment in kind from the Cunninghams, or gifts from the black people of Maycomb after Tom's trial. Atticus-Empathy “Jem, see if you can stand in Bob Ewell’s shoes a minute. I destroyed his last shred of credibility at that trial, if he had any to begin with. The man had to have some kind of comeback, his kind always does. So if spitting in my face and threatening me saved Mayella Ewell one extra beating, that’s something I’ll gladly take. He had to take it out on somebody and I’d rather it be me than that houseful of children out there. You understand?” (241) Atticus-Lack of Prejudice • He respects people of colour - he entrusts Calpurnia with the care of his children and gives her complete discretion in running his house. • Atticus respects women - he extends this respect to Mayella Ewell, whom Scout regards as pathetic and friendless. • Atticus says to Scout: 'As you grow older, you'll see white men cheat black men every day of your life ... There's nothing more sickening to me than a low grade white man who'll take advantage of a Negro's ignorance.’ (243) – What does this reveal about Atticus and his view of race relations in his community? Atticus-Courage • Atticus demonstrates his capacity to be a courageous protector in facing a rabid dog, but he does not value this attribute highly. – How does this action reflect other characteristics displayed by Atticus? • Atticus exhibits physical courage in keeping guard outside the jail (Chapter 15), and stays calm and composed when confronted by the lynch mob. – Does Atticus take this stance merely as a deterrent, or to what extent does this reflect his inclination towards passive resistance? • In defending Tom and being ready to accept the label of “niggerlover” Atticus shows a degree of moral courage. – Does Atticus naively place his own family at risk by this public display of the courage of his convictions? • Atticus's ideal of courage is embodied by Mrs Dubose: “...when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what”. – Is this a fair description of Atticus's own courage in trying to save Tom? Atticus-Morality Atticus is the novel’s moral centre, since Scout and Jem are still developing their own moral codes and are learning them, in part, from their father. As he says to Heck Tate at the end of the novel, ‘if they don’t trust me they won’t trust anybody’ (301). -Excerpt from Insight Study Guide Finch will stand up to racists. He’ll use his moral authority to shame them into silence. He will leave the judge standing on the sidewalk while he shakes hands with Negroes. -Excerpt from Atticus Finch and Southern Liberalism Atticus-Justice "there is one way in this country in which all men are created equal-there is one human institution that makes a pauper the equal of a Rockefeller, the stupid man the equal of an Einstein, and the ignorant man the equal of any college president. That institution, gentlemen, is a court" [p. 226]. (a) Does the jury's guilty verdict invalidate Atticus's claims? (b) Are the courts "the great levellers," making us all equal, as Atticus believes, or do wealth and race play an inordinate role in the way justice is distributed? Atticus-the closing speech Strategies employed by Atticus to convince the jury to ‘believe Tom Robinson’ -appeals to reason and rationality -evokes religious and moral values -reminds them of common characteristics such as fatherhood, family and community -appeals to their humanity -flatters and praises jury members -shifts focus from matters of race to matters of gender and prevailing community ‘codes’ -draws a distinction between good and bad people, casting Tom Robinson as a ‘quiet, respectable, humble Negro’ -distinguishes jury members from the Ewells and ‘minds of their calibre’ -refers to the constitution (‘all men are created equal’) Atticus the role model? “Finch never attempts to change the racism and sexism that permeates the life of Maycomb […] On the contrary, he lives his own life as the passive participant in that pervasive injustice. And that is not my idea of a role model for young lawyers.” Monroe Freedman “You know, I’d hoped to get through life without a case of this kind” (p.98) Atticus and ‘Blind Spots’ Atticus makes some errors of judgement: -trusting the Old Sarum mob not to try to lynch Tom-Atticus doesn’t carry a gun (Chapter 15) -trusting Bob Ewell not to carry out his threats of revenge (Chapter 23) What do these errors tell us about Atticus? How the author constructs meaning through key characters in the novel • Jem is an important character in the novel because…. • Calpurnia is an important character in the novel because…. Jem is an important character in the novel because….. • His growth and maturation is juxtaposed with Scout’s continual innocence. • He is a key figure in the theme of growing up. He is a supportive character for Scout as he instigates many of their adventures and games. He is a mentor and guide for Scout, who observes the changes in his personality and relates them to readers with warmth and respect, while maintaining a typical sibling antagonism. • He models himself after Atticus, yet begins to