Joining the dots

Well I am back on my lovely Coetail blog. Through this Coetail experience I have been inspired to maintain a blog at my school. I am using it as a method of sharing good practice and some excellent ideas. Humble beginnings, so I am aiming for a minimum of one post every month. I know it does not sound a lot but before this course I was not completing any posts so it is quite an increase.This got me thinking what would I like to post about on here! So I am going a little left field and connecting my passions. I love to craft and I love teaching. Can they be linked?CraftingI have been reading these two interesting articles Can learning to Knit help learning to code? and  Knitters and Coders: Separated at birth? which have linked knitting to coding. When I first saw the titles I initially thought how? However, it is really simple and it does not have to be knitting it could just as easily be crochet.Although when you knit and crochet you can be totally technology free you are still using computational thinking skills. Take knitting you have knit or purl (you can develop further but these are the basic stitches) Dr Karen Shoop saw these as basic binary commands.

"When electrical engineering professor Dr. Karen Shoop of Queen Mary University in London took her first knitting workshop, she noticed immediately that knitting is very similar to writing computer code. “I noticed that knitting instructions are largely binary (like computers) – in other words, knit or purl,” she said. “More interesting were the knitting instructions, which read just like regular expressions [of code], used for string matching and manipulation when coding.” Can Learning to Knit help Learning to code?

Exciting! The article goes on to look at how a simple pattern could be written in code format. We teach a programming unit and the pupils always compartmentalize it - they are learning to code and it has no relevance to other subjects or life! They obviously understand the connection to their mobile phone and laptop. However, this would be a lovely way to show them that it is more than just the code. It is a method of solving problems and a skill that could be used in all elements of their life.I think it is important to also mention Ade Lovelace living in England during the 19th Century, she devised the first computer programs, whilst working with Charles Babbage. Where did she see the extended application of Babbage's Analytical Engine? Whilst visiting mechanical looms, weaving beautiful patterns using a punchcard system in the the North of England. Computers and Craft working together.TinkeringI love tinkering. Often projects fail. Often projects do not turn out as expected. However, there is a lot of joy to be had finding unexpected solutions to problems

"If we want to raise kids to be independent thinkers and change-makers, one of the best things we can do is give them the tools to figure stuff out for themselves. And a terrific manual for that is."  Learning through Tinkering

I would advocate for more of this style of learning. We do aproject in Grade 10 where pupils get materials and then they need to design and create a finished project. It is totally up to them to decide on the product and they are given sometime to play and find a suitable solution. I would love to have more time to allow them to make prototypes and tinker. I would also love to spread this tinkering approach to more of the units we teach. I think that this is such a valuable skill and in todays fast paced society we often expect to find instant results and lack the patience to experiment until we find a solution. So this is my mission - for me and my pupils - allow more time to craft and tinker as valuable life lessons will be learnt! I want to continue to develop my learning environment as one where mistakes are encouraged as through these new ideas will be formed![youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuiZpfYgC3o[/youtube]