Integrating VEXcode VR and computer science (CS) into language arts curriculum, or language arts into CS curriculum, can help engage students in activities that you are already doing in your classroom in a new and exciting way. Vocabulary, creative writing, and exposition are parts of many language arts curricula, and frequently are skills that cross over into other subjects like math, science, social studies, and art. This article will share a few examples of VEXcode VR activities that lend themselves well to integrated learning – offering fun, engaging ways to use computer science to help students identify vocabulary, create short stories, and write expository texts.

Vocabulary

Word Search is a great way to get started to reinforce vocabulary that is relevant to your classroom. The activity itself is scaffolded so that students are finding and highlighting a number of words depending on their level. This allows students to focus on the recognition of the words, alongside the sequencing of the commands in order to highlight those words. While the activity and sample shown here emphasize words related to VEXcode VR and the VR Robot, there are many options to alter this word search in order to use words that are part of your classroom vocabulary. This could involve taking the vocabulary words for the week, or words from your word wall and incorporating them into a word search. With Art Canvas+ you can create and upload your own images. See this article to learn more about creating and uploading your own images to the Art Canvas+ Playground. 

Now we’ve talked about the value and customization options in relation to language arts, but it is also important to think about the CS concepts being covered in this activity as well. Because this activity only requires knowledge of pen commands (to highlight the words), drivetrain commands (to navigate the robot on the Playground) and sequencing (to correctly order the commands), this is a great option for novice coders. On this coding side, adjusting the size of the letters or the number of words in the search, can differentiate the activity to require more or less precision to the robot's movements.

Creative Writing

For an activity that focuses on creative writing, Constellation Creator is the option I would recommend. In this activity, students are given an image of stars and asked to create a constellation by connecting a certain number of stars (depending on the activity level). They then use the Note option in VEXcode VR to tell the story of their constellation and how it found its way into the sky. This activity can pull on threads from historical backgrounds as well if you want to discuss how ancient civilizations used constellations to organize the night sky. 

In the example here, I added a note telling the story of Nox the cat and how this curious cat found its way into the sky. This particular example is a small story, but allows students to get experience with their sequencing, drivetrain commands, and pen commands while also exercising their creativity and storytelling skills. This would be a great opportunity to have students each create their constellation and brief story, but then have them use the story in the notes in order to write their own short story or book. You could also prompt students to use items or characters from stories they are studying in the classroom and have them recreate that figure on the Playground.

Exposition

Moving to another type of writing, the Where In the World? VEXcode VR Activity incorporates expository text into level 3. This level of the activity asks students to navigate the robot to seven countries on the map and fill them in a color. Then in a Note or comment, students explain why they want to visit each of those countries. This allows students to get exposure to geography while also asking them to accomplish some research in order to learn about what exciting things are available in each of those countries. While the standard map provided by the activity showcases the entire world, you could easily substitute the map to be a single continent or region in order to focus on specific areas of the world.

This activity encourages students to think critically in order to determine what countries they are going to fill in, compare with other maps to name that country, sequence commands in order to drive the robot to drive to and fill in the country, and also research each country to write the expository text. While the example shown here provides simple explanations, you could also have your students use this as a jumping off point for a larger research project where they plan their trip around the world and what they will see in each country. Writing out how they will get to each country and what they will see is a great chance to have them practice their expository writing.

Sample Solutions

The examples shown throughout this article were taken directly from one of our sample solutions. You may know what activity you want the students to complete, but not be sure how to get them started or, they may need help to understand how they could apply the concepts they are already familiar with to the project. That’s where sample solutions can come in handy. Inside the Teacher Portal, there are links to solutions for the activities. These can be downloaded as a .zip file or by accessing a Google Drive folder. As is the case with both art and coding, there are multiple ways to solve a problem or to answer a question. So these solutions should be taken as just one of the many possibilities for each activity. If you or your students need the additional guidance for how to get started, referencing one of these solutions as an example is a great option.

These three activities only start to scratch the surface of what's possible when VEXcode VR is integrated into your language arts classroom. When students have the opportunity to practice and apply their writing skills in a new setting, it gives them the chance to creatively express themselves in a new way. And this is all accomplished by practicing things in your classroom that you are already familiar with! Writing stories, crafting expository text, and identifying vocabulary are key elements of every language arts classroom. These skills are often combined with math, science and social studies to create cross-curricular connections. Why not add a new subject to your toolbelt and use VEXcode VR to bring CS into language arts learning?