Developing foundational computational thinking through Scratch programming and Māori perspectives on technology
Ten lessons that build a working Scratch project — sequence, loops, variables, conditionals, broadcasting, game mechanics, animation, debugging, capstone. Choose it when your class has reliable device access and you want ākonga making something they can run and show. If you want the ideas owned on paper first, take the unplugged route — but check its device profile before you plan: five of its eight lessons need no devices, and lessons 5, 7 and 8 still need Scratch on a device.
Other teaching approach: Unplugged Computational Thinking Seminar →Duration: 10 lessons of roughly 55 minutes · Years 7–8 · reliable device access needed from Lesson 2 on.
Developing foundational computational thinking by building working Scratch projects, and by looking honestly at what digital technology does for and to communities in Aotearoa.
Curriculum: two curricula are carried side by side and are never merged into one claim. Under Te Mātaiaho this unit sits in Technology — Phase 3 (Years 7–8), in the computational-thinking / algorithms and programming material. Under The New Zealand Curriculum (2007) it sits in Technology, Levels 3–4. Kaiako should check the wording of the achievement objective or progress outcome they are reporting against in their own school's current documentation — this page does not quote either curriculum verbatim.
Breaking problems into smaller, manageable parts
Identifying similarities and patterns in data
Focusing on essential features, ignoring irrelevant details
Step-by-step instructions to solve problems
There are two pieces of assessed work in this unit and no others. Everything else is formative and lives inside the lessons.
This unit blends computational thinking, programming, digital citizenship, and Māori perspectives to create an engaging, culturally responsive learning experience. Students will leave with foundational coding skills and an understanding of how technology shapes Aotearoa.
The four pillars of computational thinking, breaking down complex tasks, and writing step-by-step unplugged algorithms.
Scratch interface navigation, block categories, X/Y stage coordinate plane, and animated sprite sequences.
Count-controlled repeat loops vs infinite forever loops, sprite walking cycles, and Scratch Pen geometric art.
Creating variables for score and timers, capturing user keyboard inputs, and interactive Whakawhanaungatanga chatbots.
Boolean true/false logic, Sensing block triggers, 'if-then-else' decision trees, and maze game collision detection.
Event-driven broadcast signals, multi-sprite dialogues, scene transitions, and multi-actor story animation.
Score tracking, lives countdown systems, win/loss broadcast screens, moving obstacles, and simple jumping physics.
Retelling traditional Māori legends digitally, te reo Māori audio voiceovers, and cultural visual motifs in Scratch.
Diagnosing errors in block code — the script runs but does the wrong thing — plus Rubber Duck Debugging, variable state inspection, the Bug Clinic and structured peer code reviews.
Technology · Computational Thinking · Te Mātaiaho (2025 draft Technology syllabus), Phase 2 statement carried as this unit’s spine
“Challenging computational thinking problems can be solved using instructions (algorithms) that include ordered steps (sequence), decisions (selection), and repeated actions (loops).”
This is the unit in one sentence: Lesson 2 sequences, Lesson 3 loops, Lesson 5 selects, and Lessons 7–10 combine all three into projects. The NZC 2007 Technology strands — Technological Practice, Technological Knowledge, Nature of Technology — are carried across the same ten lessons and named in each lesson’s planning notes. The two curricula are carried side by side in the overview above and never merged into one claim.
📑 The unplugged twin route teaches the same ideas on paper for classes without reliable devices.
Final original Scratch game or pūrākau animation, publishing to class studio, peer playtesting, and logbook reflection.
These eight lessons are the mostly unplugged route through the same Year 7 computational-thinking ideas — reasoning, argument and paper modelling rather than on-screen building. Five of them (1, 2, 3, 4 and 6) run with no devices at all; lessons 5, 7 and 8 need Scratch on a device. They live in the Unplugged Computational Thinking Seminar, and open there. Use them if you have no reliable device access, or run them before this Studio route so ākonga own the ideas before they type them.
A runnable 60-minute Years 7–8 lesson on writing, testing and revising precise algorithms.
OpenA runnable Years 7–8 lesson on decomposition, inputs, actions, outputs and abstraction.
OpenA runnable Years 7–8 first Scratch lesson using events, sequences and pair testing.
OpenA runnable Years 7–8 Scratch lesson on repetition, count-controlled loops and efficient code.
OpenA runnable Years 7–8 Scratch lesson on input, Boolean conditions and if/else behaviour.
OpenA runnable Years 7–8 debugging lab with three concrete Scratch bugs and a focused test protocol.
OpenA runnable Years 7–8 design-and-build studio for an authentic interactive Scratch outcome.
OpenA runnable Years 7–8 summative lesson built around user testing, revision and a working Scratch project showcase.
Open