Lesson 1
Introduction
Learning Objectives
By the end of this lesson, you will…
● Understand the concepts of block-based coding
● Understand basic coding concepts and language
● Understand how a sequence/algorithm works
Lesson 1
What is “coding”?
What do you think “coding” means?
Write down what coding means to you and
where it appears in your life.
Lesson 1
Coding == Problem Solving
Writing code is a tool to solve problems!
For example, Amazon Alexa is written using code
and it provides a way to entertain, shop and talk to
others.
Alexa is a large project! Too big for one person to
work on. The project is broken down into smaller
projects, and teams work on code to solve smaller
problems.
Lesson 1
Coding Concepts
Every coding language uses the same
key coding concepts!
Sequence
The instructions for our code
Selection
Using logical tests to change the flow of the
sequence
Iteration
Using loops to repeat sequences of code
Lesson 1
Writing our own language
Can you help Ed get to the finish line?
In teams, create a written language to
guide Ed from start to finish.
He cannot touch trees and cannot walk
through water.
Your language should be easy to understand
as Ed is easily confused. Collect the star for bonus
points!
Lesson 1
Moving from Scratch to Python
Lesson 1
What is EduBlocks?
EduBlocks is a free application available online at
edublocks.org
It was started by a 12 year-old student who wanted
to help others learn how to code.
It runs in the browser like Scratch and works on all
operating systems
We can write code in pure Python or HTML, or
code for use with the micro:bit, Raspberry Pi and
Adafruit CircuitPython controller boards.
Lesson 1
Using modes
To write code, we’ll need to create a
project.
Today we’ll be using Python 3, so we can
leave all the default options and click
“Create”
To access the different modes, we can go
to:
app.edublocks.org/editor
Lesson 1
The Interface
The EduBlocks Interface is simple
On the left we have all of the blocks we
can use to write code.
The blocks are places in the coding area
on the left of the screen.
On the right we can see the generated
Python code.
Lesson 1
Building a sequence of code
We write Python code using the blocks
on the left.
The blocks click together like Scratch.
Blocks can be taken apart and put back
together.
Blocks are organised in the menu by their
function.
Lesson 1
Run the code
To run our code we click the Blue run button. This shows the output on the
right of the screen.
Lesson 1
Same concept, different language
Scratch EduBlocks Python
Each of these code snippets will print Hello World on the screen 10 times.
The same coding concept, a loop which iterates 10 times, is used in each snippet.
Plenary
What have we learnt?
• Coding concepts are shared across many different languages.
• Block languages are ideal for introducing coding.
• Computers require clear instructions to work correctly.
Plenary
Next Lesson
Next lesson, we will use EduBlocks to
create graphics with Turtle