Elective subject of 3rd year of ESO that develops the specific skills CE1 and CE5: search and critical treatment of information, and computational thinking applied to programming and system simulation. Work is based on the knowledge blocks "Problem solving process" and "Computational thinking". The specific competences are shared between Digital Resources I (CE2, CE3 and CE4; 2nd ESO) and Digital Resources II (CE1 and CE5; 3rd ESO). Where MS Office or Google applications are named, the reference is to office applications in general, including LibreOffice, EuroOffice and protonmail's cloud applications.
Key Competences
Competence in linguistic communication
It involves interacting coherently in different settings, whether orally, in writing or through multiple modes, mobilising knowledge to understand, interpret and produce messages critically and effectively.
Plurilingual competence
It involves using different languages appropriately and effectively for learning and communication, drawing on one's own experience to transfer knowledge between languages and to mediate between them.
Competence in mathematics and in science, technology and engineering
It involves using mathematical and scientific thinking to solve problems, together with technological and engineering methods to transform the environment responsibly and sustainably.
Digital competence
It involves the safe, healthy, sustainable, critical and responsible use of digital technologies for learning, work and social participation, including computational thinking and programming.
Personal, social and learning-to-learn competence
It is the ability to reflect on oneself, self-manage, collaborate with others, remain resilient and manage learning throughout life, coping with uncertainty and complexity.
Citizenship competence
It is the ability to exercise responsible citizenship and take part in social and civic life, based on an understanding of social, economic and political concepts and on a commitment to sustainability and human rights.
Entrepreneurial competence
It involves identifying needs and opportunities and turning ideas into solutions and projects that create value (social, cultural or economic), developing creativity, initiative and planning.
Operational Descriptors
CC1
Analyses and understands ideas about the social and civic dimension of their own identity, as well as the cultural, historical and normative facts that determine it, showing respect for rules, empathy, fairness and a constructive spirit when interacting with others in any context.
CC2
Analyses and takes on, on a well-founded basis, the principles and values that stem from the European integration process, the Spanish Constitution and human and children's rights, taking part in community activities, such as decision-making or conflict resolution, with a democratic attitude, respect for diversity, and a commitment to gender equality, social cohesion, sustainable development and the achievement of global citizenship.
CC3
Understands and analyses fundamental and current ethical problems, critically considering their own and other people's values, and developing their own judgements in order to face moral controversy with a dialoguing, argumentative and respectful attitude, opposed to any kind of discrimination or violence.
CC4
Understands the systemic relationships of interdependence, eco-dependence and interconnection between local and global actions, and consciously and willingly adopts a sustainable, ecologically and socially responsible lifestyle.
CCL1
Expresses themselves orally, in writing, by signing or multimodally with coherence, correctness and appropriateness to different social contexts, and takes part in communicative interactions with a cooperative and respectful attitude both to exchange information, create knowledge and convey opinions, and to build personal bonds.
CCL2
Understands, interprets and evaluates with a critical attitude oral, written, signed or multimodal texts from the personal, social, educational and professional fields in order to take part in different contexts in an active and informed way and to build knowledge.
CCL3
Locates, selects and contrasts information from different sources in a progressively autonomous way, evaluating its reliability and relevance according to the reading goals and avoiding the risks of manipulation and disinformation, and integrates and transforms it into knowledge in order to communicate it, adopting a creative, critical and personal point of view that is at the same time respectful of intellectual property.
CCL5
Puts communicative practices at the service of democratic coexistence, the dialogic resolution of conflicts and the equal rights of all people, avoiding discriminatory uses, as well as abuses of power, to promote the not only effective but also ethical use of the different communication systems.
CD1
Searches the internet according to criteria of validity, quality, currency and reliability, selecting the results critically and archiving them in order to retrieve, reference and reuse them, respecting intellectual property.
CD2
Manages and uses their own personal digital learning environment to build new knowledge and create digital content, through information-processing strategies and the use of different digital tools, selecting and configuring the most appropriate one depending on the task and on their lifelong learning needs.
CD3
Communicates, participates, collaborates and interacts by sharing knowledge, data and information through virtual tools and platforms, manages their actions, presence and visibility online responsibly, and exercises an active, civic and reflective digital citizenship.
CD4
Identifies risks and adopts preventive measures when using digital technologies in order to protect devices, personal data, health and the environment, and to become aware of the importance and need for a critical, legal, safe, healthy and sustainable use of these technologies.
