With the need to ensure equitable and inclusive computer science (CS) education for K-12 students, much effort has been devoted to promoting secondary CS teachers’ practices and pedagogies. However, there is a lack of focus on elementary teachers’ experiences, especially those of teachers of color. This study stands at the intersections of Black/African American teachers teaching at an elementary school with a majority of historically underrepresented and economically disadvantaged students (Black/African Americans and Hispanic/Latinx). Using a basic qualitative approach with constant comparative analysis, this study revealed important insights regarding the professional growth manifested by six teachers of color over the course of computer science professional development and classroom implementation. Data analysis revealed five main themes reflecting the teachers’ growth: (1) Teachers reported positive outcomes including improved understanding, confidence, and intentions regarding CS integration as a result of attending PD; (2) Teachers demonstrated enhanced abilities to use a variety of tools and resources in CS teaching after PD; (3) Teachers discussed various pedagogies, including culturally and personally responsive pedagogical practices, and racial awareness to promote inclusive instruction in the classroom and used strategies to promote personal relevance more than the collective cultural values or beliefs in CS teaching specifically; (4) Teachers reported having ongoing reflections on how they can implement successful CS-integrated instruction with their enhanced knowledge and beliefs; (5) Positive student outcomes were both reported by the teachers and observed by the researchers as a result of teachers’ experimentation, which gave the teachers more confidence to enact CS teaching. Areas for improvement were also identified. This paper discussed the important implementations of fostering professional growth in teachers of color for broadening minoritized students’ participation in computing.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming ubiquitous in our everyday lives. In the United States, AI has increasingly been recognized as an important part of computer science (CS) standards for elementary school students. Prior research work has shown that AI-related content can be taught at upper elementary grade levels. However, classroom-ready, standards-aligned materials for CS in the context of AI remain limited at the elementary level. This paper showcases how educators may use generative AI to design standards-aligned materials for teaching CS and AI in elementary schools. Specifically, this paper presents a design case in which generative AI (Google Gemini) serves as a collaborative designer to co-author four comic-based stories for grades 4–6. The four comic stories, titled “The AI Journey with Milo and Zada,” “Zappy the AI Robot,” “The AI Adventures,” and “Think Like an Engineer,” are mapped to specific AI standards in the Alabama Digital Literacy and Computer Science (DLCS) Course of Study. This work provides a replicable example of using generative AI to co-design standards-aligned instructional materials with responsible use of AI. This work is also useful for instructional designers, elementary school teachers, and policymakers in elementary computer science education.