ClassX Video Lessons Youtube Channel Code.org Unplugged Lesson in Action – Real-Life Algorithms: Paper Planes
Have you ever heard the word “algorithm”? It’s a big word, but it’s not too hard to understand. An algorithm is just a list of steps you follow to finish a task. You use algorithms every day, even if you don’t realize it!
Think about your day. Do you have a list of steps you follow to get things done? For example, getting ready for school in the morning is like following an algorithm. Let’s make a list together:
See? You follow a lot of steps before you even get to school!
Now, let’s use an algorithm to make something fun: a paper airplane! Even if you don’t know how to make one yet, don’t worry. We’ll learn together.
You’ll have a sheet with nine choices, but only six are the correct steps to make a paper airplane. Your job is to find and glue the six correct steps in order. After that, you’ll trade your list with a friend and see if they can make a flying paper airplane using your steps!
What else could you add to your paper airplane algorithm? Maybe you want to decorate your airplane to make it look cool. Or you might decide to use a different piece of paper for folding, so you don’t use the one with the instructions on it. These are great ideas!
If you enjoy making paper airplanes, you might also like other activities that use algorithms. You could try planting a seed or doing origami, which is the art of folding paper into fun shapes.
Algorithms are all around us, helping us get things done step by step. Whether you’re getting ready for school or making a paper airplane, following a list of steps makes everything easier and more fun!
Create Your Own Algorithm: Think of something you do every day, like brushing your teeth or making a sandwich. Write down the steps you take to complete this task. Share your list with a friend and see if they can follow your algorithm to do the same task. This will help you understand how algorithms work in real life!
Algorithm Scavenger Hunt: Go on a scavenger hunt around your house or classroom to find examples of algorithms. Look for things like recipes, game instructions, or even a list of chores. Write down what you find and discuss with your classmates how these are similar to the steps you used to make a paper airplane.
Paper Airplane Challenge: After making your paper airplane, try changing one step in your algorithm. Does your airplane fly better or worse? Why do you think that is? Experiment with different changes and observe how they affect the flight of your airplane. This will show you how small changes in an algorithm can lead to different outcomes.
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
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Okay, so one of the vocabulary words that we learned last time was “algorithm.” Will you guys say that with me again? And what does it mean? Who remembers from so long ago? What does “algorithm” mean? A list of steps that you can follow to finish a task, right? I bet that you follow algorithms every single day, and you don’t even realize it.
Is there an algorithm in this classroom that anyone sees? A list of steps that you follow to get something done?
Jack: The schedule, right? That’s a list of things that you need to do all together at a certain time.
For this example, is there anything else? What do you think, Anya?
Anya: Oh, I wrote a list of steps for math.
Teacher: That’s an algorithm that you follow to get something done, right? I didn’t even know that! It’s so awesome.
Okay, so I want you to think of a specific situation where you have to follow a list of steps to get something done. So I’ll plant the seed in your brain. Think about what it takes for you to get to school in the morning. There’s a whole series of events that happen, right?
So if you were explaining your life to someone who didn’t know you and you said, “Well, in the morning I go to school,” the person who didn’t know you might be like, “Well, do you live at school? Do you eat at school? Do you take a shower or a bath and then get dressed at school, or is school at your house?” You just go to school, that’s it. Aren’t there a whole lot of steps in between?
Yeah, so who can start me off with a list? Let’s do this together as a class. Let’s make a list of steps we have to do to get to school in the morning.
Arjun, will you start us? What’s going to be step number one?
Arjun: Maybe wake up and get out of bed.
Teacher: Okay, let’s title this “Getting to School.”
So number one is going to say “Get out of bed.” Do you guys all agree with that? You have to go from your horizontal position to vertical to get out of bed.
Okay, what’s next?
Ariane: We can relax, go to the bathroom.
Teacher: A lot of people do that—go to the bathroom or take a shower.
Okay, so there’s our algorithm. There’s our list for getting from the morning time to getting to school. There are all these steps. Did you realize that you were doing 11 steps before you got to school?
Some of you did, yeah. And if you break it down even further, there are a million steps, right? So sometimes it’s nice to generalize, like with getting your supplies. You don’t have to list every single supply; you understand that that’s a general term for what you’re doing.
Okay, so what I want us to practice today is thinking about more steps, and specifically, I want you to think about the steps that you need to follow to make paper airplanes.
Some of you are saying, “But I don’t know how to make paper airplanes.” Well, that’s perfect because we’re going to learn how to make paper airplanes.
So I have a couple of things to hand out to you. In the first sheet, you are deciding the steps that you follow to make a paper airplane. So you’re gluing the six correct steps.
How many choices are there? Does anyone know? Can you do quick math?
Student: Nine.
Teacher: There’s nine choices and six correct steps. So will there be leftovers?
Student: Yes.
Teacher: Okay, so six steps, right? That’s one part. And what are we doing with those steps? Are we putting them helter-skelter?
Student: We’re putting them in order.
Teacher: Okay, so in order. And then what’s next?
Student: Trade.
Teacher: Okay, so we’ll trade after that. Trade your finished algorithm with another person or group and let them use it to make an actual flying paper airplane.
Dramatic gasp! Paper airplanes!
Okay, so you’ll trade it, and then your partner will make an actual airplane. I would love to make an airplane!
Okay, so does this help you to review our steps? These are the important bits. If this was model drawing math, this would be our important bits.
Yeah, so let’s do this. For this activity, it takes a long time for the kids to cut out the steps themselves, so if you want to do this quicker, it would be worth cutting out the steps and giving each kid an envelope with the steps cut out. That takes that difficulty out of it, and you can get through the lesson a little quicker.
Something else you could use instead of folding paper airplanes for this activity is planting a seed or anything origami-related that involves folding paper.
If you could add anything to the list of instructions that we had, what would you have added?
Arjun: I would add “decorate” because it might look better with this stuff.
Teacher: Okay, so we could add “decorate.” That’d be a good one to add. I can write that in a different color.
These are things that we could add to this list: “decorate.” What else would you add or change?
I heard some kids saying that it was difficult to make the paper airplane out of the same paper that had the instructions on it. Would you change that? In your instructions, would you say to get another piece of paper to make the paper airplane?
Student: Yes.
Teacher: It is wasting trees. You’d have to decide what’s important. So could I write “Get another piece of paper?”
Student: Yes.
Teacher: Okay, those are some great ideas!
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This version maintains the essence of the original transcript while removing informal language and filler words for clarity.
