High-impact computer science resources that are based on sound educational psychological theories to help all pupils reach their full potential. I’m an experienced teacher/HoD and professionally create computing and computer science teaching resources through my company Nichola Wilkin Ltd. All these resources have been exclusively created by me. I’m an author who has written for both BBC Bitesize and Cambridge University Press. Quality teaching resources you can trust!
High-impact computer science resources that are based on sound educational psychological theories to help all pupils reach their full potential. I’m an experienced teacher/HoD and professionally create computing and computer science teaching resources through my company Nichola Wilkin Ltd. All these resources have been exclusively created by me. I’m an author who has written for both BBC Bitesize and Cambridge University Press. Quality teaching resources you can trust!
This visually appealing knowledge organiser is a quick summary to recap how to produce robust programs. It can help pupils revise for end of unit tests or GCSE computer science exams by including small straightforward facts that can be learnt in minutes.
A powerful revision aid that your students will love.
What are you waiting for? Grab your copy now and together we can boost your pupil’s confidence in understanding how to create robust programs.
WHAT IS INCLUDED?
This PDF knowledge organiser includes the important facts and a separate PDF document includes revision tips and an exam style question including a possible answer.
HOW CAN I USE IT?
This resource makes an ideal homework task, can be used as part of a lesson or given to pupils to help them with their revision.
WHAT DOES IT COVER?
This knowledge organiser includes easy to digest facts on the following topics:
Input sanitisation
Validation checks
Planning for contingencies
Anticipating misuse
Authentication
Adding comments, indentation and using sensible variable names
Iterative and final/terminal testing
Syntax and logical errors
Using a test table
.
Get your copy of this fantastic knowledge organiser now. You’ll wonder how you ever managed without it.
Click here to see my other computer science knowledge organisers
This highly engaging series of 3 lessons can be run with no student computers so is suitable for lessons in a standard non-ICT classroom, in a computer suite or when pupils are self-isolating at home.
Each lesson comes with a dyslexia-friendly PowerPoint presentation that includes all the instructions and takes the teacher and class through each lesson making this resource suitable for specialist and non-specialist teachers.
The students have a workbook they fill in each lesson as they progress, extending their knowledge and helping you monitor their progress.
An answer book is provided which can be used by the teacher or issued to students as a self-marking aid.
This is a hands-on enjoyable series of three lessons that help pupils understand the hardware in a computer along with common software. Written for KS3 this is suitable for years 7 to 9 and can even be used with GCSE groups if you wish.
Equipment needed: pupils should have access to a pair of scissors, a glue stick and a sheet of colourful A4 (or letter sized) paper along with a print-out of the 7-page template and 13-page workbook each (oh, and they will also need a pen).
FREE BONUS PRODUCT INCLUDED
As a special thank you for purchasing this product I am pleased to be able to also include a surprise FREE bonus gift. This gift is one of our complete resources which we will usually charge full price for but is yours absolutely free when you purchase this product. Just our little way of saying thank you to our valued customers. I hope you enjoy it and get use out of it, with my compliments.
This FREE escape room is a wonderful no-prep lesson your students will love to enhance their learning about creating their first text-based programs using Python. Created for year 8 students this escape room combines quizzes, puzzles and sound to test their understanding of important concepts in the introduction to Python programming unit.
Absolutely no preparation, no printing and no specialist knowledge required by the teacher and have we mentioned that this escape room activity is absolutely free! What are you waiting for? You have nothing to lose so download it today, now in fact – before you forget!
This escape room makes an ideal activity to use as:
part of a cover lesson,
an end of term activity or
a fun homework task.
.
A fun, educational escape room game this is sure to be a memorable activity your students will adore.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
This is an activity for part of a lesson and will take approximately 35 to 45 minutes to complete.
Ideally students would need headphones to make the most out of this activity, but it can be run without if necessary. Simply give the students the link to the online site (no sign up required) and away they go.
Students can work individually or, if you prefer, they can work through this activity in pairs using computers located side by side.
The teacher doesn’t need to do anything other than give the students the link to this online activity. All the puzzles and quizzes are self-contained with students getting feedback automatically on their progress.
PLEASE NOTE: Students will need internet access in order to play this escape room game.
HOW LONG DOES THE ACTIVITY LAST?
