I've been hit with a wave of nostalgia recently. Does this theme song bring you back any memories?
3-2-1 Contact was one of many astonishingly brilliant educational shows that had a huge impact on my childhood. It came out right when I was an impressionable kid that was interested in a bunch of different things. It normalized the excitement of science and technology and made for fun viewing because it included dramatic elements like The Bloodhound Gang.
In addition to television, 3-2-1 Contact had a printed magazine that included a section at the end for BASIC programming. I would borrow the magazine from my school library and either type in every single line with the one Commodore 64 or take it home and try it on my 286 (complete with TURBO button!).
It would take multiple compiles and dozens of syntax errors before I could get it working right. And that's when I learned I could cheat by understanding what I was rote copying. If I could manipulate a number here, a command there, I could change my score or entire elements of the game.
Today I put that concept into practice and built an escape/puzzle room in CoSpaces for my Grade 5-7s. I used simple CoBlocks to make responsive doors and moving platforms and bridges that blocked the user's path. I challenged them to complete the room, and if needed, to re-code it and break anything they wanted. I was hoping that by remixing and cheating they would learn how they could manipulate the set of coblocks I used. It worked well and everyone had a great introduction to VR.
I remembered these experiences after reading Greg Baugues' same experiences with his daughter and marvelled at the similar nature of our circumstances. I wonder if watched The Edison Twins too?
