Waterloo and Moorside Primary School, Tameside - Imagine Logo Case Study

Thanks to Sue Broadbent, ICT Network Manager

Introduction

Sue Broadbent bought the Imagine Logo software as a Logo program for KS2 children and was amazed to discover the awesome potential it had for filling gaps in the Foundation Stage and KS1 Curriculum.

Despite the abundance of software available, teachers were always complaining that programs were:

• not specific enough for their learning objectives
• they didn't focus on the key skill
• programs were too complicated
• programs were not differentiated enough.

Sue set to work using Imagine Logo to create screens that would "plug the resource gap" and therefore address teachers' concerns. Six months later the schools now have dozens of new "programs", all tailor-made to teachers' specifications, addressing specific learning objectives and with built-in differentiation.

Curriculum Areas

Sue has used Imagine Logo to make screens for Literacy, Numeracy, Science and ICT control.

Foundation Stage

Repetition and reinforcement is the key to mastering a new skill at this stage. Teachers asked Sue to create a variety of screens focusing on mouse control that fitted different curriculum themes.

Sorting Activities
Sue created a bank of "click and drag" sorting activities e.g. farm animals, vegetables, and toys. Children were practising the same skill but were excited because now they had many "new" programs. Activities were differentiated by making two versions, a simple "click and move" (mouse button not having to stay pressed down) and a more advanced "click and drag" (keeping mouse button pressed down).

Counting Activities
Screens were created where numbers were spoken as the mouse was moved over them. Objects are placed in the numbered boxes. Two screens were created for each activity; one with support (e.g. 2 spots in the 2 box) and one with no support (no spots and no numbers read)!

Talking Books with a Twist
Sue created a Jack and the Beanstalk book. Text reads when the speaker icon is clicked. Objects and characters can be moved into the story screen. There is a text icon so children can write their own story, copy text, write their name or simply label objects. This makes the resource very flexible in its use and can be easily differentiated. It could even be just a big book for use on an Interactive White Board. The children love it and find it really exciting.

In The Space Storybook, Sue included clickable word banks where words are read when the mouse is moved over them. The children adored this program because there were even "space sounds" that could be activated by clicking. A number of interactive talking books have been made and have also proved useful to children with special needs. Reception children, who had English as a Second Language, used a Mrs Wishy Washy book in the classroom and Ofsted inspectors were amazed when, without adult direction, the children acted out the story, using the talking book as their model!

Year 1 - Sorting and Classifying

Sue has made screens for sorting and classifying 2D and 3D shapes. The teacher who commissioned these screens felt that they were brilliant because they were very "child-led". She could tell, from the labels that the children had chosen from the talking word bank, what the childrens' level of understanding was.

Year 1 and Year 2 - Control

Sue has always found that children have struggled with the more traditional screen turtle programs, confusing "forward" with "up", and confusing "left" and "right", especially when the turtle has changed direction. She made it her mission to get childrens' understanding clear from the very start with her screen turtle programs. She designed the screens as workbooks to enable children to work at their own pace. The turtle was a cheerful, animated character, which appealed to everyone. Whilst clearly labelled colour coded buttons supported the less able reader.

Differentiated worksheets could be used in conjunction with the screens. Starting with a simple 0-10 number line and forward and back commands, children progressed to navigating a shape grid using Right 1 for a ¼ turn; the "pendown" command was introduced at this point. For Year 2 work, Sue used Revelation Natural Art to create a "fun looking" map. To ensure progression from Year 1, the same buttons and appealing screen turtle were used. Teachers felt that children had gained a much clearer understanding of Logo movements than they had in the past, as well as having an enjoyable time! Firm foundations for KS2 had been set.

Year 4 - Control

Sue again designed a series of screens to enable children to work at their own pace. Starting with a structured series of "map" style activities, the children progressed to writing procedures for creating simple shapes. Sue had found that most children easily master these simple shapes and penup/pendown but trying to get across the real understanding of drawing "crystal flowers" always proved difficult. The repeats and brackets within brackets meant that only the high achieving children had a real understanding of what they were doing. Sue made the turtle's instructions appear alongside the working area and by setting up buttons for "memorise" and "run again", children could understand how to rotate shapes to make flowers.

They were absolutely amazed by the fantastic flowers they produced and were keen to experiment further. With the paint tool bar available, designs could be filled on the spot. To simplify the "changing procedures" requirement of the curriculum, buttons were placed on the screen that could be altered by the children. The children haven't used a full-blown Logo program but they do have the understanding and after all, that is what it is all about!

Future Use

Sue plans to further develop her bank of Imagine screens. She is listening to teachers to identify gaps in the curriculum, which she can plug and intends to develop more screens for children with Learning Difficulties. Sue also wants to create self-correcting screens in the future.

Summary

As far as Sue is concerned, "The sky's the limit". Imagine Logo is the most cost-effective resource she has ever purchased. The possibilities are endless. Her work has so impressed Tameside LEA ICT Team that it is to be included on their Virtual Learning Environment for all Tameside Schools. She says, "You really can't go wrong with Imagine. It is a thousand programs rolled into one and with the fantastic resource bank of clip art, sounds and animations, all you need to do is to… "LET YOUR IMAGINATION WANDER!"