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Chaney students create apps
By Denise Dick
YOUNGSTOWN
Future video-game creators Elliot Hall and Michael Doucette, both 14, sit before computers in a Chaney STEM classroom, looking for just the right characters and setting for their first creation.
The eighth-graders in Chaney’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics program were using a program in Stephanie Greathouse’s computer-science class.
“You can make games that are better than games that you’ve played,” Elliot said.
Both boys are avid gamers and want to incorporate some of the knowledge they’ve gained as game players into their futures as game creators.
Setting and characters are especially important, Michael explained.
Some sequels to games they’ve played didn’t connect to the original. That’s something they want to rectify in their design.
The Introduction to Computer Science is new to the school this year.
The school secured a $20,000 grant from Project Lead the Way and Verizon to offer the course to middle-school students.
“All kids should have the opportunity to do some computer science, to understand how the technology works,” said Pam Lubich, Chaney’s STEM coordinator.
Chaney offers two semester courses. This year’s seventh-graders will be able to take the second course next year as eighth graders.
In the class last week, eighth-graders Jason Jackson, 15, and Janiya Weldon and Maurice Steel, both 13, worked on applications they designed.
“We learned how to make apps,” Jason said.
Each student created a trivia game app. Jason’s and Maurice’s game focused on football and baseball questions, respectively. Janiya’s was about the music artist Kehlani.
“I like it when everything comes together,” Jason said.
The software, MIT App Inventor 2, allows students to choose colors, sounds, typeface and characters for their apps.
“They can see it on their tablets as the changes happen,” Greathouse explained.
Maurice took the class because he plans to become a mechanical engineer, and he believes it will help provide the foundation for that.
“When I get to high school [at Chaney], I’m going to take mechanical-engineering classes,” he said.
At the beginning of the semester, Janiya thought the class sounded interesting.
“As it went on and we learned more, I got even more interested in it,” Janiya said.