This booklet, from the Mathematics Centre at the University of Chichester, explores how the microcomputer can be a valuable tool when engaged in investigating a situation that leads to such laborious arithmetic that the 'sums' spoil the activity, especially in the...

Using sparkles to light the night sky. It is possible to make them ‘twinkle’ or use an LDR so they only light up in the dark.

This activity aims to stimulate discussion on the question of whether computers can exhibit ’intelligence’, or are ever likely to do so in the future. Based on a pioneering computer scientist’s view of how one might recognize artificial intelligence if it ever appeared, it conveys something of what is currently...

Data in computers is stored and transmitted as a series of zeros and ones. In this activity students explore how words and numbers can be represented using just these two symbols. This resource includes ideas teachers can use to introduce the topic in order to develop understanding of the binary system followed by...

These Cre8ate maths activities are provided to introduce students to the fundamental processes involved in programming a computer. Students are given drawings, along with the Logo commands which have been used and, by...

This resource from the MIT team where Scratch originated consists of a teacher guide and student workbook.

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This resource provides instructions for building a card buggy and creating a sample programme for your crumble board. You will need motors, a battery pack and connectors to complete the project.

This set of activities introduces children to cryptography techniques, showing how the use of computers can make encryption quicker and more effective. Some notable examples of the use of encryption in history are mentioned, leading to the use of calculation machines for code-making and code-breaking.

A...

This report gives details of a series of computing lessons designed to relate fundamental concepts of database use and design to children in Primary and Secondary Education (ages of 6 to 16). The skills and concepts developed in...

Aimed at primary level this resource shows how to incorporate data logging into science lessons. It contains lesson ideas on the topics of sound, habitats, plants and animals in the local environment, light, thermal insulators, separating mixtures, electricity, changing state and sound. The teacher guidance...

This computing resource for primary schools introduces the concept of decomposition through dance. Using combinations of hand-jive, clapping or tutting, the lesson demonstrates how complex sequences of instructions (algorithms) can be broken down into smaller chunks. The children are challenged to look for patterns...

The dice uses sparkles and a code to make them flash randomly. What is the probability of the same numbers being picked and does that mean it is truly random? It is also relevant here to think about nets and dice shape.

An unplugged activity that simulates how data travels around the internet in packets. It involves cutting up pictures into ‘packets of data’ and then sending them to other students for them to reassemble the picture.

Gary Setchell is the author of this resource.

An ideal lesson plan for the lead up to fireworks night! This is about making sparkles flash with random intervals and colours. It can also be made more difficult by using LDRs.

This activity introduces the idea of remote observation by asking children to match photographs such as lakes, mountains and cities taken from the ground with early astronaut photographs. Children then compare the images from the ground with the astronaut picture of the same place. This activity is also suitable...