Welcome to Project Crystal Code! During this program, you are invited to help UC Irvine, Crystal Cove State Park, and Crystal Cove Conservancy study the best way to restore Moro Canyon.
Project Crystal Code participants will learn about the real-life challenges we face in protecting Moro Canyon and how we can use technology to address them as you investigate scientific questions, design a computer model, explore how to code an environmental sensor, analyze data, and finally create a recommendation for Crystal Cove State Park.
The program, designed to address Next Generation Science Standards for middle school, addresses concepts such as decomposition, modeling, coding, and how we can use science ideas to protect our wild places. It is divided into ten sessions, which consist of 45-60 minutes of investigations.
Please visit our field trip page for information on booking an in-person trip.
How to Join
Virtual Project Crystal Code is free for everyone! If you are a teacher or homeschool educator and would like to join Project Crystal Code virtually for the 2023-2024 school year, please complete this survey and let us know.
If you have any questions about the program, feel free to contact Georges Edouard, Education Coordinator, by emailing georges@crystalcove.org.
Teacher Professional Development
We highly recommend that all teachers, educators, and parents who will be facilitating Project Crystal Code attend two online professional development sessions. The “Welcome to Project Crystal Code” training gives an introduction to the Project Crystal Code research project and curriculum. The “Project Crystal Code Data Analysis” training gives you a crash course in supporting your scientists in thinking about how best to represent data through statistics, making graphs, and using their graphs as evidence to support a recommendation.
2023-2024 Training Dates:
Webinars:
- November 9, 2023, 4:00 – 5:30pm – Welcome to Project Crystal Code Virtual Training
- January 15, 2024, 4:00 – 5:30pm – Welcome to Project Crystal Code Virtual Training
- February 6, 2024, 4:00-5:00pm – Data Analysis for Project Crystal Code
- March 4, 2024 – 4:00 – 5:00pm – Data Analysis for Project Crystal Code
In-person workshops (recommended for teachers participating in field trips):
- January 27, 2024 9am – 2pm – Welcome to Project Crystal Code Training in Moro Canyon
If you cannot attend a training, we will post recordings afterwards to watch at your leisure!
Project Crystal Code Curriculum
Curriculum for this year’s project will be posted throughout winter and spring 2022! If you want to check out the complete curriculum from last year, check out the 2020-2021 project page here!
Teacher & Educator Resources
Session 1: Welcome to Moro Canyon!
- Session 1 Lesson Guide (PDF)
- Session 1 Slideshow
- Exploring Moro Canyon Thinglink
- Session 1 Field Notebook template
Session 2: Introduction to Our Experiment
Session 3: Designing a Model
- Session 3 Lesson Guide (PDF)
- Session 3 Slideshow – Making a Model with Padlet
- Session 3 Slideshow – Making a Model with SageModeler
- Session 3 Field Notebook Template
Session 4: Making a Hypothesis
Session 5: Building Circuits
Session 6: Learning to Code
- Session 6 Lesson Guide (PDF)
- Session 6 Slideshow
- Session 6 Extension Slideshow: Downloading Code to a Micro:Bit
- Session 6 Extension Slideshow: Rock, Paper, Scissors
- Session 6 Field Notebook Template
- Session 6 Micro:Bit MakeCode Directions
Session 7: Coding a Soil Moisture Meter
- Session 7 Lesson Guide (PDF)
- Session 7 Slideshow
- Session 7 Field Notebook Template
- Session 7 Micro:Bit MakeCode Directions
Session 8: Collecting Data
Book a field trip to Crystal Cove State Park by contacting georges@crystalcove.org
If you would prefer to do a virtual field trip instead, check out our virtual data collection lesson guide and virtual data collection slideshow!
Session 9: Analyzing Data
- Session 9 Lesson Guide (PDF)
- Session 9 Slideshow – Analyzing Data with Google Sheets
- Session 9 Slideshow – Analyzing Data with SageModeler
- Session 9 Field Notebook Template
Session 10: Sharing Our Findings
- Session 10 Lesson Guide (PDF)
- Session 10 Slideshow
- Session 10 Field Notebook Template
- Session 10 Presentation Template
Have any other questions? Please contact Georges Edouard at georges@crystalcove.org for more information!