Andrea Holzwarth & Ashley Benne

PLTW Launch (PreK-5)

Welcome &Introductions

Name, District, Position

Fist to Five: How Familiar are you with

PLTW Launch?

Launch (PreK-5): 269

Gateway: 227

Biomedical Science: 123

Computer Science: 100

Engineering: 170

Missouri Project Lead The Way (PLTW)

What can you expect with PLTW Launch?

• Provides Full Coverage of NGSS Expectations.

• Addresses a Rich Range of Standards.

• Common Core State Standards for mathematics and English language arts/literacy (K-5, with

scaffolding provided in PreK) •

• Computer Science Teachers Association K-12 Computer Science Standards (certain modules in K-5,

with scaffolding provided in PreK)

• National Association for the Education of Young Children Early Learning Program Standards (PreK)

• Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework (PreK)

• Provides Students Early and Equal Access.

• Available in both English & Spanish

What can you expect with PLTW Launch?

• Engages Students in Hands-on, Real-world Learning.

• Empowers Students with In-demand Skills.

• Provides Flexible Implementation to Schools and Teachers.

• Launch offers the flexibility districts and schools need to build a strong STEM foundation. Whether a

school needs an enrichment, special, whole grade or whole school solution, or a full in-class

science curriculum, they find that PLTW Launch meets their needs.

• Schools can implement PLTW Launch modules on iPads and Android tablets, as well as Android-

enabled Chromebooks.

• Inspires Teachers Through Transformative Professional Development.

Cont.

Activity, Project, Problem Based Approach(APB Approach)

Rosie’s Run Time

PLTW Sample Activity

‘Rosie’s Run Time’

• Computer Science: Animated Storytelling

• First Grade

• Computational Thinking

FREE downloadable activity for your group!

• K – 2 and 3 -5

• *Today’s activity is K-2.

Rosie’s Run Time

Introduction• In this life-sized game, students build a program out of code cards to direct Rosie the Robotic Dog through a grid to

find her bones and get to her doghouse without stepping in any mud puddles.

• Along the way students will discover that computers do exactly what you tell them, nothing more and nothing less!

Rosie’s Run Time

Learning Goals:

By the end of this activity, students will be able to:• Evaluate a problem, such as a maze or a puzzle, and construct a set of statements that, when carried out step-by-

step, will solve the problem.

• Explain in simple terms how humans control computers.

• Define a program as instructions written in a language that a computer can follow.

• Demonstrate persistence in the cycle of testing a program, finding errors, and fixing incorrect behavior.

Rosie’s Run Time

Overview

• In the Rosie’s Runtime game, Rosie the robotic dog wants to get her bones and bring them back to her

doghouse, but she must not get her paws dirty! Use the Rosie code cards to make a program that tells

Rosie how to get to her bones and then go to her doghouse. Remember to jump over mud puddles!

Rules

• Rosie must land on a bone before she can pick it up.

• Rosie cannot jump over a spot if doing so would take her off of the game grid.

• Rosie has to land on her doghouse to finish the game.

Game Pieces

Floor Tiles

Get Started!

Divide into groups of 4-5.

Build a program by putting code cards in a sequence to tell Rosie the steps she should take.

• Remember, Rosie is a robot, so she has a computer for a brain!

• That means she can only follow the commands on the code cards, and she will do exactly what the cards

say.

Finding & Fixing Bugs

If Rosie steps in a puddle, goes off the grid, or doesn’t have both bones with her upon arriving at

the doghouse, then the programmers say, “Bug in the program!”

The programmers then fix (de-bug) the program by taking back their code cards and rearranging

them as needed. When they are ready to try again, the programmers hand the code cards one at

a time to Rosie, who follows the instructions step by step.

Challenge #1

Conclusion Questions for Discussion

Can Rosie the Robot Dog figure out what you mean if you miss a step by accident? Why or

why not?

• Rosie does exactly what the code card in front of her says to do. She can’t guess what you mean, and she

doesn’t know what card is coming next. Rosie is a robot, so she can’t think for herself. She can only follow

instructions.

If you were going to write a step-by-step program for going from your classroom to the

gym, what would be the first three steps?

• Note: Often students miss the crucial first steps. Make sure that students start with steps such as “get up

out of your chair,” “walk to the classroom door,” etc.

Download Rosie's Runtime FREE for Your Class!

PLTW Rosie’s Runtime

Professional Development &

Resources

Launch Professional Development

Classroom Teacher

Training

Core Training

Lead Teacher

Training

Module

Instruction

Q&AAndrea Holzwarth

aholzwarth@pltw.org

785.332.0293

Ashley Benne

abenne@pltw.org

314.369.6810

https://www.pltw.org/our-programs/pltw-launch