CD5
Develops simple computer applications and creative, sustainable technological solutions to solve specific problems or respond to proposed challenges, and shows interest and curiosity about the evolution of digital technologies and about their sustainable development and ethical use.
CE1
Analyses and assesses challenges and opportunities in the immediate and global environment, and presents innovative and sustainable ideas and solutions, applying the principles of project management and design thinking, to create value for others.
CE2
Mobilises personal, social and cultural resources, including financial ones, to carry out ideas and projects, and to make ethical and responsible economic and financial decisions, considering the social and environmental impact.
CE3
Develops the personal qualities needed for entrepreneurship, such as creativity, perseverance, self-confidence and a critical spirit.
CP1
Effectively uses one or more languages, in addition to the family language or languages, to respond to their communicative needs, in a way that is appropriate and appropriate both to their development and interests and to different situations and contexts in the personal, social, educational and professional spheres.
CP2
Drawing on their experiences, makes transfers between different languages as a strategy to communicate and expand their individual linguistic repertoire.
CPSAA1
Regulates and expresses their emotions, strengthening optimism, resilience, self-efficacy and the search for purpose and motivation towards learning, in order to manage challenges and changes and harmonise them with their own goals.
CPSAA2
Understands the health risks related to social factors, consolidates healthy lifestyles from both a physical and a mental point of view, recognises behaviours that are contrary to coexistence and applies strategies to deal with them.
CPSAA4
Carries out self-assessments of their learning process, looking for reliable sources to validate, support and contrast information and to obtain relevant conclusions.
CPSAA5
Plans short- and medium-term goals, using self-assessment strategies to improve and persist in learning.
STEM1
Uses inductive and deductive methods typical of mathematical reasoning in familiar situations, selects and applies different strategies to solve problems, critically analyses the solutions and reformulates the procedure, if necessary.
STEM2
Uses scientific thinking to understand and explain the phenomena that occur around them, trusts in knowledge as an engine of development, asks questions and checks hypotheses through experimentation and enquiry, uses suitable tools and instruments, appreciates the importance of precision and truthfulness and shows a critical attitude about the scope and the limitations of science.
STEM3
Plans and develops projects; designs, manufactures and evaluates different prototypes or models in order to generate and use products that provide a solution to a need or problem creatively and as a team; ensures that the whole group takes part; resolves peacefully any conflicts that may arise; adapts to uncertainty, and values the importance of sustainability.
STEM4
Interprets and transmits scientific information in different formats, using precise language and mathematical and scientific tools.
STEM5
Puts healthy lifestyle habits into practice, becoming aware of the importance of health and sustainability for the preservation of the environment.
Specific Competences
1. Searching for and selecting information
Search and critically select appropriate information from different sources, taking into account criteria of validity, quality, timeliness and reliability and respecting copyright, to incorporate it into the construction of knowledge.
5. Developing applications
Develop computer applications in different environments, applying the fundamentals of computational thinking to respond to various problems and to simulate the behavior of simple systems.
Assessment Criteria
Criterion 1.1
Search and select information based on your needs using the tools of the personal learning environment and following basic network security rules.
- Search for information from different sources of information.
- Select the most relevant, reliable and appropriate information for the objectives of the entire search.
- Use the tools of the personal learning environment efficiently in the search and selection of information.
- Follow basic network security rules when searching and selecting information.
Criterion 1.2
Compare information from different sources in a critical and safe manner, assessing its reliability and relevance.
- Recognize and differentiate the various sources of information.
- Verify authorship, source reputation and information update.
- Validate sensitive data before sharing.
- Compare information using digital verification tools.
Criterion 1.3
Make ethical use of data and digital tools, applying digital etiquette rules and respecting usage licenses and intellectual property in communication, collaboration and active participation in the network.
- Have appropriate and respectful behavior in communication, collaboration and active participation in the network.
- Respect copyright and usage licenses when searching for and creating material.
Criterion 5.1
Design solutions to computer problems through algorithms and flow diagrams, applying the elements and techniques of programming in a creative way.
- Design solutions to computer problems through algorithms and flow diagrams.
- Apply programming elements and techniques creatively.
Criterion 5.2
Program simple applications for different devices, using programming elements appropriately and taking advantage of the resources provided by the different editing tools available.
- Design and program simple applications for different devices.
- Employ different programming elements, using available, intuitive and adapted programming environments.
Criterion 5.3
Simulate the behavior of simple systems, using programming and reproducing the behavior of its fundamental components to obtain a tool with predictive capacity.
- Analyze and understand a basic simple system.
- Simulate the behavior of a simple system through programming.
