WHICH TYPE OF CHALLENGE IS BEST FOR YOU?

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THE CONCEPT CHALLENGE

Start Your Submission! | How To Guide

 

OVERVIEW 

In this challenge you don't have to code anything. We just want to know about your creative idea for a computer program that solves a problem that you and your team care about.  

 

WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO TO COMPLETE THE CHALLENGE?

You have to answer some questions and create an audio-visual file. The details are below. You will need to submit these through a Google Form by Friday, April 26, 2024.

 

1] Answer Questions 

You will need to answer the following questions: 

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• What problem or issue in your community, Connecticut, the United States, or the world does your problem address? 

• What inspired you to address this problem/issue?

• Who is your audience or who will use your program?

• Explain how your program will make someone’s life better by spreading a positive message, solving an important problem, or promoting a healthy habit.

 

2] Create an Audio-Visual 

The audio-visual piece is your chance to convince us that your idea is a good one. It could be a video, animation, slideshow, storyboard, or some other media. This needs to provide more information than what you wrote in your written prompts. Some suggestions are to share the following about your idea:

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• What type of application would best fit your idea? (game, website, mobile app, etc…)

• Explain how you think the program would work if it was to be developed

• Anything else your team did not include in the written response.

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We encourage you to include narration but it is not required. There is a one-minute time limit.

 

WHAT IF I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS OR NEED HELP?

• Ask a teacher, mentor, adult for guidance.

• Email us a info@ltgovcc.org

 

WHAT IF I WANT TO DO MORE?

If you want to develop your idea more that's awesome! How about trying some of these:

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• Draw what your idea would look like. You can do this on paper or on a computer. This is called the user interface.

• Plan out how the program would work. For example, what happens when a button is pressed or a character walks through a door? 

• Try to code some of the program using a block-based or text-based coding language.

• If you are interested in doing any of these, you might want to consider participating in the Prototype Challenge instead. 

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THE PROTOTYPE CHALLENGE

Scoring Criteria | Start Your Submission! | How To Guide

 

OVERVIEW

In this challenge you will do some designing, some coding, answer some questions and create a video.  The goal is to create a prototype of your idea with a complete user interface and one (or more) working feature that you programmed yourself. 

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• A Prototype is a representation of your computer program.

• A User Interface is what a user sees when the program is turned on. It is also how the user may  interact with your program with on-screen elements such as buttons or text boxes.  

 

WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO TO COMPLETE THE CHALLENGE?

You have to come up with a title and a logo for your idea, make a plan to develop your computing solution, start building your program, create a video and answer some questions. You can use any programming language (block-based or text-based) to create your program. Details are below. You will need to submit these through an online portal called Launchpad by Friday, April 26, 2024.    

 

1] Title, Hashtag and Logo

You will need to title your program, create a hashtag(#) and produce a logo that best represents your idea.

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2} Make a Plan

You will need to plan out your computer program before you start creating it. Plan or map out how the program will work. In other words, how will someone use your program? For example: when you click on each button, what will happen? You can do this through a series of pictures, a storyboard, flowchart, wireframe or other method that illustrates what you plan to create and how it works. There are many tools you can use to create this. 

 

3] Show Your Code (Prototype)

Your prototype will consist of the user interface and a working feature of your program. You do not need to code your entire program, but a minimum of one feature needs to be working. You can use any coding language (block-based or text-based) to build your prototype. Share the code that was programmed for your working feature. This can be done through screen captures. Screen captures should include image(s) of the code that was programmed. Be sure that all of your pictures are large enough so the code can be read. Your final document can be as many pages as you need, but it should be saved as a single pdf file.

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4] Create a Video

Create a video or animation that displays your user interface and demonstrates the working feature(s) you programmed. Use narration in the video to explain how your program works. Show the code for the working feature and explain how you think the program would work if it was to be fully developed. We want to see and hear all that you created. Your video should not be more than two minutes long. 

