Once Upon an Algorithm: Computational Thinking Through the Stories We Tell

• In Event: Unplugged CT as Essential Learning Practices: Examples from Elementary Contexts

Abstract

This presentation features a practitioner-designed instructional unit that integrates four core computational thinking (CT) concepts—pattern recognition, abstraction, decomposition, and algorithms (Shute et al., 2017)—into an elementary literacy curriculum through a cross-cultural study of global Cinderella narratives. Designed and implemented by a practicing elementary teacher in the context of a professional development program, the unit exemplifies how CT can be embedded in literacy-rich, unplugged environments. The presentation centers the teacher’s instructional practice and decision-making, offering a grounded account of how CT was meaningfully woven into everyday classroom activity without relying on digital tools.
Students engaged in comparative literary analysis, critical abstraction of narrative elements, and the construction of algorithms to generate original stories. Drawing from numerous global variants of Cinderella, the teacher guided students through recursive practices: identifying narrative patterns, generalizing key components (e.g., character archetypes, magical interventions, plot sequences), and creating branching decision structures to remix and reimagine the tale. CT was not treated as an add-on but was deeply integrated into the unit’s literacy goals, made visible through teacher modeling, scaffolded discussions, and structured collaborative tasks.
This case illustrates how a teacher translated abstract CT concepts into developmentally appropriate, culturally expansive, and narratively rich learning experiences. She grappled with tensions between structure and openness—balancing algorithmic decomposition with students’ creative and cultural agency. Rather than presenting CT as rigid or procedural, her pedagogy emphasized CT as a generative, interpretive, and iterative practice aligned with broader goals of literacy development and intercultural understanding (Vee, 2017; Kafai & Proctor, 2022).
To examine the unit and the teacher’s design process, a qualitative case study approach was employed (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016), drawing on classroom artifacts, field notes, and a semi-structured interview with the teacher. The analysis focused on how CT concepts were translated into instruction and how students’ responses reflected interpretive engagement with both computational and narrative structures. Attention was given to pedagogical moves that supported CT without flattening its complexity, particularly in a multilingual classroom context.
By foregrounding the work of a practicing teacher, this session offers a model of integrative curriculum design in which disciplinary boundaries are porous and computation is framed relationally. It demonstrates how CT can be taught in ways that are both rigorous and imaginative—supporting culturally responsive pedagogy while fostering analytical thinking. Implications for teacher education include the importance of professional learning spaces that invite teachers to co-design curriculum, reflect on practice, and reframe CT as a cross-disciplinary way of knowing.

Authors

• Kelly Renae Martin, Ashland School District

• Gladys Krause, College of William & Mary