!Turtle -------


What is it?

!Turtle is a subset of the computer language LOGO.
It is mainly  concerned with the part of Logo that
has come to be known as  'turtle graphics' or
'turtle geometry'.


What can you do with it?

The Logo environment is mathematically rich; it
offers opportunities for exploration and
investigation in a truly dynamic way.


Getting going - some starting points

It is common to work from the 'empty' Logo screen.
From here you  can wander around, draw shapes or
words, measure the screen in  turtle-steps, etc
... lots of activities. You can do this with
!Turtle if you wish. In fact, it is most important
that you  do work and experiment in this way.

Set yourself challenges ... 
               can I draw a hexagon?
               can I draw a ground floor plan of
                   my house?
               can I fill the screen with squares?
               can I draw a windmill with sails
                   that move?

However, to help both pupils and teachers to get
started with  turtle geometry, and to demonstrate
a range of possible  activities, there are some
files of procedures provided on the  disc ready
for you to load in. These are:

               TRACKS              SQUGRID
               MAZES               TRIGRID
               PLANETS             CANYOU
               GOLF                MOVE
               BUOYS               TILES

You will be prompted to load a file of procedures
when you run  the program. On loading a file, wait
until the turtle-cursor (the  thing that looks
like a camel!) appears then type INFO  <return>.
You can then follow the on-screen help.

Note - to load a new file of procedures it is best
to first quit the program by typing QU <return>,
then start up the program afresh - the on-screen
help is saved as text files in the Text directory
on this disc. These files can be printed out by
dragging them onto an appropriate printer-driver.

Other suggestions for activities, not included on
this disc, are:

   tracing the perimeter of pre-drawn shapes
   writing branching stories/adventure games


Books

There are a number of books available which
discuss the merits of  Logo and offer suggestions
for its use in the classroom.  Generally books
contain references to commands which are
available in Logotron Logo. Two books are:

  Children Learning with Logo by Katrina Blythe
                    ISBN 1 85379 097 4
               from NCET
                    Sir William Lyons Road
                    University of Warwick Science
                                            Park
                    Coventry CV4 7EZ

   Making Logo Work by Janet Ainley and Ronnie
                                      Goldstein
                    ISBN 0 631 15703 4
               from Basil Blackwell Ltd
                    108 Cowley Road
                    Oxford OX4 1JF

In addition, consider Micromath - a journal of the
Association of  Teachers of Mathematics, published
three times a year by Basil  Blackwell Ltd,
available to non-members at 13.35 per year
through Blackwell. This publication often contains
classroom  accounts of the use of Logo, both
primary and secondary, as well  as many other
practical articles concerning the use of IT in
mathematics.

MC