- Assess that the results conform to the previous schedule.
Timing
2026-27 school year calendar
This is an optional subject organised in three blocks over the school year. These are the dates of the official school calendar of the Balearic Islands, which show when each block is taught and when the evaluations take place.
Optional subject: 3 blocks throughout the course
This schedule is indicative and flexible: it adapts to the pace of the group and to the timetable of the optional subject, and makes room for extension or reinforcement activities as needed.
Methodology, attention to diversity and assessmentAll the teaching units share the same approach, whether one alternative or the other is done.
- Methodology: project-based learning (PBL) with a final product, active methodologies, cooperative work, self-assessment and peer assessment.
- Attention to individual needs: adapting tasks to the skills of each student and individual supervision during the sessions.
- Assessment: direct observation in class and grading of the tasks and of the final product.
UP1: Typing (optional task to raise the grade)
(5-8 divided sessions. Optional: raises the grade by half a point if the previous course was not taught to most students)
We learn to type with all fingers without looking at the keyboard, improving speed and accuracy.
See the challenges and resources
- Challenge 1: Learn to use all your fingers without looking at the keyboard.
- Challenge 2: Type each key with the corresponding finger.
- Challenge 3: Type fluently without mistakes.
- Challenge 4: Accuracy: keep the percentage of errors below 4%.
- Main platform: Cursomeca (cursomeca.com) with 27 guided lessons. Alternative in Catalan: MecaGratis (mecagratis.com).
- Other resources: TypingClub, Ratatype, Velocidactil, Artypist.
- Free applications for Linux: TuxTyping and KTouch.
Pedagogical justification
Touch typing develops muscle memory and hand-eye coordination, and makes it easier to take notes, write reports and sit online exams. Despite the advance of AI and voice recognition, writing quickly and without errors remains a basic professional competence that frees up cognitive load for higher-level tasks.
UP2: Google Suite, my digital backpack
(15 sessions)
The specific competence CE1 is worked on: organising the personal learning environment with Google tools (email, cloud, notes, presentations, calendar, forms and video calls), following basic rules of online safety and digital etiquette. Criteria: CA 1.1 and CA 1.3.
Opening activity: which digital apps do you use every day, and for what? Which ones are useful for school?
See the sessions
- Session 1: introductory activity and introduction to the Google Suite environment and its tools.
- Sessions 2-3: Gmail: setting up and managing email (profile photo, automatic signature, structure of an email, labels, scheduling emails, automatic replies, starred emails and themes).
- Sessions 4-5: Drive: cloud storage, creating and organising folders and documents, permissions and sharing.
- Session 6: Keep: notes, reminders, lists and labels, and creating documents from notes.
- Sessions 7-9: Slides: templates, backgrounds, images, transitions and the basics of graphic design.
- Session 10: Google Calendar: planning meetings and activities, adding events, setting reminders and sharing the calendar.
- Sessions 11-13: Google Forms: creating questionnaires, question types, assessment, privacy and data collection, and customisation and design.
- Session 14: video calls with Meet: creating them, roles and recording meetings.
- Session 15: preparing, reviewing and handing in the final product.
Final product: digital portfolio of all the tasks carried out, in a Google Drive folder with viewer access for the teacher.
Materials: the Google Slides presentations (1, 2, 3, 4 and 5); computer with internet access and a Google Workspace for Education account.
UP3: How can I tell whether information on the Internet is reliable?
(15 sessions)
The specific competence CE1 is worked on: searching, cross-checking and verifying information critically and safely (news, images and videos), and respecting copyright and licences. Criteria: CA 1.1, CA 1.2 and CA 1.3.
Opening activity: two news stories are presented, one real and one «fake», and the question is asked: «How can we tell which one is true?».
See the sessions
- Session 1: opening activity and introduction to information searching.
- Sessions 2-3: comparing search engines (Google, DuckDuckGo and Scholar).
- Session 4: verifying news with Maldita.es, Newtral.es and similar sites.
- Sessions 5-6: verifying images (Google reverse image search and TinEye).
- Session 7: verifying videos (InVID).
- Session 8: copyright and licences.
- Sessions 9-12: in pairs, writing a guide of good practices and creating an infographic with Canva.
- Sessions 13-14: presenting the infographics and peer assessment.
- Session 15: final debate on fake news.
Final product: collaborative infographic «How to verify information on the Internet».
Materials: Maldita.es, Newtral, FactCheck, Google Images, TinEye, InVID, Canva and Google Slides for the infographic; computer with internet access and a Google Workspace for Education account.