It takes approximately 35 to 45 minutes to work through all the escape room challenges and makes an ideal end of unit activity to recap the skills they have learnt in the unit.
Alternatively set the pupils the escape room as a fun homework task that requires no marking. Simply ask the students to send you a screenshot of the final screen to show they have completed the activity.
WHAT IS INCLUDED?
When you purchase this activity, you get a PDF document that contains a link to the online escape room. It also includes the answers so you can help pupils who may get into difficulty.
What are you waiting for? Grab your copy of this FREE, exciting and educational escape room today to help them recap the skills they have learnt with Python programming.
CLICK HERE TO SEE MY ACCOMPANYING PYTHON WORKSHEETS
Are you looking for some ready to use Python programming challenges that can be easily incorporated into your lessons?
This worksheet can be used as a classroom activity, for a homework task or as a ready-to-use task for quick finishers, making this an invaluable resource to have in your teacher kit.
Download this ready to use worksheet now and take control of your workload. Use it immediately or simply keep it in reserve for when you need it.
WHAT IS INCLUDED?
This 2-page PDF printable handout includes:
example code,
a task to read code,
a task to correct code and
4 practical programming challenges.
.
You even have a separate PDF with possible answers.
The diversity of challenges that are included allows pupils to develop a variety of useful programming skills. This resource is perfect for established computer science teachers, non-specialist teachers or newly qualified teachers.
What are you waiting for? Take action straight away and grab your copy of this wonderful worksheet today that will keep your pupils engaged and making real progress. Everything is done for you which will save you hours of preparation time.
Please note: This resource is a non-editable PDF
FREE BONUS PRODUCT INCLUDED
As a special thank you for purchasing this product I am pleased to be able to also include a surprise FREE bonus gift. This gift is one of our complete resources which we will usually charge full price for but is yours absolutely free when you purchase this product. Just our little way of saying thank you to our valued customers. I hope you enjoy it and get use out of it, with my compliments.
Click Here To See More Of My Great Python Challenges
This complete Python programming lesson teaches pupils about iteration, namely for loops and while loops. It also includes lots of practice with reading and drawing flow diagrams.
Download this no-prep lesson now to help you take control of your workload.
This teaching resource includes an attractive dyslexia friendly PowerPoint presentation including videos to teach the key skills and the easy to follow teachers lesson plan includes all the answers.
This ready-to-use lesson is perfect for non-specialist teachers, newly qualified teachers and teachers who are teaching Python for the first time.
Please note: This lesson does assume the pupils are familiar with using basic if and else statements in Python. (My ready to use lessons to teach those skills are available here: “If Statement Lesson” and “More If Statements Lesson” )
Duration: 1 lesson
This lesson teaches pupils about:
For loops using the range statement
While loops
The difference between count controlled and condition-controlled loops
.
What are you waiting for? Take action straight away and grab your copy of this wonderful lesson today that will keep your pupils engaged and making progress and save you preparation time.
FREE BONUS PRODUCT INCLUDED
As a special thank you for purchasing this product I am pleased to be able to also include a surprise FREE bonus gift. This gift is one of our complete resources which we will usually charge full price for but is yours absolutely free when you purchase this product. Just our little way of saying thank you to our valued customers. I hope you enjoy it and get use out of it, with my compliments.
[Click Here To See More Of My Great Python Lessons] (/resources/search/?authorId=835903&q=Python Lessons&shop=nwilkin)
This free document outlines the lessons that can be used to teach Python programming covering the national curriculum requirements for a text based programming language for key stage 3. It outlines the lessons and provides links to make your job easier when searching for a comprehensive, high-quality set of lessons. It also includes a link to an end of unit assessment.
This activity helps towards of the coverage of the new computing national curriculum requirement of understand what algorithms are. An algorithm is a set of instructions. Help pupils learn about putting instructions into order using these cards. Ask the pupils to cut out each set and stick them in the correct order on paper or card. Cards 3 and 4 can have multiple answers and can form the basis for group discussion. A good activity to use before introducing the pupils to bee-bots.
This is a quick reference guide to help pupils (and teachers) find the correct syntax for common lines of code in Python. Best used as a memory aid rather than a teaching aid. Print as a Booklet for best layout.
Suitable for GCSE Computer Science classes and KS3 Computing classes.
