Videogames to Save the Planet: Coding Videogames With Swift in Every Subject

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Explore and create : Creation lab

RubÃÂ©n Benet Santos
Carlos Garcia
Learn how to create videogames using the Swift programming language and how to encourage students to program their own videogames. In the process, see how students can learn content in any subject and develop their critical-thinking and problem-solving skills.

Audience:	Curriculum/district specialists, Teachers, Technology coordinators/facilitators
Skill level:	Beginner
Attendee devices:	Devices required
Attendee device specification:	Laptop: Mac Tablet: iOS
Participant accounts, software and other materials:	- Swift Playgrounds
Topic:	Maker activities & programs
Grade level:	PK-12
Subject area:	Computer science, Language arts
ISTE Standards:	For Coaches: Visionary Leadership Contribute to the planning, development, communication, implementation and evaluation of technology-infused strategic plans at the district and school levels. For Educators: Designer Design authentic learning activities that align with content area standards and use digital tools and resources to maximize active, deep learning. For Students: Innovative Designer Students select and use digital tools to plan and manage a design process that considers design constraints and calculated risks.

Proposal summary

Purpose & objective

Attendees will:
- Learn some of the basics of the Swift programming language.
- Learn how to create videogames taking a template as the starting point.
- Learn how to encourage students to create their own videogames while learning contents of different areas.
- Create their own videogames and lesson plans, so they understand the process
- Know how to implement coding and robotics as a cross-curricular tool so students can learn the contents of different areas.
- Discover how the Code to Learn program is helping students and teachers at the SEK International Institution and how to adapt it to other contexts.

Outline

During the presentation we will explain Code to Learn, a program through which we have implemented coding as a cross-curricular tool in our School (10 to 15 minutes). Having done so, the attendees will learn how to create their own videogames with the Swift programming language taking a template as a starting point. They will have to follow the steps we will show to them and then they will be able to personalize the videogames so they adapt to their students' needs (40 to 45 minutes). Finally, there will be a brief discussion, so they reflect on how to adapt the Code to Learn program to their institutions (5 to 10 minutes).

Supporting research

- Pelletier, J., Brown, M. & MacKinnon, G. (2002). Coding Electronic Discussion to Promote Critical Thinking: A Cross-Curricular Teacher Education Approach. In D. Willis, J. Price & N. Davis (Eds.), Proceedings of SITE 2002--Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference (pp. 1372-1374). Nashville, Tennessee, USA: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). Retrieved October 3, 2020 from https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/6740/.

- Humble, S. (Ed.). (2017). Creating the coding generation in primary schools: A practical guide for cross-curricular teaching. Routledge.

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