Some VoiceOver skills required
Difficulty: Easy to Moderate
Gestures: Finger drag, flick left/right with one finger, flick down/up with one finger, double tap, flick left with three fingers.
Continue on your programming journey with the second Ballyland Audio Based Coding app. Children who are blind or have low vision can learn more basic coding concepts and skills that will be applicable to any programming language.
A short audio-play explains what happened to poor Ballicopter. Then you take on your second Coding Challenge with simple coding commands. Make Wheelie, the little car from Ballyland, move around a digital game grid, on a mission to give a new rotor to Ballicopter. Audio description and great audio effects create unique accessibility for learners with visual impairment, including adults who are keen to find out what coding is about.
Read or download the full instructions for Ballyland Code 2: Give Rotor from here:
Tip 1: Start learning to code with Ballyland Code 1: Say Hello
Tip 2: prepare iPad/gesture skills with Ballyland Stay Still, Squeaky (game with finger drag), Ballyland Magic (finger gestures including double tap), and Ballyland Sound Memory (navigating a digital grid).
Tip 3: For each Coding Challenge, it is strongly recommended to use a tactile game grid, targets and obstacles. The 3D printed Ballyland tactile grid and miniature Ballyland characters and 'obstacles' have been specifically designed to support learning with the coding apps. Print in 3D yourself, or ask your school or organisation. This app uses two additional, nice-to-touch 'obstacle tiles' (bushes and rock).
You can purchase the package of 3D files from here.
Of course you can also create your own tactile game grid. For instance, by sticking Wikki Stix on a piece of cardboard, and using a mini toy car for Wheelie and other simple objects... like a small rock!
Tip 4: To get well acquainted with Ballicopter, play the Ballyland Rotor app, and 3D print the Ballicopter model with turning rotor.
Learning Outcomes:
- Computational thinking, basic coding concepts and skills, such as breaking problem down in steps, sequencing, patterning, using basic coding commands;
- Listening, Locating, ‘Mental Mapping’;
- Orientation, spatial awareness and navigating a digital game grid
- Experiential learning of VoiceOver accessibility by sighted players
Special Features
- Beginners’ level, follows on from Ballyland Code 1: Say Hello;
- Suited for novice users of VoiceOver;
- Audio Based Coding™: built-in speech, spoken coding panel, audio description, meaningful sound effects, audio and visual on-screen coding output;
- Can be used with Ballyland 3D printable tactile grid, characters and accessories (specifically designed for the Coding apps);
- VoiceOver accessible at start page, accessible menus in the game, built-in speech
- “Black Curtain” option to create level playing field for all;
- Designed with feedback from children with visual impairment, parents and teachers;