Playing Turtle Blocks!

Playing Turtle Blocks!

Turtle Blocks is a fun way to educate children how to code by allowing them to create art with the basic coding languages. Languages such as "repeat" are important keywords of coding. Art is created by programming elements which are integrated in the activity. Thus, Turtle Blocks can serve as an entertaining yet educational way for children to learn how to code inside or outside the classroom. Thus, using this program especially during class will want its users to utilize it even more by themselves at home because of the several things they can do. 

How:

1. Where to find

Turtle Blocks can easily be accessible without download by going to sugarizer.org. It can be found alongside several other Sugar activities as well.

2. Playing the game

The picture above includes the basic guide in using Turtle Blocks.

(1)    Palette buttons: Contains the different blocks that can be used to create an art in the canvas.

(2)    Fast Mode: Also known as “Run Fast.” It speeds up the project when it is played.

(3)    Slow Mode: Also known as “Run Slow.” It slows down the project when it is played.

(4)    Step by step: It allows the project to run in a step by step process.

(5)    Stop: Prompts the project to stop playing if it is being played.

(6)    Clean: It clears up the screen.

(7)    Show/hide palettes: it makes the palettes either appear.

(8)    Show/hide blocks: it either makes the blocks appear or disappear.

(9)    Expand/collapse blocks: it either makes the stacks of blocks expand or collapse.

The best way to get to know these buttons is to try it yourself!

Turtle Blocks is definitely a fast way to learn coding. To get to learn how to effectively use Turtle Blocks, the following manuals will be of great help.

(1)    Introductory Manual: http://people.sugarlabs.org/walter/TurtleBlocksIntroductoryManual.pdf

(2)    Advanced Manual: http://people.sugarlabs.org/walter/TurtleBlocksAdvancedBlocksManual.pdf

Further, refer to this link for another guide as well: https://github.com/walterbender/turtleblocksjs/blob/master/guide/README.md


Turtle Blocks Review by Jaeeun Park is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

☆ GCI experience ☆

As a new year began, I contemplated on the best decisions I've made the previous year. I realized I had a handful and one of them was joining GCI. As I completed several tasks for Sugar Labs, it completely felt like I was stepping into a whole new world I never knew existed. Personally, it was the first time in my life that I was able to partake in the open source community and contribute to it, albeit in very simple ways, with the guidance of the mentors from Sugar Labs. 

Ultimately, through all the tasks I've claimed and accomplished, I was able to learn several things with the support of the mentors. They were very helpful and even answered the silliest of the questions with extreme patience. Nevertheless, without their help, I wouldn't have procured the most significant attainment from the overall experience, which is that I was able to learn. You see, these kinds of opportunities are very rare for me. Thus, all of the tasks I've completed, such as researching about the women in the open source community, making a manual for Turtle Blocks, or hosting a DIY SoaS party, were all extraordinary and helped me to gain diverse experiences and insights. True, I've spent countless sleepless nights balancing my school work and completing the tasks, yet they were all worth it at the end of the day because during the process, I had fun and discovered many things I did not know before. 

However, one difficulty I encountered while completing the tasks for Sugar Labs was that the instructions were quite general or vague. Nonetheless, because of this, it made the tasks very uncontrolled and gave room for  creativity. As a result, I was able to challenge myself and learn even more. 

Now that GCI 2014 is ending very soon, I have to admit, it is quite upsetting. My email won't be my Facebook anymore (since all the notifications were sent to my email address and I checked them, like every 5 minutes) nor would I be freeing my afternoon schedule to complete the tasks. Even so, I am still very fortunate that I can look forward to GCI 2015.

---

Encountering the open source community for the first time

   Ever since I first entered high school, I possessed an ardent dream to work at Google someday. That is why I oftentimes researched on opportunities Google provides. One day, I found out that Google was hosting Google Code-in 2014 and I knew it was an opportunity for me to be exposed to some of the most basic works Google carries out. 


However, upon joining the contest, there were several impediments I knew I had. First, I didn’t know what an open source community was and neither have I ever encountered such terminology in the past. In addition, I realized that I can't do much except for documentation or researching since I have absolutely no knowledge of coding or other computer technology skills as I have never been given an opportunity to learn about it.

Nevertheless, it was this one task that opened my eyes to the open source. I had to make a video presentation which celebrated the women in the open source community. I spent more than a whole weekend researching about these women, and since these women are wholeheartedly devoted to the open source community, it was the first time ever that I had a glimpse of what it was and why people are zealously working for it. It was then when I suddenly had the urge to want to learn how to code so that I can involve myself and actively contribute to the open source community.


Ultimately, my personal goal by the end of GCI is to learn and grasp the basics of coding and maybe other skills as well. With these skills, I wish to become a committed contributor of the open source. In addition, it would also be great if I get even more accustomed to the Open Source Community as young as I am currently.

Some of the completed tasks

Women in the Open Source Community

Let's face it. It'll still be a long way to go before women will be devoid of sexism in the diverse fields of society. Women face discrimination in every aspect of life as they have no choice but to live in a patriarchal society. The open source community is not an exception. However, there are those inspirational people who break the deadlock society has set up for them. They work against orthodox ideas and disprove the double standards they grew up with.

While working on this project (to celebrate the women of the open source community), I realized that even though being successful in the open source community for a woman is much more challenging as compared to their male counterparts, it is still possible. With the great role models, such as Carol Smith, or Claudia Urrea, who are passionate, persevering, experienced, and determined, any girl can look up to them and follow their dreams. These women are the representations of the several other women out there in the open source community who also possess the characteristics that will eventually lead them to accomplishment despite the social stigma that might hinder them at least once in their journey.

To encourage more women to participate in the open source community while partaking in the war against sexism, the best way, I suppose, is to celebrate those who are accomplished and support those who are beginning to. Although I'm still a newbie in the open source community and barely know much about it, this project has served as a first step to get to know it more while helping me empower women in this little way. Once again, fighting for equity for all genders in the open source community will be a long way to go, however, it is a war everyone has to participate in with their own little deeds.

Sugar on a Stick Party!

Just earlier today, I had the opportunity to hold a DIY Sugar on a Stick party. Although everything was planned in a short span of time, with the cooperation of the participants, the whole activity went fairly smooth. 5 people decided to join the activity and learned about Sugar Labs' Sugar on a Stick. They were all new to this and it was a pleasure introducing the Sugar on a Stick and its functions to them.

Before the event began.    

Sugar on a Stick

                                      Explaining the basics of Sugar Labs and Sugar on a Stick.

Participants listening before making their own SoaS.

Some technical errors occurred, and it was handled fairly. 

 Participants making their own SoaS.

Pictures of some of the participants who successfully made their own SoaS

and received a Certificate of Participation. 

Overall, it was a unique experience for all of us. It was also great knowing that most of the participants had younger siblings back home and found a new way to engage their siblings into educational games. 

BEST AND WORST OF 2014

Found this on Google. Absolutely an interesting read!

Before the year 2014 ends, taking a moment to recollect what happened will definitely help you go through another one.

https://www.google.com/trends/2014/

Google - Year in Search 2014

This is breathtaking.