Learn about functions and why we use them in programs. Then create some functions of your own using Marty.
In the example video, Marty's walking speed is reliant on the level of light. There is fast and there is slow.
Have physical code cards available for learners to use, when building their scripts:
Have a print out of the basic function statements, using the event block and 'light_action' block.
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| Digital Technologies, Design & technologies: Design & Technologies | |
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| Computing, Design and Technology: Computing | |
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| Middle School Technology Applications: Grade 6 to Grade 8 |
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In this lesson, we will introduce functions. Functions are an important part of programming that reduce the amount of repeated code by being responsible for ideally one thing.
Learners will begin by thinking about games they may have played when they were younger and create a tactic which is akin to a function in a program. Later, learners will either repurpose old code by organising repeating blocks in a function, or develop the parts for functions that are already available in MartyBlocks.
Experience using sensors and variables
Have learners think of a playground games they may have played when they were younger. Now, have them think if there were any that they regularly won (because they figured out something) or that they often saw others win at, which was frustrating. Ask if learners ever thought this was like cheating. Was there something that the winning players always seemed to do which led to a win? Below are some ideas:
Here are talking points for Duck, Duck, Goose or look at slide 4 in the presentation, which includes a video
Inform learners that this game has two main functions for winning, one function is for the person walking around the circle, one function is for people sitting in the circle. These are two very different parts of the game because they are for distinct roles in the game. In programming, we separate these parts by creating functions. In this case, we could have the program duckDuckGoose and one function could be sitting and the other could be walking.
Slide 5 from the presentation has a suggested flowchart that could be used to illustrate a function for Duck, Duck, Goose. Learners will need access to the internet to research the old-school game they have chosen to write about. The minimum they will need to research is if there is a point system, if there are teams and what decides a winner.
Learners will need to take one of the games researched and decide on a tactic they think would be most beneficial for winning. The group will need time to discuss the ideas in order to reach consensus.
Once they have decided, learners will use pseudocode to describe the routine they are going to use and give it a name. Then, they will need to place it in the ‘program’ of the game. Groups will present their ideas to the class describing how their tactic can be used repeatedly through the game to improve the chances of success.
Show slide 7 on the presentation to display the function block, in Martyblocks, the section is called My Blocks. There are notes on slide 7 to support discussion.
Following the idea sharing, display Marty standing with legs side by side, and press the walk forward block on your device (alternatively, use slide 8 from the presentation, which shows a slowly walking Marty. There are notes on the page that describe how you can use this slide). This will cause Marty to take two steps forward, by default. Have learners look carefully as you press the button again. What different movement do you see Marty make to carry out that command?
Have learners take their group Marty and access the Marty controller. This will allow learners to repeatedly see the walk action that Marty performs. Additionally, learners can use the speed slider to slow down Marty to see the specific movements they make. As a group, challenge learners to create a function for Marty to walk. This needn't be recorded in the workbook, it is more a chance to get a feel for how the individual commands come together to make a function.
There is a description of the blocks used to have Marty walk in the teacher guide and slide 9 shows the blocks for learners to try this after they have had a chance to experiment. Also, take time to go over the different ideas learners had about the movements.
Suggest that learners investigate the kick block. Have learners repeatedly watch the movements of the block and note down the steps they see. This will take some time because of the complexity and speed of some of these blocks. Remind learners of the need for timing movements properly and for the need to sometimes run different commands in parallel.
Slide 10 shows the kick movement. The teacher guide has the code that is needed to carry out this action. You can choose to either show the video, build the code in MartyBlocks or just tap the kick block on the Marty Controller or in MartyBlocks. Take time to walk around listening to discussion and asking questions to promote thinking about the sequence and timing. Every so often, add a question about why we use fuctions.
If space allows, encourage learners to watch ideas from other groups, asking questions about why they chose to put certain code where they did.
Give time before the cool down to allow learners to showcase their functions. Ask them if they would be as likely to program display Marty dancing if they had to create the function each time: reusable functions save time!
Bring learners back together to discuss the challenges they faced and overcame. Have groups model their creations and explain what is happening, when. Encourage other groups to ask questions to deepen the understanding of the processes.
Suggested questions you might ask:
Carry out any end of lesson routines.
Log off devices and clear everything away.
