• Prompt it to draw the following:

  • Please draw…name favorite [animal] doing [favorite hobby] at [favorite place] during [favorite time of day].

• Your lesson plan: Create a Lesson Plan using MakeCode. Ensure it aligns with your classroom objectives and includes clear instructions for students.

• Document Implementation: Take images or screenshots of the lesson being implemented in your classroom. This could include students working on the project, the setup, or any other relevant aspects. Remember to avoid including identifiable student faces in the images or screenshots to protect their privacy.

• Reflect on Outcomes: Write a reflection on the positive outcomes and challenges you faced during the implementation. Highlight what worked well and any areas for improvement.

Facilitator Confirmation: Once you've submitted your work, a facilitator will review and confirm the completion of your workshop hours with the Seasons of CS Team.

Fun!

teachers: Nanette Cooper K/1 general education                                                        Cassandra Arnold TK/K SDC 

Anuja Patel SDC IA 

Lesson Overview 

Grade levels: TK/K/1 

Duration: Broken into 2, 30 min sessions 

      1 Intro to Microbit happy and sad faces 

      2 SEL Making good choices at school 

Day 1 

Lesson Objectives 

By the end of this lesson students will be able to: 

*Log into Makecode.microbit.org 

* Program the microbit to make a happy and a sad face. 

*Understand how to select either face in response to questions about making choices at      

   school  

Materials Needed 

Classroom computers 

QR codes to log in 

Smartboard (to access the slides to present the step-by-step lesson for coding the microbit) 

Introduction (5 minutes) 

1 Begin by asking students how do we usually answer questions in our classroom? 

2 Explain that today we are going to be using our computers and learning how to program a small    

   computer to make a happy and sad face in response to questions instead of using any of the other  

   ways that we usually answer the questions in class. 

Activity 1 (25 minutes)  

Note: Students will be working together in pairs sharing 1 computer between them and working together to code the microbit 

1 Take students through the process of programing the microbit to make both the Happy and the Sad face 

2 Allow students time to try out both buttons.  Partners can ask each other up to 3 questions that require a positive (Happy face) or negative (Sad face) response 

Day 2 

Lesson Objectives 

By the end of this lesson students will be able to: 

*Log into Makecode.microbit.org 

*Use the Microbit happy and sad face buttons to respond to SEL questions about making     

    Behavioral choices at school. 

*Understand how to select either a happy or sad face in response to questions about    

   making choices at school  

Materials Needed 

Classroom computers 

QR codes to log in 

Document Camera 

SEL Pictures of school behaviors good and bad 

Introduction (5 minutes) 

1 Begin by talking to the class about how we behave at school?? 

2 Explain that today we are going to be using our computers to respond to pictures that show behaviors we see around school.  You will be working as a team to decide if these choices are good choices or bad choices.  If they are good instead of giving me a thumbs up, you will be using your microbit to show a happy face. .  If they are bad choices instead of giving me a thumbs down, you will be using your microbit to show a sad face. 

Activity 1 (25 minutes)  

Note: Students will be working together in pairs sharing 1 computer between them and working together to code the microbit 

1   Use a set of 15 to 20 picture cards (SEL behaviors around school) 

 2   Put 1 card at a time under the doc camera to display on the SMARTboard  

and allow time for students to select and show their responses.  

3   Call on a pair of students to share why they made that choice? 

I started with the webpage: "What is a Micro:bit?" https://microbit.org/get-started/what-is-the-microbit/

I then showed the Flashing Heart tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiERNxxfxJQ

Next I got students onto Makecode.microbits.org and had them make "New Project" for the Flashing Heart.

Some of them got it real quick. Others were slower to figure it out. The quick ones discovered the other blocks and experimented with sounds and name tag, etc.

I'm always amazed at how kids can figure things out so quickly. Now they are more advanced than I am.

Lessons:

1. Identify how we can use microbits in helping the community/environment

2. Health(Physical/mental), climate change, animal protection focus - students choose 4 projects from the microbit website to work on.

3. In pairs, students pick an issue, brainstorm, and sketch a micro:bit-based solution

4. Students program on the microbit site in pairs to implement the solutions

5. Students make the presentation to showcase how their design can impact the community.

Integrating the micro:bit Name Tag tutorial into our Kindergarten classroom transformed a simple literacy task into an engaging, tech-powered learning experience. By combining CVC word practice with hands-on coding, my students weren’t just sounding out words—they were creating, typing, testing, and reading their rhymes on a real piece of technology.

