Grades 3-5
Grades 6-8
STEM
Reading
Writing

All About Me: Programming Activities

Engage students in fun coding activities to create interactive animations introducing themselves to others.

Activity Partner
Total time estimate:
30-60 minutes
Activity Objectives
  • Students will use self-guided coding tutorials to create interactive animations introducing themselves and sharing different aspects of their identity
  • Then, students will explore their classmates' animations to learn more about them, and gain an understanding and appreciation for their similarities and differences


This activity supports the development of the following
social-emotional skills: self-awareness, social awareness, and relationship skills.

Code

Engage students in a discussion about identity. You might explain: "Our identity makes us who we are, like our experiences, beliefs, hobbies, and more! What else do you think our identity includes?"

Then, ask students to use one of the self-guided coding tutorials below to create an interactive animation introducing themselves to others. Students can choose from: 

  • Using block programming to design an avatar and share fun facts about themselves
  • Using Scratch to design a custom avatar, make it move around, create a backdrop of their hometown, and add a fun fact about their community

As students work on their animations, prompt them to reflect on how their coding project is related to their identity. What do they want to share about themselves with others? How is their identity represented through their avatar’s appearance, actions, and location?

Share

Facilitate a live virtual exchange to invite students to share their animations with your Empatico partner class. Encourage students to share stories about themselves and their community, and ask questions to learn more about each other.

Alternatively, you might challenge them to code their animations together over a live virtual exchange, and participate in a joint coding session!

Reflect

Guide students through a post-activity reflection by asking the following questions:

  • What are some different parts of our identity? Which parts were represented in your coding project?
  • What did you learn about your classmates from their coding projects? What were some similarities that you noticed, and did you discover any differences?
  • What are other creative ways that we can use computer science to share about ourselves and learn about others? What do you want to try doing next?

This activity was created in partnership with Code.org.

Did you finish this activity? We'd love your input.