How to Make Computer Science Learning Fun and Easy, Virtually

Right now, keeping kids learning, parents working, and teachers doing what they do best, inspiring students to see their true potential during the unique circumstances of the 2020-2021 school year, is a top priority for many, including us. 

In schools across the country, already small budgets are being further crunched by cleaning costs, the need to hire additional teachers, and the necessity to purchase devices for each child to have access to an online education, among other costs. Our Terminal Two team attended the virtual Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) 2020 Annual Conference to better understand the challenges educators are facing during these unprecedented times, and to learn from tech savvy teachers how they have adapted to radical changes in pedagogy, tools, and materials used to develop young minds. 

We met multiple attendees who provided great insights. Javier Aguilar, a Technology Applications, Computer Science Teacher, and Robotics Coach said,  "I am a huge fan of computer games. For me learning how, what, and who is involved in the process of making a game, and what it involves from a ‘coding’ perspective to create the magic of gamification, is fantastic and engaging."

Presenting our games to teachers, who in many cases were also parents, gave us insights to the challenges many are facing this school year. That is why we have provided a structure to help CS teachers with a tool that complements student’s learning virtually. 

Our suite of games nurtures a child’s desire to play. Each game connects its “mechanics” to a programming concept. A grid-like gardening game is a perfect place to teach arrays. Strategic tower defense games can teach instances and classes. While in Terminal Two, students will have fun first but find themselves solving problems and tinkering with ideas central to computer science and computational thinking. Students will want more, and parents and teachers will be able to use screen game time as educational aids.

Our Learning Trajectory

Every game in Terminal Two teaches a coding concept. Early games start without formal coding, instead focusing on computational thinking, teaching ideas such as to how to use abstraction to focus on and solve problems. Games advance to more challenging concepts, and eventually include proper “syntax”; having players see, modify, and then write actual code.

Each game is also designed to reinforce earlier ideas. Research has shown the importance of repeating concepts in multiple environments of increasing complexity to reinforce foundational skills and deepen learning.

"Terminal Two will assist me in adding an enrichment class to our elementary Montessori curriculum that will challenge my students who are familiar with the fundamentals of coding. Using Terminal Two text coding, will help them visualize in real time how coding is powerful and creates fun and engaging games." - Javier Aguilar, Technology Applications, Computer Science Teacher, and Robotics Coach

To complement the games, we have created an Educator Ambassador Program that provides a space where teachers can share ideas on games with developers and provide insights to what truly engages students to learn computer science. We also invite students to participate in the Student Ambassadors Program to help test our games, and build unique experiences with the Unity Development Platform. All of these are opportunities to bring in more educators and students who share our passion for making games that both engage and educate!

These games can be played to gain exposure to increasingly advanced coding and programming skills, thus offering your students an opportunity to complement what they are learning in class. They may not remember loops, but they will remember playing Aqueducts. 

Want to see how our games match up to CSTA standards? Wondering how to make our games lesson plans? See a sample one. 

We even have an Educator’s Guide to accompany our games, which includes everything from a sample lesson plan to guide teachers, to a detailed learning progression and standards alignment for districts to incorporate our games on a broad scale. 

For Parents

(and Parent-Teachers):

As parents, we know it is hard to transition to “school at home” while also working. Why not make screen time learning time? Our games teach fundamental coding concepts through immersive and engaging online games. Built by educators and gamers, we understand what captures kids' attention and how to teach coding concepts in a fun environment! We were recently named the Best New Coding Game in Family Tech by Parents.com. 

Coding should be fun, period.

Interested in buying a set for your class or learning more about how we can help your students? Contact outreach@terminaltwo.com today. 

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