During the summer of 2023, Sarah Finch, an ITRT from Sussex County Public Schools, and her mother, an elementary music teacher from Prince George County Public Schools, developed an unplugged computer science lesson for upper elementary music students. In April, they co-taught the lesson to a group of 5th graders.
The students reviewed the computer science concepts of algorithm, program, and debugging. These concepts were compared to notes and sheet music needed to play a song. The importance of having the correct notes to play a song was discussed and compared to having the correct pieces of code for an algorithm or program to run correctly.
During the activity, students first listened to a song played correctly. They were not able to see the sheet music for the song while listening. They were then given a piece of music with some incorrect notes. Students were provided with recorders and xylophones to play their piece of music and then debug. Their task was to determine which notes were correct and incorrect, and then find the correct notes for the ones that were incorrect.
During the activity, students first listened to a song played correctly. They were not able to see the sheet music for the song while listening. They were then given a piece of music with some incorrect notes. Students were provided with recorders and xylophones to play their piece of music and then debug. Their task was to determine which notes were correct and incorrect, and then find the correct notes for the ones that were incorrect.
Computer science concepts can be applied to almost anything and resource teachers should not be left out when it comes to integrating computer science and technology into their lessons. In art, there are steps to follow when drawing or molding clay. In P.E. class, there are steps to shooting a basketball. All it takes is a little creativity and collaboration.
Authorship: Sarah Finch is an Instructional Technology Resource Teacher for Sussex County Public Schools. She often enjoys developing lessons with her co-workers and her mom. This is her 9th year in education. Before her role as an ITRT, she taught high school history courses.