CAS Tenderfoot Unit 3 - Clever Stuff for Common Problems
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Last edit: 13 May 2022
This resource is for CAS Tenderfoot trained or experienced trainers. It gives access to the full portfolio of resources that supports the whole-day Unit and the Sessions that can be delivered as separate CPD events, of about 2 hours.
This video (4 minutes) introduces the Unit. It can be used to introduce the whole-day Unit or contextualise shorter Sessions. Alternatively, the URL can be sent to attendees for viewing before the CPD session.
The first section of this page contains the materials required to run the FULL session i.e. in a whole day. The remaining sections have the resources split up into a number of shorter sessions ideal for delivering in a twilight session.
Whole-day Unit Materials
Individual Session Unit Materials
The CAS Tenderfoot units are designed as 1-day sessions for 'trainers' of 'master teachers and other curriculum champions'. The material is structured to allow it to be delivered in shorter sessions by those 'master teachers and curriculum champions' – but is predicated on them being exposed to the entire narrative of a day session or series of shorter sessions organised by those 'trainers'. We advise trainers not to just identify 'activities' to make a training session. The activities are important to illustrate ideas but it is the computer science content that is important. For a non-specialist key stage 3 teacher – just doing an activity is a step forward, but the purpose of this material is to get more experienced teachers together to discuss and deepen their understanding of the computer science concepts. Shorter sessions only address that if attendees commit to, and cover the unit as a whole.
Session 1: The Peg Puzzle, Perfect Shuffle and Data structures Matter activities
This focuses on the manipulation of arrays and introduces the importance of other data structure and abstraction. there's plenty of time to practice the magic trick too!
Teachers Notes
Handouts
Peg_Swap_Algorithm_Exercise.pdf
Perfect_Shuffle_Array_Template.pdf
Perfect_Shuffle_Investigation.pdf
Session 2: Many problems, One Solution
These three activities illustrate many problems, one solution and could be preceded by the Knights Tour activity if desired. This session focuses on abstraction and generalisation. One key activity if the map colouring algorithm which makes links to other data structures, principally lists and stacks.
Teachers Notes
Many_Problems_One_Solution.pdf
Handouts
Session 3: The Toy Problems for the Real World, Oracle of Bacon and Beauty of Trees
The activities in this session focus on various graph traversals and associated problems
Teachers Notes
Handouts
Finding_Kevin_Bacon_Exercise.pdf
Sample_Bebras_Graph_Questions.pdf
Binary_Tree_Traverse_Exercise.pdf
Standard resources