[Overview] Everyone should believe that “CS is something people like me do.” It’s the truth. Entitled Middle Years Computer Science, or “MyCS” for short, Harvey Mudd College’s online CS curriculum is a 6-18 week curriculum designed for classrooms ranging from late elementary though middle and early high school. [Our goal] MyCS provides engaging, accessible, and easy-to-use content to middle-years teachers, who can implement the content in their classroom using their own specific pedagogical adaptations of activities and exercises. Since the project’s inception in 2010, the curriculum has continued to reach broader audiences of teachers and their students through regular summer workshops. We believe that every middle-years student should be able to confidently say that “CS is something that people like me can do,” and that the most effective way to reach those students is through the instructors who know them best. We hope to continue to empower teachers of all backgrounds to bring computational skills and problem-solving to their classrooms. [Pacing] MyCS is designed with the intent of being a modular curriculum, such that it can be taught for any period of time. MyCS has been taught in classes ranging from 6 to 18 weeks long and even an entire school year. Some teachers have used MyCS as a supplement, using activities from the curriculum once a week or so. For the most part, the units in this curriculum are not dependent on each other, though skill with Scratch will be layered throughout the course.
