From Blocks to Syntax: Building Deep Programming Understanding

This professional learning session prepares educators to effectively teach the progression from block-based to text-based programming aligned to required curriculum competencies. Participants will explore algorithmic thinking, pseudocode development, control structures, variables, functions, debugging strategies, abstraction, and ethical programming practices. Through hands-on coding experiences and structured comparisons across languages, educators will strengthen their ability to guide students from foundational coding concepts (DOK2) to structured problem-solving, analysis, and program development (DOK3).

Learning Outcomes:

1.    Explain and model the progression from block-based to text-based programming, emphasizing shared concepts such as variables, conditionals, loops, functions, and abstraction.

2.    Design coding lessons that promote algorithmic thinking, debugging, and problem decomposition, using pseudocode, flow diagrams, and structured programming practices.

3.    Guide students in evaluating code quality, ethical considerations, and AI-assisted programming tools, while fostering critical thinking about reliability, efficiency, and readability.