Reprinted from the PEG page, a programming education project promoted by CANVAS.

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At Shinagawa City Kyoyo Elementary School, classes using Raspberry Pi and Scratch are being held again this school year.
The theme for the third year is “Nurturing Creators of Digital Technology: Problem-Solving Learning Through Programming.”

Yesterday (June 22), during
a “Civics” class (a subject unique to Shinagawa Ward that integrates General Studies, Ethics, and Special Activities), a lesson titled “Let’s Carry On the Traditions of Kyoyo Elementary School” was held. In this lesson, sixth-graders took on the role of teachers to show
the new first-graders the joy of programming.
Each sixth-grader was assigned to mentor one or two first-graders.

The content is based on a comprehensive lesson plan that each instructor created and tested through simulations and reviews in advance. Following
this plan, instructors will guide students through the entire process—from assembling the Raspberry Pi, to booting it up, creating programs using Scratch,
shutting it down, and cleaning up. The schedule is broken down into 5-minute intervals, and instructors will check off each
completed task on a worksheet as they go.

This teacher was truly skilled at teaching—he didn’t do the work for the students himself,
but instead offered appropriate guidance based on each student’s understanding and ability. By the end of the class,
35 completely different pieces had been completed. The first-year students were thrilled.

I was very impressed that, during class, the teacher’s instructions were limited to greetings, confirming the day’s agenda, checking the time,
and reviewing what had been covered—otherwise, the sixth graders were thinking for themselves and taking initiative.
When I spoke with the teacher later, she explained that although the sixth graders’ skills were quite varied at first, taking on the role of
teachers motivated them to independently look up books in the library and practice even outside of class hours.

With programming education expected to become mandatory even in elementary schools,
I imagine teachers are feeling anxious about how best to teach it.
I felt that the approach taken in this lesson at Kyoyo Elementary—where, rather than the teacher preparing everything in advance,
the children were encouraged to think about what it means to “teach”—offers a valuable insight into this challenge.