Kids Get Coding

Programming Games and Animation

Reading level: Grade 3 Reading Standards
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.1: Ask and answer questions to
Subject: Math demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as
the basis for the answers.
Materials: • CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.2: Determine the main idea of a text;
• a book for each student recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
• chalkboard or dry-erase board • CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.3: Describe the relationship between
• magnetic letters a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in
• pens, pencils, dry-erase markers technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time,
• sticky notes (optional) sequence, and cause/effect.
• dictionaries • CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.7: Use information gained from
• Programming Games and Animation illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to
Activity handout (optional) demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and
how key events occur).
• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.8: Describe the logical connection
between particular sentences and paragraphs in a text (e.g.,
comparison, cause/effect, first/second/third in a sequence).

Targeted Reading Strategy:

Sequencing.

Academic vocabulary: animate, bug, code, costume,

debug, programmer, characters, activities,
switch, instructions, screen, keyboard,
laptop, console, gaming, goggles, tablets,
microprocessors
High-frequency words: different, sorts, right, means,
used, even, either, complete, prefer, about,
such, begin
Before Reading
Build Background Knowledge
• Programming Games and Animation is full of content that may be a fresh concept to many students. It is
recommended to break the book into sections or chunks for most efficient small group reading instruction.
• Introduce the book Programming Games and Animation by showing students the cover and reading the title. Ask
students what their favorite computer games are. Ask them what kinds of games they like. Make a tally graph in the
classroom of favorite types of games.
• Explain that some games are animated and some aren’t—have students explain the difference. Then tell students that
the educational games they use in school for math, spelling, and science are also considered games and that some of
these can be found on the internet and some need to be purchased.
• Ask students if they know what the instructions are called that tell a computer how a game works. Explain they are
called code and can be written in blocks. Remind students that all computer programs are written in code. Codes
are a form of instructions. Point to page 3 and read out loud the data duck information to help students better
understand this information.

Copyright © 2018 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. Lerner Digital™ and Lerner eSource™
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are trademarks of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. All rights reserved. www.lernerbooks.com ISBN 978-1-5124-0005-1 1
Kids Get Coding
Programming Games and Animation
• Begin a book walk by looking at the table of contents. Ask students what they think the titles have to do with
programming games and animation. Discuss as students interact with the words in the table of contents. Point out
the headings of each section and have students look at the pictures and make predictions as you go. Look for clues
as to why the titles of these sections were named what they are. Ask students to locate the glossary (“Words to
Remember”) and index as well.
• Introduce the story-critical vocabulary words from the “Words to Remember” section of the book (glossary) and
review the academic vocabulary section of the lesson plan. Review the correct pronunciation for the multisyllabic
words animate, costume, debug, programmer, characters, activities, instructions, keyboard, laptop, console, gaming,
goggles, tablets, microprocessors.
• Have students vocalize the words to familiarize themselves before they read. Remind students to use word solving
strategies and the text features to figure out other new words on the pages.
• Go over the word meanings for the aforementioned words; if the words are not listed in the “Words to Remember”
section, find the words in the text and use the context clues and the information the students already know about
the subject to problem solve.
–– Remind students of the strategies they can use to sound out words they don’t know. For example, they can use
what they know about letter and sound correspondence to figure out the word. They can look for words within
words, and prefixes and suffixes. They can use the context to work out meanings of unfamiliar words. For example,
show students that if they did not know the meaning of the word animate, they could look it up in the “Words to
Remember” section to get the meaning by reading the definition but they could also find it on page 9 and read
the words and sentences around it.
• Read page 9 out loud and point out that animate means to make things move on a screen.
Skill Introduction
• Explain to students that they are going to be learning about sequencing information. Coding simply means putting
information into order so a computer can follow instructions to complete a task. It is important that the code is
written in a specific order so that the computer knows what to do or the game will not work properly.

Think-aloud: Let’s think about why it is important to put things in order. If I were baking a cake, it would be
important for me to follow the directions in the correct order so that the cake comes out correctly. If I skipped an
ingredient or did not follow the directions in the correct order what would happen? Discuss outcomes with students
(it may not bake properly, it may not rise, it may not taste right, it may not look right, it may be too gooey, too
hard, etc.). Sequencing information helps readers understand information while reading by putting it in order.
Putting information into some kind of order, or sequence, allows learners to break down the information into
smaller chunks to make sense of it easier.

• Explain to students that they will be reading about how to create games with and without animation on the
computer. When writing the code for these games during the programming, it is critical that the code be written in
a specific order. If the code or code block is not written in that order, the game or animation will not work properly.
Make sure students understand this concept before moving on to read.

During Reading
Check for Understanding
• Guide students as they read and tell them to stop on page 9 (you may want to place a sticky note there). Fast
finishers can reread until everyone is finished. Students should be reading silently or quietly to themselves so everyone
can read at their own pace.