UP4: Solving challenges with computational thinking (Can I invent my own language?)
(10 sessions)
The specific competence CE5 is worked on: designing solutions to computing problems with algorithms and flowcharts, and applying programming elements creatively. Criterion: CA 5.1.
Opening activity: what is an algorithm? Examples from everyday life.
See the sessions
- Session 1: opening activity on what an algorithm is (everyday examples).
- Session 2: flowcharts (theory and example).
- Sessions 3-4: designing flows with draw.io or Lucidchart.
- Session 5: introduction to Excel or Google Sheets and colour-coded representation.
- Sessions 6-7: solving codes.
- Sessions 8-9: creating codes.
- Session 10: a school treasure hunt solving a code.
Final product: cooperative dossier with coded messages.
Materials: spreadsheets; computer with internet access and a Google Workspace for Education account.
UP5: How can I create stories and games with Scratch?
(10 sessions · alternative to UP6: choose one of the two)
The specific competence CE5 is worked on: programming simple applications with block-based language (Scratch) and creating a chase game. Criteria: CA 5.1 and CA 5.2.
Opening activity: is programming difficult? Discussion and introduction to block-based programming.
See the sessions
- Session 1: opening activity and introduction to Scratch.
- Session 2: basic movement and event blocks.
- Session 3: loops and repetitive structures.
- Session 4: animations.
- Session 5: objects and backdrops.
- Session 6: operators.
- Session 7: variables.
- Sessions 8-9: developing the chase game.
- Session 10: presenting and handing in the game.
Final product: chase game in Scratch.
Materials: instructions for the chase game; Scratch, computer with internet access and a Google Workspace for Education account.
UP6: Can we design a mobile app?
(10 sessions · alternative to UP5: choose one of the two)
The specific competence CE5 is worked on: programming a simple mobile app with App Inventor or Thunkable, from the interface to a chase game. Criterion: CA 5.2.
Opening activity: what do we need to develop an app? Group discussion.
See the sessions
- Session 1: introductory activity and introduction to App Inventor and Thunkable.
- Sessions 2-3: first guided project (start, buttons, links, etc.).
- Sessions 4-5: interface design.
- Sessions 6-8: developing a chase-type game.
- Sessions 9-10: presentation and video explaining the game.
Final product: mobile game and video of the game to upload to the portfolio.
Materials: App Inventor or Thunkable, mobile phone, computer with internet access and a Google Workspace for Education account.
UP7: How does artificial intelligence help us understand the world?
(10 sessions)
The specific competence CE5 continues to be worked on: foundations of artificial intelligence (patterns, information processing and learning automation) and simulation of the behaviour of simple systems with programming. Criteria: CA 5.1, CA 5.2 and CA 5.3.
Opening activity: an experiment with Teachable Machine, an AI that recognises gestures. Can we teach a machine to think?
See the sessions
- Session 1: introductory activity and introduction to AI (patterns and data).
- Sessions 2-3: experiments with Teachable Machine.
- Session 4: what a prompt is and what components it has: role, task, context, format, tone and example.
- Session 5: comparing a bad prompt with a good one, and refining the answer by asking the AI to review it.
- Sessions 6-7: using simulators to study the behaviour of a simple system (PhET and ecosystem games).
- Sessions 8-9: group project simulating a simple system.
- Session 10: presentation and ethical debate about AI: privacy, bias and hallucinations.
Points from the prompt guide to cover in the sessions
- What is a prompt, and why does the result depend on how you write it?
- The components: role, task, context, format, tone and example.
- A bad prompt and a good one, compared: what is the real difference?
- Iterative refinement: asking the AI to review and improve its own answer.
- Hallucinations: AI can invent data with complete confidence, so it must be checked.
- Bias: do not accept the first answer as objective truth.
- Privacy: do not enter personal data, or data about other people, into a public AI.
Full guide: Prompt guide for AI.
Final product: simulation of a simple system and a digital dossier.
Materials: Teachable Machine and PhET; computer with internet access and a Google Workspace for Education account.
UP8: Your judgement in the face of deception
(4 sessions)
Interactive concept map with the eight distortions that undermine our judgement (authority, urgency, misleading numbers, repetition, the fluency of AI, delegation, confirmation bias and overconfidence) and a four-step protocol to defend against them. Includes real cases, warning signs, defence questions and a test.
