May 2005 B.Sherry

Turtle Travels….Beyond Expectations for

Primary Students ECOO 2005

May 2005 B.Sherry

The Spirit of Logo• “We learn better by

doing, but we learn better if we combine our doing with talking and thinking about what we have done.”

Seymour Papert

May 2005 B.Sherry

Logo Philosophy• Often categorized as

constructivism or “discovery learning”

• Papert creates a new term called “constructionism”

• Acquisition of skills needed to participate with understanding in the construction of what is new

May 2005 B.Sherry

MicroWorlds JuniorInstructional Implications• Some basic structure in introduction of skills • Students soon take control of their own

learning• Sharing student work creates a wider variety

of possibilities• Learn a skill -- teach a skill• Whole class, small group and individual

instruction

May 2005 B.Sherry

Implementation• An environment of

collaboration• Student as teacher• Teacher as learner• Logo fosters situations

that the teacher has never seen before

• Has to join the student as an authentic co-learner

May 2005 B.Sherry

Turtles…what they can do• Hatching turtles• Painting Centre• Text• Recording centre• Animations

May 2005 B.Sherry

Turtle Geometry• How turtles move• Pen up/down• Drawing shapes with

the turtle• Programming the turtle

to make shapes (procedures and sub-procedures)

May 2005 B.Sherry

Student Projects• Patterns and

geometry• Multimedia reports

and stories• Interactive pages• Mazes

May 2005 B.Sherry

Curriculum Connections• Recognizing, describing, extending patterns• Comparisons and measurement• Creating and exploring simple simulations of

movement• Writing in a variety of forms• Using various media to convey a message• Transformational geometry

May 2005 B.Sherry

Curriculum Connections• Recognize, draw and compare 2-D shapes• Describe attributes of 2-D shapes• Describe, interpret and apply ideas about

direction and distance in navigating space• Generate a hypothesis, test it and reflect on

results• Descriptive writing• Find and name locations in coordinate

systems such as maps

May 2005 B.Sherry

Recommended Websites• LCSI www.microworlds.com• Logo Foundation

http://el.media.mit.edu/logo-foundation/• The George Lucas Educational Foundation

http://www.edutopia.org/• MaMaMedia-The Place for Kids on the Net

http://mamamedia.com