Chesterbrook Elementary student Jonathan [name omitted by parent’s request] was named a winner of Computer Science in Your Neighborhood, a contest offered by the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) and CodeVA for Computer Science Education Week. Dr. Anne Petersen, science coordinator at the VDOE, and Chris Dovi, executive director of CodeVA, presented the award to Jonathan during his virtual schooling.

In response to “Bringing CS Home – How do you use computer science?” Jonathan applied his computer programming skills to create a digital story in ScratchJr, a tablet-based coding application for children.

His animated story, “Computer Science Adventures: At home in Virginia,” celebrates Jonathan’s interests in biology. The story follows two main characters as they visit local parks to identify creatures such as crocodiles and snapping turtles.

The digital characters use microscopes to investigate smaller creatures.
At the close of the story, the pair travels into the future to make a unicorn from rhinoceros DNA and horse DNA. When asked about the first thing he will do with his new laptop, he says that he will write a blog about beetles, fossils, and animals that live in backyards.