Software Engineering Demo for a K-5 Career Fair?

gmjohnston asks: "A local elementary school is having a Career Fair in a couple of weeks and I volunteered. The idea is for parents with various jobs and careers to show and tell the kids a little bit about what their's is, why they think it's interesting and rewarding, etc. It's to try to give kids a little early exposure to some of the diverse kinds of things one can do with one's life. I'm a software engineer, so I'd like to show something that has to do with programming or Computer Science, but which would be interesting to an elementary school student." What would be the best way to illustrate what a software engineer does to a group of primary school kids? "I'm trying to come up with something like what got me hooked way back when, which was when my Organic Chemistry professor in college showed me a listing of a Basic program (Basic Plus on a PDP-11/70 running RSTS/E if you must know) and I realized that, computers relied on a bunch of instructions that tell the machine what to do, and that if I could change the instructions then I could make the machine do what *I* want it to do! I'll have my laptop with me and I'll be at a table that the kids will be able to gather around and see the screen (or potentially do something themselves on the laptop, depending on what I come up with). Of course, showing them the kind of code I really work on (software development tools) would likely instantly bore them to death. So, the question is: What should I show? If other Slashdot readers have done this kind of thing, what did you do and how did it work out?"

Comments

Start with Basic

[EdZ]

Set up a little Basic introduction, the old 'Hello World' schtick. 'Help' them type out the code (all 2 incredible lines of it!) and watch them marvel in thier instant command of the computer.

Re:Graphical stuff it the way to go

[Chemisor]

I would argue against fractals. Although the code is reasonably simple, it is very mathematical, and that is not something modern children can understand. In fact, for the fifth grade, games are pretty much the only option, since when a kid thinks of computers it's either games or homework. And you definitely don't want them to associate computer science with homework; you'll ruin their surprize when they go work for EA.

Beakman's World

[wowbagger]

Beakman's World did a pretty good demonstration about this, and you may be able to do an adaptation of that approach:

You need things:

1. A collection of Nerf balls (or other soft small throwable objects).
2. A hoop of some sort.
3. A whiteboard and dry-erase markers.
4. A person to play the CPU.
5. A person to play the Engineer.

On the whiteboard you write the Requirements:

Design a program to get the CPU to throw a ball through the hoop.

The CPU is only allowed to execute instructions that are written on a whiteboard by the Engineer.

The CPU is to be as literal as possible when interpreting the instructions - so if the instructions are:

1. Throw ball at hoop

Then the CPU should pantomime throwing something, because the Program does not include the instruction "Pick up the ball".

Start with just the "Requirements" on the whiteboard. As the kids come up, you explain the rules, and let them tell you what instructions to write down.

You can even have a bit more fun - if a kid starts suggesting your standard juvenile crap ("Have him scratch his butt <snicker>") you can pull a Donald - "You have been caught goofing off at work - YOU'RE FIRED!".

If you are real meanie, you can even do more of the experience:

• The PHB, who randomly changes the spec
• The Hardware Engineer, who designs the hardware ("OOPS! - the CPU cannot pick up the balls because the arm is too short! Hardware Revision!")
• the Vendor ("Oh No! The balls have gone End-Of-Life, and we have to find a replacement!")
• The Marketing Guy ("I can't sell this doody - make it sing too!")
• The Auditor ("You have failed to use the proper font for your program - your ISO-9000 certification is revoked - unless you want to hire me as a consultant to help you be in compliance....")

For the past few years...

[mrsbrisby]

I've actually done this at the local schools.

It's a great deal of fun, and believe it or not, it won't bore them. Adults fear engineers (especially software engineers) because they think what they're doing is something that they cannot do.

As a result, they actively ignore your attempts to educate them. They think it's just out of reach and would rather appear rude and bored than stupid.

Of course, kids don't know this yet. They're fully willing. They most certainly will understand graphs, functions, tries, and so on. They'll understand it because [as we know] it's not hard, and they're not yet programmed to avoid it.

Show them LOGO; Show them C; Show them the inside of what they think a computer is, then smash open the hard drive and toss the platters around.

They'll love it.

Show them what it means to hack, and how much enjoyment it can bring. Show them your adhoc EIDE hotplug system (so they can try it at home) - show them anything you can. They most certainly will follow.

I must say, there's nothing quite like a third-grader asking why we "don't just all use assymetric cryptography all the time", or how the world let Ben Franklen get away with messing up the plus-minus on battery schematics.

The teachers monitoring you will roll their eyes, but the kids _will_ get it.