[plt-scheme] Dr scheme for grade school kids?

From: Neil W. Van Dyke (neil at neilvandyke.org)
Date: Sat Oct 2 10:23:21 EDT 2004

Corey Sweeney <corey.sweeney at gmail.com> writes at 08:59 02-Oct-2004 -0500:
> (define {picture of a box} 7)
> (define {picture of a sack} 6)
> (+ {picture of a box} {picture of a sack})

So you're introducing a graphical container as a metaphor for a variable
binding?  If all these containers were boxes with identifying labels, at
some point you can take away the box graphic and show that the label is
the variable name.

I don't know about having different kinds of container graphics.  I
wouldn't want students thinking too concretely about the containers, and
I'd want them using meaningful names/labels almost from the start.  I
don't see a need for 4th-graders to talk about adding the contents of a
box and a sack together, although that could be good for 1st-graders.


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