I asked the fifth graders the same question to kick off our conversation on the topic. Most students’ first thoughts were that we needed a computer in order to create the code for a program and were surprised to learn we could begin our exploration without one. Working in pairs, one person served as the programmer and the other as the programme. The goal was to create a program that would direct a person on how to navigate the room without running into anything. This opened the door to talk about the actual commands that it would take to design the program. The task seemed easy at first, but then proved to be more difficult with students constantly going back to the starting point and tweaking the commands to be sure they didn’t miss a step. Now that they understand the necessity for clear and direct commands, we’re ready for the next step!