Open the map (14 years · 3rd ESO)
Fallacies assignment: how it is marked
Students must send an email with two fallacies, each explained in three sections: explanation, example and refutation. The email must have an automatic index and be based on one of the fallacies explained on the website of the «asociación para el avance del pensamiento racional» (search on Google: «falacias explicadas gráficamente»). The example must include the image from the website and explain, without narration, why that image is a good example of the fallacy.
Points for writing the email well: correct subject line, greeting and introduction, automatic index, title, subtitles, explanation, example and refutation.
See the multi-level scoring
- 4: if it has been copied and pasted.
- 5: email with a good format.
- 6: if the student understands it and explains it in their own words.
- 7: good explanation of the fallacy and of the example.
- 8: with a good refutation.
- 9: reflection with causes, consequences and analysis.
- 10: reflection with priorities, judgement and hypotheses.
UP9: How do you make a video?
(complement to UP6)
For students who have never made one, and as support for preparing the video of the UP6 game: the map sets out the steps and key considerations for planning and creating a video.
UP10: How do we use AI to improve the documents we write?
(6 sessions)
The specific competence CE1 is worked on: checking and assessing AI suggestions before including them in the text, and using AI ethically and transparently. Criteria: CA 1.2 and CA 1.3.
See the sessions
- Session 1: what AI can and cannot do with your own text: reviewing a draft, but not writing the assignment for the student.
- Session 2: constructive feedback: strengths, three specific improvements, and spelling and grammar review.
- Session 3: self-assessment: the AI asks questions about the teacher's instructions and does not give the answers.
- Session 4: iterative refinement: asking the AI to review its answer for clarity, persuasiveness and conciseness.
- Session 5: verification: spotting invented data and non-existent sources, and checking every fact before including it.
- Session 6: ethical and transparent use: what should not be pasted into an AI (personal data) and how to say that AI was used.
Final product: your own document improved with AI, with a record of the prompts used, the changes accepted and the reason for each change.
Materials: Prompt guide for AI (sections on an assistant to improve your work, self-assessment and refinement); your own draft; computer with internet access and a Google Workspace for Education account.
Voluntary work and extra resources
These are not part of any unit. They are optional tasks to improve your grade.
- PC configurator (announcement of 25/10/2024): optional extra task to improve the grade, which will be done in 4th ESO. Students must choose a computer built from components that costs €2,000, with an objective selection suitable for gaming and for doing artificial intelligence. PC-Componentes configurator.
- AI videos (announcement of 19/12/2024): optional task to raise the grade, with a list of AI tools for videos (in English).
Basic Knowledge
A. Problem solving process
- Digital communication technologies.
- Efficient management and advanced organization of e-mail.
- Creation and administration of video calls.
- Secure and accessible cloud storage services. Usage
- Organization of files in folders in a structured way. Location and access.
- Share files with other users using shared drives. Collaboration in projects.
- Management of access permissions to files and folders. Privacy and information control.
- Cooperative team collaboration.
- Establishment and configuration of roles and access permissions.
- Virtual classrooms Utilities and use.
- Basic use of personal learning software: word processors, spreadsheets, forms, presentations and graphic designs.
- Digital techniques and resources for effective coordination and communication in online teams.
- Digital tools to take notes, make lists and manage and organize team tasks.
E. Computational thinking
- Fundamentals of computational thinking and programming.
- Programming with block-based languages.
- Simple computer applications for computer and mobile devices. Selection and use to solve everyday tasks.
- Fundamentals of artificial intelligence: pattern identification.
- Fundamentals of artificial intelligence: information processing.
- Fundamentals of artificial intelligence: automating learning.
- Presentation and use of simulators to make new designs or prototypes.
References and extras
Bloom's Taxonomy Table
A visual guide to learn how to study better. Instead of just memorising, discover how to start by analysing and prioritising information to make your study more effective.
Useful for students and families to understand how we learn and how we are assessed.
FP and Secondary Education Terminology
My interactive conceptual hypermap that clarifies and connects the terminology used in Vocational Training (FP) and Secondary Education.
Official curriculum of Digital Resources (Balearic Islands)
Official document of the optional subject Digital Resources, with the specific skills, evaluation criteria and basic knowledge sequenced between RD I (2nd ESO) and RD II (3rd ESO).
Decree 42/2025, of August 1 (ESO in the Balearic Islands)
Rule that establishes the organization and curriculum of Compulsory Secondary Education in the Balearic Islands and that provides the legal framework for this matter.
Teaching and citizen digital competence framework
Reference for operational descriptors (CD1–CD5) that cross the entire subject.
Guidelines and materials from the Educational Planning Service
Templates, sequences and didactic programming models published by the Ministry.
