[Chelsey Misischi]

Hi Orla,

I really like your learning intention as it encourages pupils to compare information from different sources rather than accepting AI responses at face value. I think using the KidRex or Britannica alongside AI is very realistic way of developing pupils critcal thinking skills and helping them recognise information should always be checked.

One question I had was how you might support pupils if the AI and the trusted website both give slightly different answers. It could lead to lots of great discussions about why that happens and which source should they trust.

One suggestion might be to create a simple checklist with the class that they could use whenver they use AI such as ‘who created this? Is there evidence? Can I check another source?’ I think this could give practical stategies to the pupils that they could use in the future too.

[Chelsey Misischi]

Class stage: 5th class

Curriculum area and learning intention: Science (Living things) with links to technology. Pupils will understand that AI can recognise patterns in data but that it can also make mistakes. They will learn that scienctific observations and evidence are important when evaluating AI generated predictions.

AI concept being explored: Machine learning, accuracy and responsible use of AI

Activitiy: As part of our biodiversity topic pupils will first investigate a selection of real leaves collected from the school grounds and garden. Working in groups they will sort the leaves into categories and explain the features they used to put them into those groups. The class will thencompare their classifitcations with predictions made by an AI image classification tool. Pupils will discuss any differences between their own groupings and obervations and the AI responses and consider why the AI may have made mistakes.

Critcal questionsl If AI gives a different answer from our own scientific observations, how can we decide which one is correct?

Responsible use consideration: AI can support scientific learning but it should not replace our own careful obervations, evidence and critical thinking.

Supporting critical thinking: Pupils will justify their decisions using scientific vocabulary, compare evidence and explain why they agree or disagree with AI’s prediction. They will also discuss how the quality and quantity of data can influence the AI model.

Evidence learning: Pupils will complete a short reflection explaining one limitation of AI and one way they could check whether AI generated answers are reliable.

[Chelsey Misischi]

Hi Clodagh,

I really enjoyed reading your reflection on the Sustainable City demo world. I particularly like your idea of introducing key vocabulary before the pupils begin exploring the world. I think this would really help the children feel more confident engaging with the activities and make it easier for them to understand the sustainability concepts as they progress through the lesson.

I also like how you’ve linked the lesson to SESE and suggested a follow up discussion about making your own school and local commmunity more sustainable. This helps pupils connect what they have learned in Minecraft to real life situations and encourages them to think about actions they can take themselves.

One suggestion that could add to this lesson would be to have pupils carry out a sustainability audit of the school afterwards. They could investihate areas such a recycling, biodiversity, energy use or water conservation and then work in groups to think of some practical and doable solutions. I think this would give the minecraft experience a real purpose while developing collaboration, critcal thinking and problem solving skills.

[Chelsey Misischi]

For this activity I explored the Minecraft Education demo world Hour of Code: Generation AI.

This interactive lesson introduces pupils to the basics of AI through a series of engaging coding and problem solving challenges. Through the world pupils explore how AI is used in everyday life while learning that AI should be designed to be fair, responsible and beneficial. The activities encourge the children to think critically about the opportunities and challenges of AI while completing coding tasks that require sequencing and problem solving and debugging.

The lesson plan to go with this is well structured and provides clear learning objectives, teacher guidance, discussion prompts and extension activities. It also includes key concepts before pupils begin exploring the world. I particularly liked that the lesson balances coding activities with opportunities for discussion and reflection rather than focusing solely on the technical aspect of AI.

I think this lesson links particularly well with the primary curriculum framework, especially the wellbeing area and the Focus of Learning around developing responsibility, ethical and informed users of technology. It also supports computational thinking by encouraging pupils to recognise patterns and debug solutions while reflecting on the wider impact of AI on society.

I would definitely use this world with my own class but would make a few small changes. Before beginning I would introduce some key vocabulary such as artificial intelligence, algorithm, bias and ethical technology to ensure the pupils understand and feel confident while engaging with the activities. Throughout the lesson I would pause regularly to encourage whole class discussions and allow pupils to explain their thinking before moving on. As a follow up activity I would have pupils work in groups to investigate examples od AI that they use in everyday life and create either slides or a poster outlining the benefits and potential risks. This would help the students make meaningful connections between the Minecraft activities and the technology they encournter outside of school while promoting collaboration, critical thinking and responsible digital citizenship.

[Chelsey Misischi]

Hi Kate,

I really enjoyed reading about your Cat and Mouse game. I liked how simple the idea is as it makes the game easy to follow for the pupils and also easy for them to understand while still being engaging. Having the player control the cat to chase the mouse creates a fun challenge and encourages quick decision making and hand eye coordination. I also thought it was great that you included your debugging process as it shows how testing and improving a game is an important part of coding and computational thinking.