question some of his father’s beliefs about human nature. • The narrative begins and ends with Jem’s story – how he acquires a broken arm. • He provides the link between Boo Radley and the outside world. Jem’s curiosity and burgeoning awareness of injustice and human cruelty serves as a crucial contrast to the optimistic faith in human nature presented by his father. • His journey into the adult world reflects the bildungsroman genre. Jem embodies the ‘coming of age’ thread of the narrative. Calpurnia is an important character in the novel because…. • She is a surrogate mother for Scout and Jem. • She informs the town of the rabid dog and also the death of Tom Robinson. • She is treated like family in the Finch Household even though she’s a black woman. • She is the bridge between the white and the black community. • She teaches Scout about how to be a lady and a gracious host. • She is a black person that could read and she teaches Scout how to write. • Thematically, her character occupies a vital place at the intersection of race, gender and class. Calpurnia and Jem • Calpurnia plays a pivotal role in raising the Finch children. Thematically, her character occupies a vital place at the intersection of race, gender and class. Read from the following pages-27, 32, 83, 127, 139, 151, 228, 252. Briefly describe how Calpurnia is represented in each of these scenes and discuss the significance of these depictions. • Jem Finch embodies the ‘coming of age’ thread of the narrative. Lee presents a compelling juxtaposition of his maturation with his childlike sensitivity to injustice. Read from the following pages-36, 43-45, 57, 64-70, 109, 127, 152, 164, 167, 173, 233, 237, 243, 249-251, 271-273. Briefly describe how Jem is represented in each of these scenes and discuss the significance of these depictions. Calpurnia -While everyone in the novel is filtered through Scout’s perception – she is, after all, the narrator – Calpurnia in particular appears for a long time more as Scout’s idea of her than as a real person. -Scout at first sees Calpurnia less as a human being than as a force of nature that she runs up against all too often. -By taking the Finch kids with her to First Purchase Church, Calpurnia shows them a different side of her character. In this new setting of Maycomb’s African-American community, Calpurnia surprises Jem and Scout by speaking in a voice they have never heard her use before. -While Scout does learn to see Calpurnia as a real person over the course of the novel, the question remains open of to what extent the novel gives Calpurnia an identity separate from her role as the Finch kids’ ‘Giver of Life Lessons’. Calpurnia continued • • • Calpurnia is the African-American cook and housekeeper for the Finches. Calpurnia acts as a mother figure and disciplinarian in the Finch household. Atticus trusts Calpurnia, relies on her for support raising his children, and considers her part of the family. Calpurnia also gives the children insight into her world when she takes them to her church. In some ways she even takes the place of Scout and Jem's dead mother. But you soon learn that Calpurnia is not accepted by everyone. Some of the Finches' white friends look down on Calpurnia as a servant and are shocked to hear Atticus speak freely in her presence. At the same time, some members of Calpurnia's black church are very critical of her being on such friendly terms with her white employer. Calpurnia lives a divided life. You learn, for example, that she learned to read and write from old law books. In the Finchs' house she speaks the very correct English of an educated person; at church, however, she converses in her friends' dialect so they will not feel she is trying to act superior to them. Lee treats Calpurnia as admirable because she has made the best of her opportunities and has not allowed herself to become bitter. Calpurnia has a sense of self-worth that is not affected by the opinions of people around her. This is a way in which she resembles Atticus. – From MSH website http://resources.mhs.vic.edu.au/mockingbird/calpurnia.htm Jem Finch • Jem is Scout’s confidante and primary playmate. During the first part of the novel, he is as much a child as Scout: he’s superstitious and prone to swift retribution. His maturation becomes evident as the second half of the novel opens with ‘Jem was twelve. He was difficult to love with, inconsistent, moody’ (127). He is treated as an adult: Calpurnia class him ‘Mister Jem’ and Miss Maudie stops baking child-size cakes for him (237). • Jem’s maturation allows him to understand the abstract issues at stake in Tom’s trial better than Scout. His sensitivity to such things is foreshadowed in his silent tears when Nathan Radley blocks up the hollow oak (70) and in the episode with the rabid dog, when he tells Scout that Atticus’s refusal to boast about his shooting skill is ‘something [she] wouldn’t understand’ (109). Later, the reader sees that Jem is terrified when Scout leaps into the lynch mob (167) and how ‘his shoulders jerked as if each “guilty” was a separate stab between them’ (233) when Tom’s