Declan's ipad coding

Declan has been learning javascript, and has made  a program for the ipad. You just tap on the screen, and it creates a circle!

Here is the link:

and a picture of what you can do with it.

On reading this article, Declan would like me to stress how hard this programming is to do! It is very very very hard, and he had a lot of frustration trying to make the circles appear.

Geekiness is now pretty much done

After our week of geekiness last week, we had one geeky thing left today, which was the Mythbusters "behind the myths" show(cue loud excited music and explosions).

We had tickets to see the mythbusters show at the Entertainment Centre (now called the Qantas Credit Union arena) this afternoon and all had a great time. The boys were primed to be audience volunteers (despite the one page of closely written legal disclaimers that had to be signed before ascending the stage) but sadly their demographic (pre teen boys too old for superhero capes) was over-represented in the eager volunteers and under-represented (ie zero) in the demand from the stage, requiring some quite specific skills (eg blowing raspberries at a particular frequency).

Nevertheless we all had a great time, and caught up with Rob and Angela and Tom after the show for coffees (adults) play in the playground and icecream (kids) before the mountain folk retreated up the mountain.

Debating

Declan had a debate this week, in which he was chosen as third speaker (it seems to have been a rotation during the competition). Despite insisting that morning that he was a hopeless debater, particularly as third speaker, his team won, with the adjudicator commenting that he "carried the team". The topic was that "team sports should be compulsory in schools" and Declan's team was affirmative (despite most of them believing the opposite).

Robin Williams retrospective

I've mentioned here before, that if we are home on a Saturday night, we generally watch a movie together, with the aim of watching a wide variety and making sure that every now and again we see a classic (think Maltese Falcon or the Seven Samurai). Well two weeks ago, we saw Dead Poets Society. Two days after that Robin Williams died, and so we watched Good Morning Vietnam last week and Mrs Doubtfire (which neither Evan nor I had seen, but Declan was keen on, based on school feedback) this week.

Declan spent half the movie with his blanket over his head, but still claimed to enjoy it. I'm still wishing I had insisted on Birdcage, or Good Will Hunting. Next week we may move onto Lauren Bacall, despite Declan's protests about black and white movies.

Year 9 choices

This week has been absorbed with Callum's subject choices for next year. It appears that's difficult at the best of times, but his particular circumstances are making it a minefield.

So there are the core subjects everyone has to do: English, Maths, Science, Sport, History, Geography. Then there are a bewildering and exciting array of elective subjects. The restriction there is you are supposed to pick three for each of years 9 and 10, each one being worth 100 hours, and one of those must join up to make 200 hours with continuity over the two years.

The complicating factor is that Callum will start Extension Maths next year (what we in the dark ages used to call 4 Unit Maths). Everything else being equal that will have him sitting the HSC for maths the year after next when he's otherwise in Year 10.

Beautifully, Callum would simply like to do a bit of everything - which is good to see. He's also rejected several electives that would be easy marks on the basis that he wouldn't learn anything. So he won't be doing Software Design for example even though that might seem right up his street and be easy marks. We're now trying to find a balance between his workload and his interests. 

We seem to be coming down to a unit called Beyond Visible which is unique to Mosman. It combines advanced maths and science to do some really cool stuff like working on dark matter and quantum coding. He'll also do Advanced Design and Technology. That's an accelerated course which does two years in ine and so will give him the required 200 hours in the space of one year. That will make for additional work next year but potentially less the following one when he's doing the Maths HSC. His third choice is wavering between Engineering which is nice and hands-on and a language.

We're also talking with the school about them exempting him from an elective to make sure he isn't overwhelmed given the workload that Maths will entail and the inevitable mess it will make of the rest of his timetable. What makes this all especially tricky is that the timetable doesn't get set until next year and the time tabling conflicts will drive some of huge choices. Luckily Mosman is being incredibly supportive through all this. It remains a work in progress though.

Week of geekness (and illness)

Declan trying out a remote controlled robot at Maker Faire

This week, we knew was going to be a big week. We had Dr Who on Tuesday, Sleek Geeks on Wednesday, Young ICT competition on Saturday and two things on Sunday - the new Escape Hunt Sydney and Maker Faire at the Powerhouse. Plus an information evening at school about Year 9 on Thursday, just to complete the set.

Unfortunately, we were all also sick this week at various stages, which involved days off school/work/teaching young geeks/ at various stages of the week, putting at risk the major event of the week - the Young ICT competition.

Callum missed all of last Sunday sleeping (which was supposed to be his final preparation day) and spent the rest of the week scrambling to catch up. Evan spent the majority of the week in a feverish haze (but only Tuesday actually in bed). And Declan, after being smugly only smitten with a cold most of the week, was in despair on Friday morning, as he was convinced he was going to let his team down the next day.