How can a rubber duck help you be a better programmer? How can they possibly have a place in our classrooms? What is rubber duck debugging?
When I first heard about this strange phenomenon, I was a little sceptical. Is this just another gimmick? Is there a surplus of rubber ducks that need repurposing? No, apparently this is a recognised programming technique that really works.
What do you do?
You need enough rubber ducks so that each pupil has their own duck. Amazon sell bags of rubber ducks for a reasonable price.
Run through the presentation with them, give them the 3 Python programs to practice with and watch as your programming classes learn how to solve many of their programming problems without having to rely on you!
If you are having trouble finding non-squeaky ducks you can either print out an image of the duck to be blue-tacked to the corner of their screen for everyone, or try the squeaky ducks but tell them, if there is an excessive amount of squeaking they will have their duck taken away and given a "flat duck"instead.
How can you teach your students about embedded systems, in an engaging way? The key is to break up the theory into small manageable chunks and reinforce each section with a variety of activities. And that is exactly what this computer science lesson does.
Why spend hours making your own resources when it is all done for you? Download this embedded systems computing lesson today and save yourself all that preparation.
WHAT IS INCLUDED?
Suitable for GCSE Computer Science pupils following either OCR GCSE Computer Science (J277) or AQA GCSE Computer Science (8520) syllabuses.
This lesson includes:
an attractive dyslexia friendly PowerPoint presentation,
differentiated lesson objectives,
a video to change focus and break up the lesson,
loads of individual and group tasks and questions,
a printable ready to use worksheet for classwork,
3 differentiated exam style questions which can be used either in the plenary or set for a homework task,
a comprehensive 3-page teacher’s lesson plan including ALL THE ANSWERS.
.
WHAT DOES IT COVER?
With virtually no preparation (apart from photocopying the worksheets) you will be ready to teach about your classes about:
What an embedded system is
How an embedded system differs from a general purpose computer system
Identifying the purpose, input, process and outputs of a variety of embedded systems
Identifying the benefits of using embedded systems
.
DURATION: 1 lesson
Download the lesson now and take back control of your workload.
Click here to see some more computer science lessons
A self-marking spreadsheet, you can install onto your computer network that the pupils copy into their own work area and work through. The stages get progressively harder and asks them to convert from binary to denary and from denary to binary. For some of the harder levels you may need to provide a piece of paper and a pen to help them work out the answers. Can even be used as a form of assessment as their work can be saved. Great to use either in the classroom or set it as a homework task.
Suitable for GCSE Computer Science classes and KS3 Computing classes.
NEW COMPUTER SCIENCE QUIZ FOR THE END OF YEAR / SUMMER TERM 2017!
A fun whole class quiz, ideally suited to keep pupils engaged and settled for the final lesson of the summer term. Suitable for year 7 to year 11.
The quiz includes computer science elements as well as other fun summer related questions getting them into the summer holiday spirit. Guaranteed to make the final lesson fun before they break up for summer.
Print out the answer sheets (enough for 1 per team) and then run through the quiz on the whiteboard. After each section the answers are provided allowing the quiz to easily be cut shorter if you wish.
Suitable for GCSE Computer Science classes and KS3 Computing and ICT classes.
PLEASE NOTE: I have released an updated quiz for 2017 which you can download fro free from /teaching-resource/fun-end-of-term-summer-quiz-2017-gcse-computer-science-and-ks3-computing-11579339
This quiz is a fun end of term whole class quiz, ideally suited to keep pupils engaged and settled for the final lesson of the summer term. Suitable for year 7 to year 11. The quiz includes computing elements as well as other seasonal questions guaranteed to make the final lesson fun before they break up for the summer holidays.
Print out the answer sheets (enough for 1 per team) and then run through the quiz on the whiteboard. After each section the answers are provided allowing the quiz to easily be cut shorter if you wish.
How can you teach your students about the purpose of the CPU in an engaging way? The key is to break up the theory into small manageable chunks and reinforce each section with a variety of activities. And that is EXACTLY what this lesson does.
Why spend hours making your own resources when it is all done for you? Download this lesson today and save yourself all that preparation.
WHAT IS INCLUDED?
Suitable for GCSE Computer Science pupils following either OCR GCSE Computer Science (J277) and AQA GCSE Computer Science (8520) syllabuses.
