First I defined the x and y axis and worked through the commands to draw
them. Then I changed the definitions so the program would draw the points.
This felt like the most complex code that we have written by a long shot.
There were a lot of challenges along the way, however when it came together it was
really satisfying. Overall, I felt like I understood the directions and I understood
why the answer was correct, but trying to configure the pieces to complete the code was
difficult. This could be from a number of factors, and is certainly not aided by the fact
that I have not had to do formal math of any kind for almost a decade. But like I said,
when it clicked, it clicked.
The top down thinking is something I am getting used to in terms of code. It reminds me a lot of scaffolding
in teaching. A task by itself can be daunting, but when it is broken down into parts it becomes manageable.
That being said, there are still places where I am struggling, but again, I am reminded of my students.
So many of them struggle all year to understand English concepts and I challenge them to embrace the discomfort
and have faith that the will be successful. Call it imposter syndome or learning curve, but I am enjoying the challenge and
trying to stick with it.
I was thinking about other data sets that require bounds and plotting. I think this would be an amazing
way to analyze and plot large amounts of data, like stuudent data maybe? I want to know more about what the inputting of data side of
the program as well.
This process was tough. By the end of the last unit, I did think there were concepts that
I was beginning to grasp and implement as habit, but these seemed like learning from the
start all over again. The minimum and maximum definitions made sense and were easy enough to
work through, but when it came to completing the more complex lines of code, I did struggle.
One way I found myself troubleshooting was breaking down the steps of the task even further into chunks
and trying to write a piece of code for each chunk. I do think there might be places in this
submission where I got to the concept, but the way I did so was a little clunky. I tried to find
other way to pair down the "clunky-ness" and some of that seemed successful, while other times
I am not sure if my solutions were actually optimal.
I saw a really interesting post the other day, amid scrolling, that encapsulates this feeling perfectly.
The process is like explaining how to make a PB&J to a person. Except you are explaining it to someone
who is has never seen or used such items before. I tell them to take out two pieces of bread,
all good. Lay them down, all good. now with a knife take peanut butter out of the jar, error.
But why is there an error? That is the next step? What is wrong?
Well, I never told them to take the lid off...
But it would never occur to me to tell them that, everyone should just know that, right?
That is how I feel sometimes when I am coding. I feel like i am telling it, just get some peanut butter,
but I never told it to do one crucial step first. The trouble is, I don't know what that missing piece
is most times. So, it is a lot of trial and error. This can be frustrating. But when it does eventually
work, or when pieces begin to work, it is satisfying.
process.
I could draw the lines of the scatterplot itself,
but there is a gap in my undrestanding at this point.
Whereas I know how to have the turtle draw shapes and
have practiced scalable drawing in the typeface
lab, I would need to have more explicit direction about how
the tools that we have used so far, apply to a more mathemetical
task.
My brain has not had to be math centered in a long time. So,
this step from visual products to mathmatical ones is a new challenge for me.
Rebecca Hankey
rhankey