MIT Scratch Educator Meetup

In December, we hosted a Scratch meetup for educators. More than 30 people participated in this one-day event to learn more about Scratch, share ideas in breakout sessions, and connect with one another. It was a diverse group - people came from different locations, teaching disciplines, and Scratch familiarity. 

The workshop was organized into three main sections:

• Inspiration: To start, we provided some background on Scratch, both as a tool (possibilities and mechanics of creation) and as an approach to learning (optimal design of learning environments). We talked about design-based learning, an approach to learning that emphasizes designing, personalizing, collaborating, and reflecting.

• Exploration: We had multiple tracks of activities for the exploration section. In one track, participants who were new to Scratch (or who wanted a refresher) had a hands-on introduction to creating with Scratch. In the other tracks, we invited participants to form their own breakout sessions. Four groups were formed - a discussion of Scratch in after-school settings, feedback on a Scratch unit plan, brainstorm of Scratch Day plans, and exploration of Scratch for advanced computer science concepts.

• Reflection: After an hour and a half of meetup time, we regrouped for show and tell and sharing reflections. Three participants presented examples of student work and then we talked about next steps.

This video will give you a sense of what the three-hour meetup was like:

 

Thank you to all who attended and we hope to see you at the next one. Look out for a Scratch workshop and webinar series coming soon!