Made up of two complementary activities, these resources from the CS4FN team go deeper into theory about search algorithms.

The first activity involves the teacher leading a magic trick using some normal playing cards. In the subsequent explanation of the trick, students are asked to consider the pseudocode...

This longer-duration activity involves prototyping a low-power lighting system. It could be used in an off-timetable workshop or across a series of lessons.

Students are challenged to work through the whole design process, and to place a micro-controller (in this case a BBC micro:bit) at the centre of the...

In this resource learners will use Scratch, to debug and then improve a program to move Autosub6000 around the ocean floor, photographing samples found.   The remote movement will be controlled through a keyboard’s arrow keys initially and then the children will be challenged to create a program which will move...

This introductory guide explains how to use the LINUX shell known as BASH (Bourne Again Shell). BASH is useful for linking together various programs for creating innovative solutions, and can unleash the power of a Raspberry Pi.

The guide covers running BASH, the syntax used, how to chain together commands,...

The BBC micro:bit is a credit sized computer based on a highly popular and high performance ARM processor. The device is designed by a group of 29 partners for use in...

The BBC micro:bit is a small programmable device, designed to engage children with coding and the world of digital. Given to all 11-12 year old students across the UK in 2016, it is supported with a range of programming environments available here.

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The BBC micro:bit is a great tool for carrying out surveys that involve quickly counting and recording one or two variables. Using the button inputs provides a simple interface to the device allowing, for instance, quick tallying of the numbers of two different types of bee around a plant. Other examples might...

Ten free activities for the start of term to use in class to develop children's computing knowledge and skills. Activities include creating an algorithm to get ready for school and how to stay safe online.

This activity, suitable for a multi-lesson sequence or a single extended session, challenges students to design and prototype a simple motion-sensing alarm. The device is intended to prevent theft or the accidental picking-up of a bag.

Motion is sensed using the accelerometer built-in to the BBC micro:bit,...

In this activity children design and build their own Ball Run, and put their final creation to the test. They are provided with tips for joining dowels together,...

These resources support the teaching of the Computing curriculum by providing display materials and resources that can be circulated to parents. These resources will improve pupils computing vocabulary and understanding as it gives them a point to refer to when discussing the curriculum.

This series of activities is given as a lesson designed to get pupils familiar with Bee-Bots, teaching them to create short algorithms, enter these as simple programmes using Bee-Bots and to debug their programmes.  The supporting resources will give pupils the opportunity to choose a jacket for their Bee-Bot based...

The Barefoot Computing project is helping teachers to teach the computer science elements of the primary computing curriculum. This collection contains the free, high-quality resources produced by the project, comprising of teacher guides and activity sheets.

The project uses a range of approaches to a core...

A short series of guides for using the versatile BASH shell on Raspberry Pi and other Linux computers.

Computers are often required to find information in large collections of data. They need to develop quick and efficient ways of doing this. This activity demonstrates three different search methods: linear searching, binary searching and hashing. This resource begins with the introductory activity of battleships....