Hi Sarah and folks, I'm using SciTE on Windows XP and Shoes 2 (0.r1134).
- Create the following two files. - Open shoes_launcher.rb with SciTE. - Push `F5` key. - Will launch shoes_app.rb `#! shoes` is important at the first line in shoes_app.rb. # shoes_launcher.rb %x(ruby shoes_app.rb) #! shoes # shoes_app.rb Shoes.app do para 'Hi, all!' end I think this tip can work with any other editors. But, I have no other editors, no Unix and Mac... Hope it helps, ashbb ps. > Shoes class #2 Congrats! :-D > I think I'll change it next week to add some > interactivity So cool! If you need some help about Shoes, feel free let me know. I'd like to help you. :) On Sat, May 23, 2009 at 4:56 AM, Sarah Allen <[email protected]> wrote: > Report from the field on my ongoing adventure teaching Ruby and Shoes to a > 4th/5th grade class of 28 students. > > I started with a demonstration of red, green, blue color: 3 flashlights > with colored gels over the front, mixing red + green to get yellow + blue to > get white. I talked about how last week we made Shoes draw a colored > rectangle on the screen. The screen is made up of lots of little dots. > Does any one know what they are called? one hand, correct answer: pixels. > Then I described how each pixel is a little light, so when we make colors > on the computer, we are making colors with light, which is quite different > than making colors with paint. Then we turned out all the lights and it > got really fun. > > I asked them first what did they think happened that made a white light > come out as a blue light when I put the gel over the front of the > flashlight? (lots of theories of magical color transformation and after a > few tries, I supplied to correct answer) when you mix red + green paint, > what do you get? (several tries before one of them got the right answer: > brown) I told them light mixes differently than paint, which we call > additive color, as opposed to subtractive color. Then with the help of my > two assistent we demostrated color mixing, It was way cool. > > Fewer setup problems this time. I had 3 extra computers set up and still > ended short one and ended up once again abandoning my idea of coding demo > since I gave the "teacher" computer to a pair of students. I ended up > writing code snippets on the board and spending more time with each group of > 2-3 kids helping debug syntax errors and giving little impromptu > explanations of what was going on. > > I'm torn between how much time to spend explaining concepts (since they are > always antsy to get onto the computers) and how much to let them wing it > (which then is frustrating to them because they don't know the rules. > > Many of them seemed to have a hard time with the parameter syntax. Syntax > errors that were hard for the kids > : width = 40 > : width => 40 > :width 40 > > also, I don't understand: > Shoes.app do > backround black > end > -> does not produce a syntax error, just a blank canvas, why? > > I also avoided explaining why the "top,left" of a star and arrow is in the > middle -- seems like broken semantics to me. > > I think there must be an easier workflow than what we've been doing: write > app in notepad++, save to desktop, double-click shoes, click "open an app" > -- does anyone have a workflow where you can run Shoes directly from the > editor? it would be nice if the shoes window with the errors had a "Reload" > button and keystroke, likewise with the Shoes window. > > Also, they wondered: why is it called Shoes? > > At the end of the class I asked them to raise hands to answer: who thought > it was fun? (about 2/3s of the class) who thought it was frustrating? > (maybe 40%) who thought it was fun even though it was frustrating (about > 1/3). I really don't know what impact this has, but I will forge ahead > nonetheless. The teacher seems to think the lessons are great and the kids > report having more fun than it looks like they are having. I do feel like > about half the class is starting to "get it." Not sure if that is a lot or > very few after 1.5 hours of programming experience. > > Today I was still following my original lesson plan: > http://github.com/railsbridge/teachingkids/blob/de9dc5444e4aa69de656739510353abebf625ff4/md/Ruby_Programming_and_Shoes.md > I think I'll change it next week to add some interactivity, unless I veer > in a different direction, since my RAD dorkboard arrived and I may switch to > making an LED blink! > > Thanks everyone again for your support. And special thanks to why for > making Shoes. > > Sarah > http://www.ultrasaurus.com > > >
