Open-ended Typed App Coding with Bitsbox

K12 CS Framework Aligned

Bitsbox

Bitsbox teaches typed JavaScript coding with fun physical app projects that introduce computational thinking skills and CS concepts.

Bitsbox combines five powerful components to help students design, code, and share their apps:

  1. The Bitsbox website is an online IDE (Integrated Development Environment) where students type code and see the results in real time on a virtual device. Students can access their Bitsbox coding accounts from any internet-connected computer—at school, at home, and everywhere else.
  2. Students can easily share their apps via email, link, or QR code with friends, teachers, and family. Anyone with an internet-connected device (computers, phones, tablets) can play apps that have been built in Bitsbox. And because the apps are stored centrally in the cloud, students’ apps automatically update for all their “users” when they modify their code.
  3. Bitsbox uses JavaScript syntax with a small library of commands that makes it easier for beginners to create apps with compelling graphics, animation, and sounds. This API (Application Programming Interface) makes it possible for elementary students to be successful with typed JavaScript programming. As lessons progress, more “vanilla” JS syntax is introduced gradually.
  4. Our example-based Scope & Sequence is organized into units that each introduce a core programming concept (Coordinates, Variables, Conditionals, etc) and a set of related commands. Each unit includes a set of example App Projects, relevant How Do I Projects, and Challenge Projects that can be used for assessment. All Bitsbox projects are completely open-ended; students can modify, customize, and create anything they wish at any time.
  5. Bitsbox Coding Workbooks provide a structured place for students to journal about the apps they’ve built, reflect on the new syntax and logic they’ve encountered, and (most importantly) plan their own app projects. They do this by sketching UI/UX ideas, writing about functionality, listing asset requirements, writing pseudocode, writing actual code, and reflecting on what they’ve made.

Bitsbox school curriculum is available for sale as sets of Coding Project books and Coding Workbooks. Access to the Bitsbox website is free; students and teachers can create and access individual coding accounts at no charge.

URL:

http://bitsbox.com/teachers

Cost:

Paid

K12 CS Framework Components

What is this?
Grade Band:
3-5
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Algorithms
Statements:
Different algorithms can achieve the same result. Some algorithms are more appropriate for a specific context than others.
Grade Band:
3-5
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Variables
Statements:
Programming languages provide variables, which are used to store and modify data. The data type determines the values and operations that can be performed on that data.
Grade Band:
3-5
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Control
Statements:
Control structures, including loops, event handlers, and conditionals, are used to specify the flow of execution. Conditionals selectively execute or skip instructions under different conditions.
Grade Band:
3-5
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Modularity
Statements:
Programs can be broken down into smaller parts to facilitate their design, implementation, and review. Programs can also be created by incorporating smaller portions of programs that have already been created.
Grade Band:
3-5
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Program Development
Statements:
People develop programs using an iterative process involving design, implementation, and review. Design often involves reusing existing code or remixing other programs within a community. People continuously review whether programs work as expected, and they fix, or debug, parts that do not. Repeating these steps enables people to refine and improve programs.
Grade Band:
6-8
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Algorithms
Statements:
Algorithms affect how people interact with computers and the way computers respond. People design algorithms that are generalizable to many situations. Algorithms that are readable are easier to follow, test, and debug.
Grade Band:
6-8
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Variables
Statements:
Programmers create variables to store data values of selected types. A meaningful identifier is assigned to each variable to access and perform operations on the value by name. Variables enable the flexibility to represent different situations, process different sets of data, and produce varying outputs.
Grade Band:
6-8
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Control
Statements:
Programmers select and combine control structures, such as loops, event handlers, and conditionals, to create more complex program behavior.
Grade Band:
6-8
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Modularity
Statements:
Programs use procedures to organize code, hide implementation details, and make code easier to reuse. Procedures can be repurposed in new programs. Defining parameters for procedures can generalize behavior and increase reusability.
Grade Band:
6-8
Concept:
Algorithms and Programming
Sub-Concept:
Program Development
Statements:
People design meaningful solutions for others by defining a problem’s criteria and constraints, carefully considering the diverse needs and wants of the community, and testing whether criteria and constraints were met.
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