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Goal

In the wizarding world of Harry Potter, upon receiving their invitation to attend Hogwarts School, students visited Olivander’s wand shop, where the wand chose the wizard. In Tommie Barfield Elementary school, I would like my students to visit my technology classroom to first assemble and then code, or program, a “magic” wand, modeled after the famed Harry Potter from JK Rowling’s Harry Potter book and movie series. My goals for this project are to utilize the Kano Harry Potter Coding Wands in my Technology Classes to teach my students how to build a very engaging piece of technology, understanding its different components, and how to code, or program, the technology. Also through this project, my students will learn science, math, and social skills involved in assembling and coding the wand. My students will apply coding skills learned from previous years’ lessons in my tech class to learn the new coding app that comes with the Kano Harry Potter Coding Wand. Next, my students will learn that technology can enhance ELA (English Language Arts) skills, particularly reading comprehension as this project will put my students into the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, as they can digitally “live” parts of the book series, bringing it to life. Another goal of this project is to teach my students the joy, love for, and excitement of interactive technology - who wouldn’t want a magic wand? Finally, this project will promote my students’ creativity and innovation, as they think of their own “spells” to code the wand to perform. 

What will be done with my students

First, my students will work with a classmate to use reading skills to understand the instructions and social skills to cooperate with a classmate in order to build a Kano Harry Potter Coding wand. Next, my students will learn the technology pieces inside the wand that make it work. The components of the Kano Harry Potter Coding Wands include the sensors, circuit board, power, lights and buttons. The wand has three motion sensors that sense different wand movements in the air. The Gyroscope senses gravity, the Accelerometer senses speeds of wand movement, and the Magnetometer, that mathematically calculates wand direction movement in angles. The circuit board has a Bluetooth antenna that communicates the information from the motion sensors wirelessly to the iPad/laptop being used with the wand. Next, the wand contains a power unit fueled by two AAA batteries, and several lights and buttons on the outside of the unit. My students will learn both science and math as they understand the sensors that detect wand movements.
Second, with the Kano Harry Potter Coding Wands assembled, my students will set to work applying previously learned skills in coding, or building computer programs, in the free app that comes along with the Kano Harry Potter Coding Wands. The app contains over 70 creative challenges that my students can complete with a partner, by following step by step instructions to program the wand to sense specific motions that cause specific actions to occur on screen of the iPad/laptop. For example, students connect the blocks of code, similar to puzzle pieces each with its own instruction to the iPad/laptop, for “swish” and “flick”, and then connects the block of code to show a feather to float up in the air on the screen. Next, when the student holds the wand and moves the wand in a swish motion and then a flicking motion with the wand, the screen of the iPad/laptop will show a feather floating up on the screen, just like Hermione, Harry Potter’s friend, did in the first book. Third, my students will use their creativity and collaboration skills to innovate their own “spells”, by building code for the wand, to cause new actions.
 

Benefits to my students

The Kano Harry Potter Coding Wands opens the door for my tech class students to learn to create technology, not just consume it. They can begin to become magical computer programmers! Our world’s need for trained programmers in the next 10-20 years is massive, as technology integrates societal functioning continuously - everything uses technology nowadays, from car repairs, to washer/dryers, to shopping, just to name a few. My students can begin to learn NOW future career-skills. My fifth graders graduate high school in 8 years. My fourth graders graduate high school in 9 years. My third graders graduate high school in 10 years. If I can start them on the path of becoming programmers now, the future is wide open for them!
The Kano Harry Potter Coding Wands will also benefit my students because the learning in the accompanying app is endless. Once my students complete over 70 coding wand challenges in the app, they can create, modify, remix, and recreate new “spells” for the wands. Kano Harry Potter Coding Wands are not a “one and Done” project, meaning once they’re built students are done. The wands are disassembled and reassembled, so once purchased, I can continue to teach my current and future students how to build and program (code) a Kano Harry Potter Coding Wand!
Finally, the Kano Harry Potter Coding Wands provide a high-interest, motivating way for me to teach my students cooperative learning skills. With my Technology Class sizes between 20 (3rd grade) and 25-30 (4th and 5th grades), my students will work with the Kano Harry Potter Coding Wands in groups of 2 students. Thus providing me with the opportunity to teach and provide practice for my students in such cooperative skills as: active listening, taking turns, communicating ideas, respectful manners, and many other social skills necessary in the world today.
 

Budget Narrative

The Kano Harry Potter Coding Wand is the only piece of this project that needs funding. Each requires two AAA batteries, which I will purchase with my own money. Our school library has a full set of the Harry Potter book series on shelf, public library has the complete sets of both the audio cds and the movie DVDs of the complete Harry Potter series. The Kano app for the Harry Potter Coding Wands is free and works both on laptop computers and iPads, both of which my school has available to me. All of which will compliment the excitement and learning of my students. 

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