Coding for Kids
The Excitement Grows for Tynker at Oakley Union Elementary SD
Christina Whitmire has over 25 years of teaching experience in both traditional and online schools. Currently, she’s proud to serve as the District Ed Tech ToSA at Oakley Union Elementary SD in Oakley, California. She’s Google for Education Certified Trainer and Innovator, as well as a Certified Educator with Tynker, Flipgrid, and Ozobot. Educators can connect with her on Twitter at @EdTechChristina.
In our district, all 4th graders at Oakley Elementary and one 5th grade class at Vintage Parkway Elementary piloted Tynker with full account access this year. After learning and exploring the basics, Tynker was used as a “may choose” activity during math workshop, rotation, and anytime for early finishers. In addition, Tynker modules were used during the Hour of Code by many students in our district, and one of our 1st grade classes at Gehringer Elementary explored Tynker as well as part of their coding lessons. As more and more staff members and students across our district use Tynker and create incredible projects, the excitement for coding continues to grow!
“Tynker also gives everyone the opportunity to be creative, be heard, and be recognized.”
Our teachers and students love how engaging Tynker is when learning how to code! It’s one of their favorite sites! Shrieks of “wow!” and “I did it” can frequently be heard when students are working on Tynker! Our teachers especially love how Tynker integrates with different content areas and standards (much more than most other coding sites). Enthusiasm for technology use has really increased among both students and staff! It’s very user-friendly, engaging, and offers a large variety of activities. Students are proud to advance through the levels and teachers appreciate the user-friendly dashboard to view student progress. Tynker is definitely a hit!
Computer science is extremely important to our school goals. We are advancing further into the age of technology, and these skills are a vital part of each student’s future. Coding and computer science are just as important as language arts and math. Tynker offers a great way for students to jump into computer science in a meaningful way. Students are encouraged to learn, create, collaborate, and use critical thinking skills, far beyond just recreating simple coding games (as found with some other resources). Tynker is a great resource to help our district reach our learning goals.
Tynker adds excitement for learning! Following one’s passion and fostering excitement for learning is always important as our students grow to be lifelong learners. Tynker also gives everyone the opportunity to be creative, be heard, and be recognized. Students who might otherwise work quietly unnoticed by their peers are now be celebrated for creating such interesting work on Tynker. When students work collaboratively and celebrate each other’s contributions, they feel empowered to continue learning. Learning how to code is a very important skill for all students to learn. Students used to have to wait “until they grow up” to use their knowledge and get a job. Today, students of all ages can code now and make a difference in their world. It’s amazing! And Tynker helps our students make a difference by making a difference in our classrooms.
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