Copyright © 2018 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. Lerner Digital™ and Lerner eSource™
™

are trademarks of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. All rights reserved. www.lernerbooks.com ISBN 978-1-5124-0005-1 2
Kids Get Coding
Programming Games and Animation
• Model targeted skill: Sequencing.

Think-aloud: As I was reading, I noticed on pages 6-9 that the author uses words and pictures to show the
process of planning/creating a game and actually writing the beginning stages of code. I noticed that it is so
important the correct steps are written because without them, the game will not work properly. For example, on
page 9 the author purposely leaves out some words in the code block to see if the reader can figure out the missing
word. If the word isn’t written correctly or is left out of the code blocks, the animation will not work properly. The
sequence must be written correctly. Does this make sense? I began thinking of other things I do daily that follow
certain steps. For example, I have to get my children ready for school. If I didn’t follow the steps and make sure
they are ready on time and get them out the door in the correct order, then they would miss their bus and be late
for school. Can you think of something you do that you must follow in steps?

• Discuss other things students can relate with sequencing.

• Have students finish reading the next section or assign a stopping point. Remind them to think about sequencing as
they read and the steps the author discusses for writing games with and without animation and why it is important.
Also, think about how writing a book in a sequential order is important. Ask students if it would make sense for the
author to first discuss how to write the code for animation before discussing what animation is.
• Have students place a small sticky note next to any word they cannot read or understand. This can be discussed at
the stopping point or after the book is read.

After Reading
Response to Text
• Discuss the different sequence of events through the end of the book with the students in from various sections. Ask
questions about why it might be important to do these things in this order. Then ask students why it is important to
write books in a particular order. Point out that all books have a beginning, middle, and end.

Think-aloud: I learned a lot of new information about programming games with and without animation. I know
that when I read nonfiction books I do not need to read the entire book from cover to cover but each section is
written in sequential order too. I understand how important it is to follow steps in sequential order whether it is a
recipe, instructions to build something, to play a game, to brush my teeth, etc. When we skip steps or when steps
are done out of order, the outcome is not the same. This is the same for building and programming computer
games. The games will work if and only if the codes are written in the correct order.

• Remind students that when they think about the order of events or the order they do something in, they should
think about what they know and use that knowledge to help them better understand the contents of this book.
• Now that have learned about sequencing, have them complete the handout.
Word Work
• Sound boxes activity: Use your high-frequency words to write how many sounds you hear in each word. This is
different than how many letters or how many syllables. Listening to the phonemes is important for phoneme
segmentation. For example, sometimes two letters make one sound such as ph, which makes the f sound. So if
we were counting sounds, we would count it as one sound. Let’s look at the word code from the list. To start the
students off, create a sheet that has sound boxes—there is an example below. Each box stands for a letter in the
word. Then, give the students counters or chips to represent the sounds. Everytime the students hear a sound, they
move a chip into the box.

Copyright © 2018 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. Lerner Digital™ and Lerner eSource™
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are trademarks of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. All rights reserved. www.lernerbooks.com ISBN 978-1-5124-0005-1 3
Kids Get Coding
Book title here
• The word code would look like this:

C O D
Notice there is no chip in the last box because the e is silent and we cannot hear it. Have students do this for each
academic vocabulary and/or high-frequency word.
Extension Activity
• Have students put the events of their day in order.
• They will need to draw a picture and write words to match each event.
• They need to begin with the first thing they do when they wake up in the morning and end with the last thing they
do at night when going to bed.
• Have them only include the most important events throughout the day. For example, they do not have to write
each and everything they do during the school day, but may write that they go to school as one event.
• The students may want to use scratch paper beforehand and jot down which events they are going to include and
the order in which they will go in. This way, they can divide a large piece of construction paper into sections so that
they have room to include a picture and write their words. This will also help them be sure they have not forgotten
any steps prior to making a final copy.
• Students may want to number each event as well.

Copyright © 2018 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. Lerner Digital™ and Lerner eSource™
™

are trademarks of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. All rights reserved. www.lernerbooks.com ISBN 978-1-5124-0005-1 4
Kids Get Coding
Programming Games and Animation
Name:

Programming Games and Animation Activity

Pretend that the following coding blocks are from a game. Read them and add any
information that is missing and/or put any information needed in sequential order.
Use the text to help you.
1. When the down arrow key is pressed When the down arrow key is pressed

Point in down direction Point in direction

Move ten steps Move ten steps

When the left arrow key is pressed When the left arrow key is pressed

Point in direction Move ten steps

Move ten steps Point in left direction

2. When Rafa is clicked

Repeat five times

Switch to forehand

Pause for one second

Switch to backhand

Pause for second

Switch to forehand

for one minute

Switch to

for one forehand

Can you figure out what sport this code is for? There are two hints; one is the name and
the other is that you need a forehand and a backhand to play. If you aren’t sure, think about
what resources you can use to help you figure it out.

Copyright © 2018 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. Lerner Digital™ and Lerner eSource™
™

are trademarks of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. All rights reserved. www.lernerbooks.com ISBN 978-1-5124-0005-1 5