When I said the word cat, students lit up as they thought of rhyming words like bat, hat, and mat, then typed them into their micro:bits using the "Show String" block. Watching their words scroll across the screen made phonics feel like magic, reinforcing short vowel sounds through multisensory engagement—visual, auditory, and kinesthetic.

This project gave my youngest learners a sense of pride and ownership. They weren’t just consuming technology—they were using it with purpose to build literacy skills. Micro:bit provided a meaningful bridge between foundational reading and early coding, setting the stage for deeper computational thinking down the road.

What started as a simple “Name Tag” became a powerful, personalized literacy tool. It turned every child into an author, a coder, and most importantly—a confident learner.

🧠 Learning Goals:

• Practice CVC words & rhyming families

• Recognize short vowel sounds (a, e, i, o, u)

• Type and scroll simple words on a micro:bit display

• Build early tech literacy

📚 Tutorial Flow:

✨ Step 1: Kick-off with a Rhyme Game

Say: “We’re going to play a rhyming game! I’ll say a word like cat, and you’ll think of three words that rhyme with it—like bat, hat, mat!”

✨ Step 2: Code the micro:bit

Each student will program their micro:bit to:

• Show their name

• Scroll 3 rhyming words or CVC words with the same short vowel

Bringing the micro:bit Dice Tutorial into my Kindergarten classroom opened up new, exciting ways to teach early math concepts through movement, technology, and teamwork.

By using pair programming, my students weren't just solving math problems—they were collaborating, taking turns, and supporting each other as thinkers and coders. The physical act of shaking the micro:bit brought joy and anticipation to every round, turning abstract math symbols into something tangible and fun.

This project empowered students to compare numbers, practice addition and subtraction, and experience computational thinking—all through play. The micro:bit transformed a basic dice roll into a digital playground for mathematical exploration and meaningful peer connection.

Watching my students engage with math through micro:bit showed me that tech isn’t just for big kids—it’s for little hands with big imaginations, too.

🎯 Learning Goals

By the end of this activity, Kindergarten students will:

• Practice comparing numbers using greater than and less than symbols.

• Strengthen early addition and subtraction skills.

• Engage in pair programming, developing communication and collaboration skills.

• Explore cause and effect through shaking the micro:bit to trigger random numbers.

• Begin to understand basic coding concepts with the “On Shake” input block.

  
  

• 🧠 Tutorial Flow

  🔧 Step 1: Intro to micro:bit Dice

  • Show students how shaking the micro:bit can generate a random number between 1 and 6.

  • 👯‍♂️ Step 2: Pair Programming Setup

    • Students work in pairs. Each pair gets 2 micro:bits.

    • Partner A and Partner B shake their micro:bit at the same time.

    🧮 Step 3: Math Battle!

    • Greater Than / Less Than: Students compare rolls to see who wins.

      "Who has the greater number? Who has less?"

    • Addition Challenge: Both students add their numbers together and record the sum.

    • Subtraction Showdown: Find the difference between the numbers.

    ✏️ Step 4: Record the Results

    • Use a printable math journal or whiteboard to write:

      • “4 > 2”

      • “4 + 2 = 6”

      • “4 – 2 = 2”

    🏁 Step 5: Repeat and Rotate

    • After 3 rounds, partners switch roles or join new pairs.

Using the micro:bit Flashing Heart Tutorial in my Kindergarten classroom gave new meaning to the phrase “wear your heart on your sleeve”—except this time, it was on a screen!

This project empowered even my youngest learners to see emotions as signals and technology as a tool for connection. Students weren’t just coding icons. They were coding conversations—about love, joy, and sadness. The buttons became bridges: "A" was for happy, "B" was for sad, and the heart beat at the start to remind us that every day begins with love.

This wasn’t just SEL. It was SEL amplified through code. It built emotional awareness, peer empathy, and the confidence to share feelings in new ways. With just a few blocks of code, students learned to flash kindness, feel connected, and express themselves safely and creatively.

That’s what makes this lesson powerful and purposeful—a beautiful blend of heart and hardware.

🎯 Learning Goals

Kindergarten students will:

• Identify and express three core emotions: happy 😊, sad ☹️, and love/compassion ❤️.

