Activity 02 Ring Road Itinerary

The aim of this activity is to introduce the concept of loops. A mockup of the ring road, as the representation of loops, helps embody this abstract concept and its effects through making mTiny move on the ring roads. First, children will assemble different types of Road Map Blocks to build various kinds of ring roads. Children will then learn to use the Repeat Cards to make mTiny move in circles.

Intended Learning Outcomes

By the end of this activity, children will be able to:
(1) Understand that a loop is meant by doing the same things repeatedly and give real-life examples of loops;
(2) Understand the use of Repeat Cards for repeating one action (or sequence) for the assigned number of times;

Key Competencies

Resources

For Child
Input Card × 1	Go! Card × 1	Forward Card × 4	Turn Right Card × 4	Turn Left Card × 4
×2 Repeat Card × 2	×3 Repeat Card × 1	×4 Repeat Card × 2	×5 Repeat Card × 1
mTiny Toolkit × 1	Crossroad × 1	Intersection × 2	Road Corner × 6	Straight Road × 3

For Educator
Input Card × 1	Go! Card × 1	Forward Card × 4	Turn Right Card × 4	Turn Left Card × 4
×2 Repeat Card × 2	×3 Repeat Card × 1	×4 Repeat Card × 2	×5 Repeat Card × 1
mTiny Toolkit × 1	Crossroad × 1	Intersection × 2	Road Corner × 6	Straight Road × 3

Educator-Led Instructions

Introduction

1. Introduce the ring road by showing some photos.

:::tips Note: The ring road is a series of connected roads encircling one location. In daily life, ring roads help reduce traffic volumes, in particular in the metropolitan areas, such as Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Tokyo. Moreover, ring roads also encircle the mountainous areas in island countries, such as Iceland and Singapore. :::

1. Ask children if there is any ring road they have seen before and discuss the use of ring roads.

Main Activity

1. Hand out the Map Blocks: each child should have 1 Crossroad Map Block, 2 Three-Way Intersection Map Blocks, 3 Straight Road Map Blocks, and 6 Road Corner Map Blocks. Have children assemble Road Map Blocks to build a ring road.

2. Invite children to share their ring roads and discuss the shapes of ring roads.

:::tips Note:
You can ask children to think about the following questions, for example:
(1) How many rings does your ring road have?
(2) How many and what types of Road Map Blocks have you used?
(3) How do different types of Road Map Blocks connect with each other?
(4) Could you give a name for your ring road? Why do you name it in this way? How do you get the idea? :::

1. and out mTiny Toolkits, Coding Cards, and blocks (or flag toys): each child should have 4 Forward Cards, 4 Turn Right Cards, 4 Turn Left Cards, (and the three types of Repeat Cards for advanced learners).

2. Instruct children to make mTiny move on their Ring Roads Map Blocks by using Coding Cards.

3. Ask them to observe and think about the following questions:

(1) How many times does mTiny turn around on your ring roads?
(2) Does mTiny turn right or turn left when it moves on the Road Corner?

Recap

Have children discuss and comment on each other’s ring roads.

Attachment

Here below are some examples of ring roads:
A simple ring road can be made up of four pieces of Road Corner Map Blocks:

Adding another two pieces of Three-Way Intersection Map Blocks, a road with two rings can be created.
There are various ways to utilize and assemble different types of Road Map Blocks to create different kinds of ring roads.