A Beginner’s Guide to Creating
Computer Simulations
Chakita Jackson, Hazelwood West High School
Why Computer Simulations?
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Agenda
Computer Programming Bootstrap
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Microsoft Excelets
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Quick Survey
An Excelet is an interactive Excel
spreadsheet or simulation that
allows users to engage in critical
problem solving.
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What is an Excelet?
• To introduce you to the Forms Toolbar
and a number of the tools available;
• To create a “just add data” interactive
Excel spreadsheet.
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Learning Targets:
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1. Getting the Forms Toolbar
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 View
 Toolbars
 Forms
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2. Constructing a simple “Just
Add Data” spreadsheet.
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In a blank Excel
worksheet, set up
two columns, one
with M&M colors,
and one with a
predicted number
of each M&M
color.
Label the columns,
number and color.
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Next, click on the
chart wizard,
select
The default
clustered column.
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• Now let’s add a total to the
number column, so we can
make the comparison to the
official color percentages from:
• https://www.exeter.edu/docume
nts/mandm.pdf
and select autosum.
You will hit the
enter key to get the
total number of
M&Ms in your bag.
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Click on cell B9
the official values and
setup for the
calculation using the
percentage from the
M&M website.
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Here is a screenshot of
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The number of each color in theory is
calculated by taking the actual total
number of M&M’s in your bag ($B$9) and
then multiplying by the official percent of
that color (D3) divided by 100 to get a
fraction. The total is from the SUM
calculation.
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• Add a new column.
• Place the cursor in
the lower left hand
box.
• This is the official
comparison of your
data to the M&M
percentages.
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Now if you click on the check box it will
return “TRUE” when checked and
“FALSE” when unchecked in cell F16.
Now go to cell C3 and change the formula
by adding the yellow highlighted part
shown below:
=IF($F$16=TRUE,$B$9*D3/100,0)
Drag this formula down the column to C8.
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Use this spreadsheet to test the
following hypotheses:
How do different bags of the
same size of M&M Milk
Chocolate candies
compare?
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Questions?
Computer Programming for
Students
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BootStrap
• Bootstrap teaches program design
skills, allowing students to transfer
skills to other programming languages.
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BootStrap
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Why Programming?
• Paradigm shift from “getting
answers” to “describing
functions.”
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Why Programming?
A defined curriculum that aligns
with the Common Core
Standards for Math and ISTE
Standards for Technology.
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How?
Students use Order of operations,
Pythagoream Theorem, function
composition and definition to
create and design a series of
relevant programming problems.
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Who?
Created by Emmamuel Schanzer
of Cornell University.
Supported by:
NSF, Apple, Google, Cisco etc.
Apply mathematical concepts
and rigorous programming
principles to create a simple
video game.
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Bootstrap Level 1:
Build on concepts taught in
Bootstrap 1
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Bootstrap Level 2
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BootStrap
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This book is an
introduction to
designing
programming.
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The authors make a
distinction between
designing a
program vs.
designing functions.
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This book by Peter
Bloch is an
introduction to
computer
programming.
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Picturing Programs
focus on pictures and
animation as students
explore recursion,
lists, trees, and
algorithms using the
same language.
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This is a more
advanced book,
however, the principles
are relevant for middle
and high school
students.
Tablet Tool Kit
WeScheme is a
cloud-based
program. If you
have a gmail
account, you can
use WeScheme.
Unique Mobile Device Animations
Software
Tablet Tool Kit
If you don’t want
to use a gmail
account, you can
use DrRacket
instead.
Unique Mobile Device Animations
Software
Thank You!
Contact:
Chakita Jackson
Hazelwood West High
School
cjackson@hazelwoodschools.org.