Abstract:

Young children are constantly surrounded by technology, from their toothbrushes to their parents’ new iPad, yet we teach very little about technologies, especially new digital technologies, in the early school years. One innovative way for children to learn about digital technologies in the world around them is by integrating developmentally appropriate computing programs into early childhood classrooms.

CHERP is a developmentally appropriate hybrid tangible-graphical computer programming interface for young children (ages 4 – 7) in which physical blocks with attached pieces of code are used to program Lego ® Mindstorm robots.

This paper examines the impact on sequencing ability of computer programming in a robotics context for young children. Thirty-four children (ages 4.5 – 6.5) were studied in a lab setting, attending four one and one half hour programming sessions over an average of 17.8 days. The participants’ sequencing abilities were pretested prior to engaging in the sessions. The participants were then post-tested at the conclusion of the four sessions. Pretest and post-test scores on sequencing measurements were analyzed and scores were compared to the participants’ performance during the sessions.

Keywords:

Early childhood, kindergarten, computers, programming, sequencing.