verdict is read out. -Insight Study Guide Jem Finch continued • Jem may be old enough to understand the abstract issues of the trial, but he is young enough (or sensitive enough) to be deeply hurt by injustice. Atticus suggests this is a question of maturity, not personality: after the attempted lynching, he tells Jem, “you’ll understand folks a little better when you’re older” (173), and after the verdict suggests, “[s]o far nothing in your life has interfered with your reasoning process” (243). But Jem perhaps has a perceptivity that Atticus lacks: for example, Jem’s fears of Bob Ewell’s revenge turn out to be more accurate than Atticus’ optimism. • Jem’s maturation foreshadows Scout’s. She muses, ‘I hoped Jem would understand folks a little better when he was older; I wouldn’t’ (173). But by the novel’s end, Scout-about the same age as Jem was in the first chapter, and just beginning to understand the ‘sheer torment’ (267) that they must have caused Boo Radleytakes the same first step towards maturity as Jem. – Insight Study Guide Jem Finch continued • • • Scout's older brother, Jem Finch changes considerably over the course of the novel. At first you see him as Scout's playmate and equal. Once the children start school, however, Jem becomes more aware of the difference in age between himself and his sister. He doesn't want her to embarrass him in front of his fifthgrade friends. And later he and Dill develop a friendship from which Scout is partly excluded because she is a girl. In this part of the story you see Jem as the wiser older brother. He is the first to figure out that Boo Radley has been trying to communicate with them, and he does his best to explain unfamiliar words to Scout, even though he often gets their meanings wrong. Jem is also the more thoughtful and introverted of the Finch children. Unlike Scout, who is a fighter by temperament, Jem seems determined to obey his father's request to avoid fighting. He lets his anger build inside, until one day in a fit of temper he destroys Mrs. Dubose's garden. Later, at the time of the trial, Jem's optimistic view of human nature becomes apparent. He is probably the only person in town who really believes that justice will be done and Tom Robinson found innocent. When this does not happen, his disillusionment is so great that for a time he can't stand even to talk about the incident. By the end of the story Jem is almost grownup. On the surface, he seems quicker than Scout to put the trial behind, but inwardly, he has been more disturbed than Scout by the events of the trial. It is worth considering that Jem's broken arm at the end of the story is a deliberate sign that he will be wounded forever by what he has observed. – From MHS website http://resources.mhs.vic.edu.au/mockingbird/jem.htm In the novel, written by Harper Lee in the 1930’s, the author displays the progression of the relationship between the two main protagonists of the novel Jem and Scout. Harper Lee writes in the perspective of the young protagonist, Scout who is growing up in the slow, small town of Maycomb, South of Alabama with her older brother Jen and her father Atticus. Their sibling bond at the beginning of the novel, depicted by their childish roleplaying of Boo Radley’s live slowly breaks apart as they learn and grow up through the Tom Robinson trial, becoming a young lady and a young man and becoming more aware of the racism and prejudice that exists around them. Through these chronological events, the author portrays the struggles that face Scout and Jem as they begin to understand more about themselves, but most importantly more about each other. Literary techniques • Figurative Language – Metaphor – Simile – Personification – Idiom • Allusions • Dialogue • Southern colloquialisms and dialect Figurative Language The following quotations are examples of metaphor, personification and simile: • Ladies bathed before noon, after their three-o’clock naps, and by nightfall were like soft teacakes with frostings of sweat and sweet talcum.(5) • The Radley place fascinated Dill. In spite of our warnings it drew him as the moon draws water. (9) • The house was the same, droopy and sick, but as we stared down the street we thought we saw an inside shutter move. Flick. A tiny, almost invisible movement and the house was still (16) • [Auntie said] I should be a ray of sunshine in my father’s lonely life. I suggested that one could be a ray of sunshine in pants just as well, but Aunty said that one had to behave like a sunbeam, that I was born good but had grown progressively worse every year. (90) • Mr.Gilmer waited for Mayella to collect herself: she had twisted her handkerchief into a sweaty rope (199) Consider how the use of such figurative language creates a visual image for readers, thereby emphasizing the significance of the subject matter in relation to themes and ideas in the narrative. The various connotations thus provide scope for differing interpretations. Idioms • • • • • • • as sure as eggs: Something that is bound to happen; just as chickens are sure to lay eggs set my teeth permanently on edge: to annoy someone