Three model tardises from Dr Who fans on Tuesday night

As it turned out, everyone was fine for the big day. Declan brought a long a bucket just in case, but only needed tissues, Evan got by on adrenaline, and Callum was almost entirely better by the end of the week. And we were all well enough to make it to both events on Sunday, in a great end to an absorbing week.

A lesson for us, though next time we are tempted to book such a big week. It is tempting fate!

Young ICT Prize winners!

Callum and Declan both won first prizes in the Young ICT Explorers competition.  This is one of those posts that would be better done by someone else because I've been part of the story. And the danger is that because I'm too close ill under-rate the achievement.

Callum was in a team of one. I must admit I didn't think he'd win. The thing that seemed to carry it off, beyond the underlying tech, was that he calmly dealt with his demo not working at first and answered all the questions with amazing maturity.

Dec was in a team with Nick and Nikita. They pulled off a stunning presentation, helped by a professional presenter's input, but backed by a deeply engaging solution. The judges were completely clear that they had a viable solution to a real problem.

Callum had a live project to monitor a car-share space, warn off illegal parkers and then notify the rangers. Dec and team had a project to watch one or more recycling bins and tell the school how full they were with the aim of encouraging recycling.

They reached the finals in the face of hundreds of entries and in the finals beat out a lot of, it must be said, highly resourced private schools to take the first place prize in their age-groups.

In both cases the judges made a point of how they'd managed to answer all the questions tossed at them, and solved real problems. 

I can't express how proud I am of both boys and honestly how thrilled I am to have been involved in the whole process.  And, as a parent, as opposed to that amorphous teacher/mentor role, them both having won just makes the whole thing exponentially better.

Who fanatics

In a triumph of internet shopping, Evan managed to get tickets to the Dr Who live showing of the first episode of the new series last night.

Sadly, this triumph didn't include being healthy enough to go. While Evan took to his bed, Declan's friend Nick took his ticket and the four of us trooped off to the State Theatre.

We all had a wonderful time watching the episode. I had been wondering how to extract them all from what promised to be a long Q&A session in the second half with Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman, but (not really fortunately) Nick was so excited by the episode that he was sick at interval. I was proud of Callum and Declan, who responsibly helped Nick in the gents, while I waited anxiously outside, and we all decided that we were really better off not taking a chance with the second half.

Evan is still insanely jealous, and the boys are carefully avoiding spoilers.

Autobiography

Apparently it is standard in Year 6 to write an autobiography, so that is Declan's big assignment this term. He has spent what seems to have been a very enjoyable time rereading both our travel blog, and this blog, mining for material.

It's been fascinating to see what he chooses to write about from the travel blog; it has emerged that although Beynac-et-Cazenac was one of his two favourite places, along with Iceland, there were no adventures there, so not much to write about. He's up to 5,500 words so far about his life; I fear some editing will be necessary (which is not Declan's favourite thing, hence not ours either).

ICT again (!)

Declan and his partners in crime Nikita and Nick presented their project Bin IT to their class and the school principal during the week. It didn't go very well, as they lost the plot on each bit of the presentation and answered questions by talking about their in jokes.

So this morning, they came over again, with Nick's dad Tim (award winning journalist) to give them some last minute coaching. They are now very impressive, as Tim not only coaxed out of them their major theme (we need to encourage recycling) but also suggested that they put everything they have done up on their website and call it open source.

The judging is next weekend, wish them luck.

Illness

Callum has had a weekend of illness; he had a horrible cold on Saturday, woke up vomiting in the middle of the night, and then slept off and on until 3 this afternoon(!) We realised while we were chatting over dinner (which he was better enough to eat a bit of) that he hasn't been that sick for some years; probably since we were in Sorrento on our year away.

He seems much better for all the time spent sleeping, and hopefully he will be better for another night's sleep.

Declan cartooning

We've been watching Horatio Hornblower (the BBC miniseries, with Ioan Gruffud). Declan is very taken with it, and drew this cartoon to celebrate.

ICT projects

Evan talked about the Young ICT Explorers a few weeks ago. I'm pleased to report that both teams made it into the final, which will be in a couple of weeks.

Today we had a big ICT day - to put the finishing touches to both projects.

Nick and Nikita came over to combine all the bits of BinIT, design a poster, and plan their presentation to the judges.

Meanwhile Callum worked by himself on putting together the electronics and the various bits and pieces for his goget parking idea.

It was a very productive day, and the boys are now quite tired from all the work.