As part of the masterclass Basics X topical series, this course represents a major leap for our Code Campers as they transition from Scratch and/or micro:bit to mobile programming and more complex data types with
App Inventor.
With the rapid proliferation of smartphones and growing dominance of mobile usage, mobile programming presents one of the most relatable and relevant domains in which our students will apply their programming knowledge and skills. In this course, Code Campers will learn to decompose a mobile application into its component parts (buttons, labels, images, functionality, etc), design a user interface that conveys the look and feel of their imagination, and code the behaviour that will govern how the user interacts with the app and how the app responds.
It sounds simple enough but mobile programming, despite being the most engaging, is also the most demanding domain within the Basics roadmap because it requires higher degrees of abstraction using complex data types. In the abridged 5-lesson version, Code Campers will need to understand
components (a complex data type known as an object which bundles properties together),
properties (types of variables that are bundled in a component),
procedures (named sequences of code that perform a specific task),
event handlers (routines that deal with an event) and
scope (the extent of visibility of variables within a program). Those who attend the extended 8-lesson variant would also cover
lists (an ordered collection of items), as well as
for loops (iterations through a list). Each of these are integral concepts in mobile programming and App Inventor.
At the end of this course, Code Campers will be able to design a simple user interface and build apps such as a simple game, a texting app and a painting app.