Creating new curriculum is never an easy job, but even the most veteran educators sometimes hesitate when it comes to adding computer science into everyday lessons.

There’s a certain level of intimidation that comes with the subject of computer science, probably because it was historically considered an elite field, full of highly-educated white men…and most of that history is an illusion.

This post won’t dive into the way that the pioneering women of the 1940’s and 50’s were often pushed aside and replaced whenever a photo opportunity would arise, but I will talk about the way that computer science has changed in more recent years. Most notably, the creation of amazing software no longer requires a deep understanding of hardware or computing architecture. It doesn’t take years and acceptance to an elite university in order to accumulate enough knowledge to learn how to write effective code. Even if programming isn’t your thing, the tools for data analysis, operating systems, networking, and cybersecurity have become infinitely more approachable, as well.

Many of the above topics can now be investigated respectably in about an hour, and students can create projects that they’ll remember for a lifetime when given a week. But, before any of this can take place, teachers need to be comfortable burying old perceptions and be willing to give computer science a shot.

Creating Fun and Effective CS Lessons

For the most part, creating great CS curriculum is similar to creating any other great lesson plans. Figure out your goals, use backwards design, vary activities to account for different learning styles, etc….but classrooms introducing computer science can also benefit from other considerations. To help overcome the “stuffy” stereotype, teachers can build-in moments of play with creativity, exploration, and fun!

Before I provide a rundown of bulletpoints from my process, I feel like I should mention the guide that many CS educators consider to be the be-all and end-all of computer science curriculum best practices: The Big Book of Computing Pedagogy from the Raspberry Pi Foundation. While I don’t personally rely on all of their recommended practices, I respect their suggestions and believe that teachers should be allowed to choose which processes work for their own classrooms.

Alright, without further ado, here are some of my favorite things to think about when creating CS lessons.

Identify What You Want to Achieve

Call this what you want…setting objectives, identifying goals, deciding on standards…it’s all important. Personally, I like to get very honest with myself and figure out what I *really* want to achieve with any given content. Usually, for me, that ends up being an opportunity to introduce computer science to students in a way that allows them to feel successful and perhaps even envision themselves continuing with the subject in the future.

Outline Your Path

Just like when writing a big paper, having an outline can help you get your thoughts in order and make sure that you don’t miss anything important. I like to do several passes on my outline to make sure that there are no insurmountable gaps and make sure the timing feels right before moving on to the next steps. This is also a good time to identify areas where your classroom could benefit from differentiation.

Check the Entertainment Level

Unfortunately, many educators feel like this is an appropriate step to skip. Maybe it’s because it can be hard to consider that lessons can be fun and rigorous at the same time. The thing to remember is that fun is engaging, and when students are engaged, they’re more likely to *learn* instead of just memorizing temporarily. Pair that with a challenge they’re compelled to meet or a mystery they need to solve, and they’re set up to absorb the essence of the lesson into their souls.

Don’t be a Sage on the Stage

Leading a computer science classroom isn’t about proving how much you know. Students can learn just as much when led by a complete novice as they can when led by a Nobel laureat. It’s not about the depth of the teacher’s education, but the depth of curiosity held by the student. Allow your classroom to wonder aloud and ask questions, but don’t answer them outright. You’re not an Alexa. If they want an answer to something, the best thing you can do for them is model new and interesting ways to research answers. And, once you take that to heart, you’re well on your way to opening the door for your students around future learning in all subjects.

Wrapping Up

The basic idea here is that if you know how to teach, you know how to teach computer science. While it once used to be a stuffy, serious topic, advancements have paved the way to a world where CS is approachable for everyone. Unfortunately, this field literally moves at the speed of light, so it’s best for general educators to focus less on exact syntax, languages, and hardware, and instead focus on the processes that allow students to become life long learners.

With that, I hope you feel emboldened and ready to sprinkle some CS into as many lessons as possible!

Additional Resources

If you’re in need of some great learning tools to build your CS lessons around, here are a few that I love, that tend to allow students to get up-and-running in a single class period:

  • Microsoft MakeCode Arcade – This is a free, block-based programming tool that removes many of the syntax and runtime errors that new coders can experience. Paired with their innovative and engaging tutorials, this tool is super easy to integrate into nearly any class.
  • TinkerPlots – This data visualization tool is intended for students in grades 4-12. It’s easy to use and fun to play with. Most importantly, it can help students really see what’s going on with data sets, whether that be statistics in math class, or the distribution of female characters in Shakespeare plays. TinkerPlots isn’t free, but at $27/computer for a license that never expires, it should be a slam-dunk for a successful gofundme.
  • Cyber.org – Cybersecurity is more than protecting networks against corporate espionage. This is a valuable skill for students to learn from their very first days on the internet. Cyber.org provides a series of free age-appropriate lessons meant to introduce kids to internet safety, including 2-factor authentication, best practices for password creation, and robotics in the classroom.