Lift-Off with CodeX - Unit 3 Remix & Assessment
Create Your Own CodeX Project
Students apply the servo, object sensor, and moisture sensor skills from Missions 7-9 to design, build, and present an original CodeX program, then show what they know on the Unit 3 assessment.
Overview
This page closes out Unit 3 with two paired components: the Unit 3 Remix Project and the Unit 3 Assessment. Together they give students a chance to use the skills from Missions 7, 8, and 9 creatively and then demonstrate mastery of them. Students follow the five steps of the design process to plan, build, test, and share an original CodeX program that reimagines the servo, object sensor, and moisture sensor in a new setting, then complete the review and exam questions for the unit.
🎯 Remix Project Goal: Students will use the skills and concepts they learned in Missions 7, 8, and 9 to create their own project.
✅ Assessment Goal: Students will demonstrate mastery of Unit 3 vocabulary, coding, and concepts through review questions, a Kahoot! review, and a unit exam.
Learning Targets
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I can follow the five steps of the design process to create a remix project.
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I can peer review a remix project.
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I can meet the requirements of a rubric.
Assessment Opportunities
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Remix 3 Project Planning Guide
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Peer reviews
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Gallery walk
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Remix 3 Success Criteria (checklist)
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Submit Remix program
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Review Questions from Mission 7, Mission 8, and Mission 9
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Kahoot! review
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Unit 3 Assessment Questions (MS Forms, or your own LMS)
Success Criteria
- An LED or the NeoPixel ring is used, with appropriate constants and function
- At least two additional peripherals are used, with appropriate constants and functions: servo, light sensor, object sensor, microswitch, relay, or moisture sensor
- Uses at least one new programming concept: nested if statements, a finite-state machine with a variable that tracks the state, a button press with break, or the timeout feature of a loop
- Includes something extra (sound, additional peripherals, screen display, etc.)
- Includes comments and whitespace for readability
- Code runs with no errors
Remix Resources
Assessment Resources
- ▸ Lift-Off Unit 3 Questions
- ▸ Lift-Off Unit 3 Review Kahoot!
- ▸ Lift-Off Unit 3 Exam (MS Forms)
Remix Project Ideas
During these missions, students used peripherals for movement (a servo), sensing an object, and determining moisture. Peripherals can also be used in many other applications. For the remix, students reimagine the peripherals and CodeX in a different setting: their house or room, at school, in nature, and so on. Encourage them to try the peripherals in a different combination.
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Review the extensions from each mission. Apply the idea from the extension to a different setting.
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Think about a time when something needs to move to a specific position and stay there. Students can use the 180 servo to simulate the movement, and add the NeoPixel ring as an indicator.
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Think about an application that could use an automatic timer: turning a servo on and off for a specific task (like the life support fan), or lighting the NeoPixel ring (like an airport landing strip).
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What can the moisture sensor be used for besides soil? Students design an experiment and use additional peripherals along with the moisture sensor.
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Set up a finite-state machine in a different setting that uses other sensors, input peripherals, and a servo.
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Think of your own creative project with LEDs, sensors, and a servo in a different application.
CSTA Standards
The Unit 3 Remix Project covers the standards for Missions 7, 8, and 9. In addition, the remix gives students an opportunity to work collaboratively in a team. These additional standards are met when students work collaboratively in teams and incorporate feedback from users.
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Be familiar with using the CodeSpace Sandbox and selecting a scene.
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Select a rubric for the remix project. You can use one of the rubrics provided, use the success criteria checklist, or develop your own.
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Two rubrics are provided. Both may include standards or requirements that are not covered in Unit 3. You can modify the rubrics as needed.
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Decide how students will submit their remix program, and whether the unit exam will run in MS Forms or in your own LMS.
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The slides can be used to introduce the remix project and give students ideas for their own project.
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The planning guide walks students through the design process. It can be assigned digitally or printed.
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Students will need their peripherals kit for the remix. Unit 3 asks for two additional peripherals, so remind them that the divider lets them run two peripherals from one port.
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Use the review questions from Missions 7, 8, and 9, plus the Kahoot! review, to prepare students for the unit exam.
Lesson Outline
Introduce the idea of a remix project.
- Ask: "What is a remix?" Take responses from students, then show the remix slide from the slide deck.
- Ask: "Where else could you use a servo, an object sensor, or a moisture sensor besides a spacecraft?" Validate all answers, and keep a running list on the board for students who need an idea later.
Give students the Unit 3 Remix Project Planning Guide, either digitally or in print.
- Walk through the success criteria so students know what the finished project has to include: an LED or the NeoPixel ring, at least two more peripherals, and at least one new programming concept.
- Go through Step 1 of the design process using the slides.
- Give students time to look back at their Mission 7-9 programs and start filling out the planning guide.
Students work through Steps 2-5 of the design process, filling out the planning guide as they go.
- Brainstorm ideas. The slides and the project ideas list give suggestions. Students do not have to use one of these, but they can if they are stuck.
- Make a plan. Students decide which peripherals they need and how they will wire them, so they are not staring at a blank screen when they start coding. If they are building a finite-state machine, have them list the states and the variable that tracks them before they write any code.
- Code the project. Students use the CodeSpace Sandbox. Remind them to start a new file with a descriptive filename, to set up constants for each peripheral, and to add code incrementally and test as they go.
- Feedback and documentation. Students add comments to their code and get feedback from peers. The planning guide has space for two reviews, and the peer review form is also available on its own.
Give every student a chance to show their remix project with a gallery walk. Students leave feedback for each other as they go.
Students complete the reflection questions in the planning guide. Use a think-pair-share strategy to validate student answers.
Close out the unit with a review and an exam.
- Review with the questions from Missions 7, 8, and 9, or run the Kahoot! review.
- Give the Unit 3 Exam. It is provided as an MS Form, or you can use the question document to build the exam in your own LMS.
- Collect the remix program and score it with the rubric or the success criteria checklist you selected.