Pre-lesson preparation

Have at least 1 each of Marty’s color cards at each table or group area. Ensure each Marty is fully charged. 

Warm-up

Share with learners the learning objectives and success criteria for the lesson (slide 2 from the presentation).

Tell learners to find a place in the classroom or other open space, where they can stretch their arms out comfortably. Tell learners that we are going to play an active game that involves them trying to stay safe under the shade of a tree. Pick about half the learners in the class to be trees and half to be mini beasts. Tell learners that you are going to play music. While the music is playing, the mini beasts are able to walk around the area in an active way, to the music. When the music stops, the mini beasts need to find a tree for the shade, each tree can shade two mini beasts.

Each time the music restarts, tap one or two trees and tell them they are now mini beasts. If a mini beast is not able to get to a tree in time, they need to sit out. Continue playing until there are only two mini beasts left.

Get learning

Bring learners together and have them think about why some creatures might like to be in the shade of a tree. Record and ideas they have. Ideas could be it’s cooler, it’s safer, protection from the rain, it’s darker, and others.

Let learners know that today we are going to be looking at isopods. Show slide 3, which displays a zoomed in isopod. Ask learners if they have ever seen one of these creatures before and ask if they can remember where.

Show slides 4 – 6 that display different places where isopods may live. Ask learners to be scientists to describe the environments where they can see isopods. Ask learners to think about what the environments, where lots of isopods seem to live, have in common. Record the ideas on the board and encourage learners to take notes in their workbooks to record good places to live for an isopod.

Ask learners to watch a short clip of isopods moving and reacting to their environment – slide 7. Share with learners the key elements isopods like in an environment: cool, dark and damp. Isopods avoid bright light. Isopods need to the damp to breathe, because they have gills. Isopods need a cool temperature to thrive, they are uncomfortable when too hot or cold.

Inform learners that they are going to code Marty to act like an isopod. There are ideas to get learners thinking about what they need to plan for, on slide 8. Slide 9 shows blocks that will support Marty’s actions. Following this, either display Marty, with the code from the teacher guide, or slides 10-12 in the presentation will show Marty reacting to an environment, like an isopod. Slide 10 has Marty respond to one action, slide 11 shows the code for Marty to perform that action and slide 12 shows a more complex set of instructions in action. Have learners pay careful attention to the different actions Marty performs on the different color cards. Ask learners to think that if each of the color cards was a different part of an environment, what might it be. Remind learners of the places that isopods like to be: cool, dark, moist.

Tell learners that they are going to create code for Marty to be an isopod and react to their environment. What kind of action should we have when the area:

• Is dry?
• Is bright?
• Is dark?
• Is moist?

What commands will we need to use for Marty? Color sensing, if statements, movement blocks. Remind learners about building if blocks, show one sample, ask what they need to do if Marty sees another color? Show what happens with the simple if block.

Time for Practice

Learners need to work in groups to create code that will allow Marty to move freely around, interacting with a variety of color cards in an appropriate way. Learners need to test their work to see if Marty reacts as intended. Learners should record changes as their code develops.

Learners have suggested blocks to use in their workbook, where they should plan the code together as a group. Remind learners of the purpose for each block that is suggested and explore how each could be helpful in the code, if they ask. Notes for what could be shared are in the teacher guide.

Cooldown

Bring learners back together to discuss the learning. Ask if they learned anything new about isopods and if there is anything they want to share. Ask if they can remind you about the important parts of the environment that isopods need to be healthy.

Suggested questions you might ask:

• Did you enjoy programming Marty to pretend to be something else
• Was there anything that was tricky but you figured out how to solve the problem?
• Was there anything about Marty’s movements that were difficult to program?

Carry out any end of lesson routines.