or make them feel nervous the way in which Aunt Alexandra tends to annoy Scout travelled in state: To travel in state is to do so in the position of a person of great wealth and rank he had seen the light: In this case to have seen the light means to have become religious blind spots: a prejudice or area of ignorance that someone has but is unaware of. Mr Cunningham's blind spot is his prejudice against Tom Robinson guests of the county: on public assistance or welfare into the limelight: in theatre, the limelight is an intense light thrown on stage in order to highlight an actor, etc. To be in the limelight is to be put in prominent position before the public Allusions • • • • • nothing to fear but fear itself (6): an allusion to President Franklin D. Roosevelt's first Inaugural Address Thus we came to know Dill as a pocket Merlin (8): King Arthur's adviser, prophet and magician stump hole whiskey (10): illegally made and sold whiskey that would be hidden in the holes of tree stumps bread lines in the cities grew longer (128): during the Great Depression, thousands of people relied on charitable organizations for meals and would line up for simple meals often of bread and soup Mrs Roosevelt-just plain lost her mind coming down to Birmingham and tryin’ to sit with ‘em (258): in 1939, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt attended a meeting for the Southern Conference for Human Welfare in Birmingham, Alabama where she defied state authorities by sitting in the centre aisle, between whites and blacks, after police told her she was violating segregation laws by sitting with black people. Structure A long episodic novel can easily lose its way, but Harper Lee has a very organic sense of a single story with a unifying or central theme (the mockingbird theme) which is illustrated by the examples of Arthur Radley and Tom Robinson. How many readers recall, by the end of the novel, the first sentence (“When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow”)? This statement is soon forgotten, amidst a mass of narrative detail, but this incident, which Scout does not see and Jem cannot recall, is the defining moment or climax of the entire story. The first part of the novel is an account of Scout’s early years, taking her first days at school as a starting point. Most of this section is about the search for Arthur “Boo” Radley. The second part shows Scout becoming more able to understand the adult world, which is mirrored by the more serious events that occur at this point in her life. In the conclusion, however, Harper Lee brings the two narratives together – the stories are not separate. While Scout and Jem have been thinking more about the trial and less about Boo Radley, Arthur has not forgotten them. His appearance in the final chapters is almost miraculous – it is plausible (believable in its context) because it is so understated. There is no direct account of Arthur Radley’s attack on Bob Ewell. It is inferred from the sounds Scout hears and what Heck Tate discovers at the scene. Language Standard and non-standard forms To Kill a Mockingbird is a conventional literary novel. This means, among other things that it: • is written in a form of standard English which has a wide-ranging lexicon (vocabulary), • includes references to art and culture which the author expects the reader to know (or find out) • relates principal events mostly in the past tense The narrative contains some distinctively American lexis (vocabulary) so, to take one chapter (11) as a random example, we find “sassiest”, “mutts” and “playing hooky”. In some cases you will find a form which is standard in both UK and US English, but with a different meaning. So when Jem leaves his “pants” (trousers) on the Radley fence, this is not as alarming as it might seem to English readers. On the other hand, when he stands “in his shorts (underpants or boxer shorts) before God and everybody”, this is perhaps more alarming. In the account of the visit to First Purchase, Scout records the distinctive speech of the coloured people noting with particular interest the way Calpurnia switches into this non-standard variety. Depicting racism through dialogue • The novel is set in the 1930s but was written in the late 1950s. The dialogue is marked by frequent use of the word "nigger". This is a convenient way to indicate to the reader the racist attitudes of various characters. When she wishes to refer to African-Americans, Harper Lee uses the term "coloured". It is not only racist whites who say use the term "nigger", however - at First Purchase church, Calpurnia addresses Lula as "nigger". • Since the novel was published, attitudes have changed about what is acceptable to speak and write. In the trial of O.J. Simpson, the word "nigger" was considered too offensive to repeat in court, and was described as the "Nword". Southern colloquialisms and dialect The USA is a vast country, and Harper Lee makes use of many regional expressions, local to the southern (former Confederate) states or to Alabama more specifically, like “cootie”, “haint”, “scuppernongs” and “whistled bob-white”.