 

5] Answer Questions

You will need to answer the following questions to complete your submission:

• How would you explain your program and how will your program spread a positive message, solve an important problem, or promote a healthy habit?

• What problem or issue in your community, Connecticut, the United States, or the world does your problem address? 

• What inspired you to address this problem/issue?

• Who are the intended users for your program? Why did you choose this population? Why would this population want to use your program?

• How does your title, hashtag logo, colors, and overall message help you connect with your intended users/audience?

You will also need a brief bio of the coder(s)! The bio should include:

• First names of the coder(s)

• The school or community organization and town that they are representing

• The grade of each coder

 

WHAT IF I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS OR NEED HELP?

• Ask a teacher, mentor, adult for guidance.

• Email us a info@ltgovcc.org

 

WHAT IF I WANT TO DO MORE?

If you want to develop your idea more that's awesome! How about trying some of these:

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• Try and code the rest of your program.

• Think about who would use your program and how their lives would improve by using your program. 

• Plan out how the program would work.  For example, what happens when a button is pressed or a character walks through a door? 

• Try and create the user interface on a computer.

• Try to code some of the program using a block-based or text-based coding language

• If you are interested in doing any of these, you might want to consider participating in the Development Challenge instead. 

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THE DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGE

Scoring Criteria | Start Your Submission! | How To Guide

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OVERVIEW

In this challenge you will design and code a complete computer program. You can use any coding language (block-based or text-based).  In addition to creating the entire program, you will need to come up with a title and logo, share your finished code, create a video and write about your intended users and their perspective.

 

WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO TO COMPLETE THE CHALLENGE?

You have to develop a fully functioning computer program and give it a unique name and logo. You will also need to show us all the code you wrote, make a video and answer some questions. General information is below and specific guidelines are available here. Details are below. You will need to submit these through an online portal called Launchpad by Friday, April 26, 2024.  

 

1] Title, Hashtag & Logo

You will need to title your program, create a hashtag(#) and produce a logo that best represents your idea.

 

2] Submit Program Code 

Once you have completed your program, we would like you to share all of your code with us. In order to do this, you will need to take screen captures all of your code and put them in a single file. Be sure that all of your pictures are large enough so we can read all of your code. Your final document can be as many pages as you need, but it should be saved as a single pdf file. 

 

3] Create a Video

Create a video or animation that provides us with a complete walk through of your entire program.  Demonstrate how the program works and the language, tools and applications you used to develop it. Be sure to discuss and illustrate all of the features of the program. Use narration in the video to explain your program.  We want to see and hear all that you created. Your video should be no longer than three minutes in length.  

 

4] Answer Questions 

You will need to answer the following questions to complete your submission:

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• How would you explain your program and how will your program spread a positive message, solve an important problem, or promote a healthy habit?

• What problem or issue in your community, Connecticut, the United States, or the world does your problem address? 

• What inspired you to address this problem/issue?

• Who are the intended users for your program?  Why did you choose this population? Why would this population want to use your program?

• How does your title, logo, colors, and overall message help you connect with your intended users/audience?

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You will also need a brief bio of the coder(s)! The bio should include:

• First names of the coder(s)

• The school or community organization and town that they are representing

• The grade of each coder

 

5] Show Your Working Application (optional)

Congratulations! You have successfully completed your program! Now, if you want, you can share your final, working application.  This step is optional. To share your program, upload a link to the program, a QR code or shared folder. Be sure your share settings are public so anyone on the internet can find and access your file(s).

 

WHAT IF I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS OR NEED HELP?

• Ask a teacher, mentor, adult for guidance.

• Email us a info@ltgovcc.org

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WHAT IF I WANT TO DO MORE?

If you want to take the next step, how about trying some of these:

• Survey possible users of your program and get some feedback.

• Incorporate this feedback in your program.

• Work with a mentor or a professional in a relevant area.

• Create a marketing plan to share your program with potential users.

• If you can do any of these, you could consider learning how to bring your program to market!

 

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