Mini-Grant Application for School Year 2021-2022

Submitted by: Rhonda Ripperger Email: ripperger.rhonda@brevardschools.org Grade Level: K-6 Subject: Science, Math, Technology and
Co-Applicant: Email: Grade level: Subject:

School: South Lake Elementary School Type: Public Grade Levels:K-6 County:Brevard

Approx. Enrollment: 400 Number of teachers:30

School Address:

3755 Garden St.
Titusville, Florida 32796

Phone: 3212641137 Principal:Jennifer Brockwell Email: brockwell.jennifer@brevardschools.org

Facebook: South Lake Elementary School
Twitter:

Project Title: Operation Ozobot; Coding with a Tiny Robot
Project Dates: December 2021-May 2021 Grade Levels:

Focus Area(s) :Science - Coding - Engineering - Technology

Abstract:
Operation: Ozobot is a STEM-based initiative exposing students to hands-on exploration and Engineering Design Challenges with a focus on coding and programming that will engage our learners in 21st century skills, such as problem-solving, collaboration, and creativity. Learners as young as five years-old will be introduced to engineering, coding, problem-solving and redesign skills using the award winning Ozobot, a tiny robot that can be used to introduce students to coding, but also can challenge older students to debug and redesign more complex coding scenarios. Students in our Smart Lab learn differently. They embrace challenges, question their peers, and are not bound by the expectations of others. They enjoy creating real-world solutions that provide them with opportunities to collaborate, think critically and creatively, and communicate with one another. Exposing our learners to robotic and programming design challenges will build mastery in other content areas such as math and science. Failure will be part of our process, but they will succeed. They will be challenged by obstacles, but our students are of the mindset, "I just don't get this yet... but I WILL!

Proposal:

How is your project innovative?   (25 points)
Ozobots are tiny award winning robots for the next generation. Research shows when students are exposed to the real-world application of programming and engineering in elementary school are more likely to become aware of the opportunities for careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). STEM, is all about learning through experimentation and creativity. It also requires that students embrace mistakes, believe in their own ability to problem solve, and most of all, have a growth mindset. There are so many opportunities for students to explore and learn through STEM activities, but it’s the ones that develop a growth mindset that are the most valuable in fostering lifelong success in learning. Operation: Ozobot will expose learners to coding but also integrate engineering and problem-solving. In today's world, technology is growing and ever-changing. Robotics will give my students a chance to test the waters for potential future endeavors while providing them the background knowledge on how things work in our digital world.

How will it fit into your curriculum (include standards)? (10 points)
Coding and programming robots to solve an inquiry-driven problem aligns to many of the Nature of Science benchmarks and processes across multiple grade levels. These processes of science include the formulation of scientifically investigable questions, construction of investigations into those questions, the collection of appropriate data, evaluation of the meaning of data, and communication of this evaluation. Several Priority Standards will also be addressed with this project including, SC.4.L.17.4, students will recognize ways plants and animals, including humans, can impact the environment. Our 4th graders will engineer and code a beach cleanup using the ozobots. They will design and build a "litter lifting" device to attach to the ozobot and program it to move across a beach area to collect small pieces of trash. Another priority standard addressed in my project is, SC.4.L.16.1, students will identify the processes of sexual reproduction in flowering plants, including pollination, fertilization (seed production), seed dispersal, and germination. Students will create an interactive model of a flower garden to demonstrate how animals help with pollination. They will program the ozobot to pollinate flowers in the garden and collect data about the flowers pollinated. Other lessons planned including using the ozobots to learn about the solar system, rotation and revolution and the relationship between the Earth, the moon and the Sun. The possibilities are endless and because students love to use the ozbots, the lessons are highly engaging. This project follows the instructional practice of the 5E Model. This model is a best practice for science instruction, engaging learners and focusing on student-led learning. This model of instruction is cyclical, leading students’ learning through different phases: Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate. It provides a carefully planned sequence of instruction that places students at the center of learning. All students are encouraged to explore, construct understanding of scientific concepts, and relate those understandings to scientific phenomena or programming problems.

How will it encourage long-lasting change in your classroom, school or community? (20 points)
When children learn to code, they develop the ability to bounce back after failure. They learn that failure isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and in fact, it can often be something positive because it serves as a learning opportunity. This is one of the most important reasons why kids should code, as they will learn quickly that ‘debugging’ your code while challenging, is fun and also something that happens in the real-world. Debugging their code and modify their engineered designs will lead to failure, but when you fail and try again you can learn from your mistakes. Coding gives children the ability to try and try again until they succeed and produce the result they are looking for. Programming also teaches children how to think. Computer programming isn’t just about teaching how to type lines of code. It is more about teaching children how to think differently. Being able to code effectively, a programmer needs to use logical thinking. They need to be able to see a large problem and break it down into smaller pieces in order to solve it in an effective manner. This is called decomposition and is one of the key features of computational thinking. Experienced computer programmers are in demand and with the advancement of technology, there are increasing career opportunities arising every day. Employees who can code are the future and are highly sought after in any industry.

How will technology be utilized?  (20 points)
Students will utilize the technology to code robots to complete a variety of different tasks. Coding is important to learn because computer programming teaches children to experiment and gives them the confidence to be creative. They will have the chance to design something that is entirely their own. Some examples of lessons students in kindergarten through sixth grade will complete are; programming the phases of the moon, modeling Earth's rotation and revolution, engineering a litter collector to learn about human's impact on the environment, designing and construction chariots while learning about the Roman Empire, modeling food chains, processes of a plant's life cycle, and the weather cycle, using ozobots to demonstrate the movement of molecules in different states of matter, and designs games for younger students to play. There are so many opportunities to utilize the ozobots to teach many different concepts while engaging our students in higher order thinking.

What evidence will you collect to show student gain?   (10 points)
Students’ understanding will be measured in a variety of formative and summative assessments including teacher observations, rubrics, pre and post assessments in Unify, and the Statewide Science Assessment (SSA) administered in 5th Grade. Pictures, videos, and examples of student's coding will be used to document student achievement. Students complete a survey at the beginning of the year to assess their aptitude toward STEM careers and interests. The survey will be given again at the end of the year to determine if students' interest in coding grew. Many of the lessons align to Florida Science Benchmarks. These benchmarks are assessed at each grade level through the use of Brevard Public School's District Summative Assessments. These assessments can compare our students' growth across the district, as well as specific student demographics.

How will participants share your project results with the community?  (15 points)
Our students will share their projects at our annual STEAM Carnival which is a family night at our school that highlights the many projects students have worked in in their classrooms and in the Smart Lab throughout the school year. Members of the community, including school board members and school stakeholders will be invited to participate at the STEAM Carnival as well. The STEAM Carnival allows students to showcase their work but it also provides our learners the opportunity to become the teachers. They teach the younger students, their parents, and community members how to use different technologies, including using OzoBlockly the programming language used to code the Ozobots. Pictures of student's designs and programming will also be shared on the school's social media platforms, newsletters, and with the Brevard Public School Districts public relations department.

Budget:

I, Rhonda Ripperger , certify that the application is complete and final, AND I verify that I have received permission to apply for these funds from Jennifer Brockwell ,the Principal of South Lake Elementary School and any other individuals required by my school district.

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