• Use the micro:bit’s LED screen to display emotions using symbols (heart, smiley face, frown).

• Learn how to code simple "on start" and "button press" events.

• Strengthen SEL vocabulary and build empathy by recognizing emotions in themselves and others.

• Begin learning to communicate with technology as a tool for self-expression.

• 🧠 Tutorial Flow

  ✅ Step 1: Emotional Check-In

  • Circle time SEL discussion:
    “What does happy look like? What does sad feel like? What does it mean to show love?”

  💻 Step 2: Code the Feelings on micro:bit

  • Symbol 1 – Heart (Love)
    On Start → Show Icon: Heart

  • Symbol 2 – Smiley (Happy)
    Input: On Button A Pressed → Show Icon: Happy

  • Symbol 3 – Frown (Sad)
    Input: On Button B Pressed → Show Icon: Sad

  🤖 Step 3: Explore and Share

  • Students try each button, observe feelings, and explain: “I pressed A, and that means I feel happy when…”

  🤝 Step 4: Pair & Practice

  • Partner up to practice recognizing and respecting emotions: “My partner pressed the heart. That means they are feeling love or kindness.”

  📝 SEL Reflection Journals

  • Draw your micro:bit symbol and complete a sentence starter:

    • “I felt happy when…”

    • “I show love when…”

    • “I feel sad when…”

Kindergarten + 5th Grade | 3 Days of Micro:bit Magic

Oh, the fun that we’ll have, with coding and play,
Where Kindergarteners and 5th Graders team up each day!
We’ll transform our micro:bits with joy and delight,
Building creativity and skills that will take

flight!

Day 1: "Tap It, Type It, Rhyme It!"
Micro:bit Name Tag – Rhyming CVC Words

With rhyming and phonics, we’ll get it just right,
Type CVC words that scroll in the light!
My name is CAT, and I rhyme with HAT,
MAT, BAT, and more—that’s where it’s at!

Skills: Short vowels, rhyming families, coding blocks galore!
💡 “I’m CAT! I can rhyme with HAT, MAT, BAT—let’s explore!”

Day 2: "Shake, Compare – Math and Micro:bits Everywhere!"
Micro:bit Dice – Greater Than, Less Than, Add & Subtract

Roll the dice, let’s compare and play,
Shaking for numbers in a fun, new way!
We’ll add, subtract, and compare with care,
Working together, learning math everywhere!

Skills: Addition, subtraction, comparing values, and teamwork too!
💡 “I shook a 5! Is it greater than your 3? What’s your view?”

Day 3: "Oh the Feelings You Can Show with a Micro:bit Glow!"
Micro:bit LED Heart – Emotions & SEL Expression

From ❤️ to 😊 to ☹️, let’s show what we feel,
With LED hearts and buttons, our emotions are real!
Press A for happy, B for sad,
Together we’ll learn to share what we’ve had!

Skills: Self-awareness, button inputs, empathy—what a start!
💡 “Press A for happy, B for sad—I feel ___ because ___ in my heart.”

Why It Shines:

Empowered Expression: Words, numbers, and feelings take flight,
With coding and tech, we’ll shine oh so bright!

Intergenerational Collaboration: Big buddies guide, little buddies lead,
Together we’ll grow in word and in deed.

STEAM + SEL Fusion: Mind and heart, we’ll nurture them both,
Learning and caring, with each lesson we’ll grow!

Presented by:
Gloria Amador
Kindergarten/STEAM Lead Teacher | LAUSD

💬 “These weren’t just coding lessons—they were soul lessons. Together, we discovered what’s possible when technology becomes a tool for voice, connection, and compassion.”

Let’s build thinkers, makers, and Compassionate Coders—bit by bit, heart by heart!

Lesson Plan and Lesson Plan Reflection Link Enclosed: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ly1HdFCDOyV2tFK8sle-4BIUfbLrkpCUKhFU_uFDbrY/edit?usp=sharing

This workshop was a great way to introduce the students to computer programming.

The activity I used was the one with smiley faces. I have 9th graders and they enjoyed it.

The smiley buttons activity was fun for the EL learners since they have difficulty speaking outloud so the group work really helped them. One issue that we had was that one student in each group wanted to do all the work.

Thank you for the opportunity to participate.

• Write a reflection on the positive outcomes and challenges you faced during the implementation. Highlight what worked well and any areas for improvement.