Maryland Computer Science: 4th Grade
- Level Elementary School
- Number of Lessons 32
- Grade 4th
This course is designed to provide computer science and technology instruction for Maryland 4th Grade students. Students learn programming and technology concepts, including: computing systems, networks and the Internet, data analysis, algorithms and programming, and impacts of computing.
See the full syllabus for all topics and activities, or explore the course to try it out.
UNITS - 8 (32 lessons)
This optional review module revisits foundational computer science vocabulary and the coordinate plane through a simple open-ended animation project.
Students identify parts of the computing system and troubleshoot hardware and software problems, then apply computational thinking to design a school.
Students use multiple event types and design algorithms to solve tasks, apply coding to a sports careers project, and use loops to build a catching game while debugging maze programs.
Students use conditionals to add game effects and navigate mazes, culminating in a Scout's Quest challenge that reinforces if/then conditional logic.
Students learn to create and use variables to track points and model balanced and unbalanced forces, then extend to lists in a spelling bee game and a scorekeeping pong game.
Students learn to use clones to build animations and games like Snake, and write functions with boolean inputs to control conditional actions in a program.
Students apply design thinking to improve accessibility and combine variables, operators, and conditionals in culminating projects including a choose-your-own-path culture game, a custom music player, and a data-driven bar graph investigation.
Students build digital literacy by researching with proper attribution, evaluating data reliability, understanding file storage, managing their digital footprint, practicing online safety, and modeling how information travels through the internet.
Explore a sample lesson from this course!
4th grade students build programs using events, algorithms, loops, conditionals, operators, variables, lists, clones, and functions, with projects like a maze game, a forces simulation, a pong game, a spelling bee game, and a snake game. They also redesign a game for accessibility, create a choose-your-own-path game about culture, make music with code, and complete a data bar graph project. Students learn to manage their digital footprint, protect themselves online, credit sources, and explore how information travels across the Internet.
The course includes 36 lessons, each about 45 minutes long, providing a full year of instruction when taught once a week. Every lesson is built in a ready-to-teach format, with step-by-step videos that walk students through the lesson. Lessons are designed to be teacher-led using an "I do, we do, you do" format, and a self-paced option is also available. Optional review lessons at the start of the course are not counted in the 36 lessons.
No. There are no prerequisites, and the course is designed to support all learners regardless of prior computer science experience. Optional review lessons at the start of the course help students who are new to CodeHop learn the basics before moving into grade-level content.
Maryland Computer Science: 4th Grade is aligned to the Maryland K-12 Computer Science Standards. Lessons required to fully meet the standards are labeled in the course syllabus with the standards they address, and all Digital Literacy lessons are required because they cover essential non-programming computer science concepts.