One suggestion which could improve the player experience would be to add different difficulty levels like the mouse gets faster or less time. This would keep pupils challenged and encourage them to keep improving their score.

Overall I think you’ve created a really enjoyable game with a clear objective and I could definitely see pupils enjoying this digital version of a well known game and they would also be improving their coding and problem solving skills.

[Chelsey Misischi]

I created a simple MakeCode Arcade game called ‘Eat the Pizza’

https://makecode.com/_VxtFwWhMLYiV

Game type: Timed catch/collect
Game title: Eat the Pizza

Curriculum area and objective:
This game links with maths and SPHE. The learning objective is for pupils to develop hand eye coordination, problem solving, computational thinking while collecting the pizza and interpreting their final score. It also encourages pupils to think strategically as they decide how to move efficiently to collect as many pizzas as possible before time runs out.

Simple storyboard:
The game takes place on a simple background so it is easy to see the pizza. The player needs to control the smiley face to move to where the pizza has moved to. It will move around the screen until the time runs out. The player gets 1 point for each pizza they catch. Players are encouraged to try again to keeep improving their score.

Computational thinking:
One computational thinking skill I used while creating this game was algorithm design. I had to plan the sequence of actions. including how the player moves, how the pizza needs to move location, how the score increases when a pizza is collected and how the timer ends the game. I also used debugging throughout the process by testing the game in the simulator making adjustments to the speed of the pizza moving and the players movements also so that the game worked.

Overall the activity helped me understand how simple coding blocks can be combined to create an engaging educational game. I think this type of activity would be an excellent way to introduce pupils to coding while also encouraging creativity, perseverence and computational thinking in a fun way.

[Chelsey Misischi]

Hi Rachael,

I really enjoyed reading your post. I think the flashing hearts tutorial is a excellent way to introduce coding and computational thinking to junior infants. The simple repeating pattern helps children develop an understanding of sequencing and prediction while also showing that changing the code changes the outcome. I also like how you’ve made meaningful links across science, SPHE, Maths and digital learning.

One way you could strengthen this integration would be where children compare heart rates (resting, walking, jumping jacks etc) and then adjust the speed of the hearts flashing on the micro:bit to match what they observe. This could be a nice real world connection for them. Junior infants could record the results on a very simple table or pictogram and discuss what activities made their heart beat faster.

[Chelsey Misischi]

Here is the link to my project: https://makecode.microbit.org/_JdRfUyH466uC

For this activity I completed the Love Meter tutorial on Microsoft MakeCode for the micro:bit.

The project uses the micro:bit’s temperature sensor to generate a ‘love score’ when button A is pressed. The device will display some heart emoji’s before showing the percentage. This is a fun introduction to coding concepts such as inputs, variables, sequences and displaying values on the LED screen. This is a bit more of a fun project but it shows how to use the micro:bit and has easy intructions for them to follow for a first lesson.

In my classroom I would use this as part of a STEM lesson by linking it with maths with topics like percentages, chance/probability and data. My students could investigate whether results are truely random by recording the scoring and doing lots of tests. They then could display the results on some form of data chart and discuss their results. This could also be done as a friendship meter, wellbeing meter, kindness meter etc. This activity would support creativity, problem solving, and computational thinking while allowing the children to debug and improve their programming also. Activities like this could also support our schoools self evaluation (SSE) by developing digital literacy, coding skills and collaborative and integrated learning across the curriculum.

[Chelsey Misischi]

Hi Michaela,

I really enjoyed reading your reflection. One strength that stood out to me was how you already encourage pupils to explain their thinking, test different ideas and learn from their mistakes. These are so important in computational thinking and its great to see that you’ve already embedded them through collaborative learning.

I also think your action plan is very realisic because you’ve set specific, managable goals such as including one computational thinking activity each week and collecting evidence through observations and pupils work. These are practical actions that can easily become part of the classroom everyday.

One suggeestion might be to ask pupils to complete short relfections about which computational skill they used the most during an activity. This could help them regcognise the skills and also help with the school self evaluation process.

[Chelsey Misischi]

One strength in my current practice is creating hands on collaborative STEM experiences for my students and the students in the school. As STEM coordinator in my school I try to give opportunities for the pupils to engage in engineering challenges, LEGO League and real world investigations that involve computational thinking skills. An area I would like to develop further is making pupils computational thinking more visable through purposeful questioning. Over the coming term I will try to include at least one computational thinking focus such as decomposing and debugging in a STEM lesson each month. I will aim to get pupil feedback and relfections on this. I will aim to also get the pupils to explain their thinking and problem solving strategies. I will also aim to work on this with my partner teacher as it is something we could both do and we discuss what it working and what improvements we can make.

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