This lesson includes:
an attractive dyslexia-friendly PowerPoint presentation,
differentiated lesson objectives,
a video to change focus and break up the lesson,
loads of individual and group tasks and questions,
a printable ready-to-use worksheet for classwork,
3 differentiated exam-style questions which can be used either in the plenary or set for a homework task,
a comprehensive 2-page teacher’s lesson plan including ALL THE ANSWERS.
.
WHAT DOES IT COVER?
With virtually no preparation (apart from photocopying the single page worksheet) you will be ready to teach your classes about:
the relationship between hardware and software
the fetch - decode - execute cycle
address busses and data busses
the purpose and main functions of the CPU
.
**DURATION: **1 lesson
Please note: This lesson does not teach pupils about the Von Neumann Architecture as that is covered in a separate lesson.
FREE BONUS PRODUCT INCLUDED
As a special thank you for purchasing this product I am pleased to be able to also include a surprise FREE bonus gift. This gift is one of my complete resources for which I usually charge full price but is yours absolutely free when you purchase this product. Just my little way of saying thank you to my valued customers. I hope you enjoy it and get use out of it, with my compliments.
Check out these other great resources by Nichola Wilkin (nwilkin):
CPU Performance
Von Neumann Architecture
Rom, Ram and Virtual Memory
Embedded Systems
Secondary Storage
This practical hands-on activity is best used to introduce pupils to binary for the first time. It takes about 20 minutes to make the calculator, following the instructions on page 2 (they will need scissors) which can then be used in the lesson to help the pupils convert from binary to denary values.
This lesson allows pupils to practice using the pen tool in Scratch and uses the ‘repeat’ function to create mathematical shapes. This lesson does assume the pupils have a basic understanding of using Scratch.
Looking for a fun, engaging lesson using the Python turtle?
The totally FREE lesson teaches your students about using the turtle in Python to draw shapes.
Students will learn how to create shapes and repeating patterns using the for loop and range statement. This is an ideal lesson to use after teaching your class about for loops, helping pupils embed iteration in their programming skills.
Download this ready to use lesson now and become more confident in teaching programming to your pupils. It’s free so what have you got to lose?
This ready to use lesson is suitable for KS3 and GCSE computer science pupils.
It includes an attractive dyslexia friendly PowerPoint presentation that includes differentiated lesson objectives, videos to teach key skills, created in authentic English by an experienced computer science teacher and the lesson also includes lots of practical programming practise. It also includes a comprehensive lesson plan including all the answers.
This ready-to-use lesson is perfect for non-specialist teachers, newly qualified teachers and teachers who are teaching Python for the first time.
Please note: This lesson does use for loops and random.randint( ) and random.choice( ) statements and it is advantageous for pupils to have already become familiar with these but it is not essential.
Duration: 1 lesson
This lesson teaches pupils about:
Creating simple shapes using a loop
Using computation thinking skills to identify repeating patterns
Nesting loops to create more complex patterns
Altering the background colour
Altering the line colour
Altering the line thickness
Altering the fill colour
Using random to create unique random patterns
.
What are you waiting for? Take action straight away and download your FREE copy of this wonderful no-prep lesson today that will keep your pupils engaged and making progress.
Click Here To See More Of My Great Python Lessons
A fun end of term whole class quiz, ideally suited to keep pupils engaged and settled for the final lesson of the spring term. Suitable for year 7 to year 11. The quiz includes computing elements as well as other seasonal questions guaranteed to make the final lesson fun before they break up for Easter.
Print out the answer sheets (enough for 1 per team) and then run through the quiz on the whiteboard. After each section the answers are provided allowing the quiz to easily be cut shorter if you wish.
A great lesson to consolidate basic programming skills whilst helping your pupils learn good programming habits.
The totally FREE lesson teaches your students about following good programming habits.
This this lesson involves students consolidating their previous programming skills using fun and interactive programming task cards, which are ideal for pupils who struggle with the basics or the syntax of the three basic programming constructs (sequence, selection and iteration). This high-energy activity asks pupils to create several programs in which they will be utilising the good programming habits they have been taught at the start of the lesson.
Download this ready to use lesson now and become more confident in teaching programming to your pupils. It’s free so what have you got to lose?
Please note: students should be familiar with basic input and print statements, using simple mathematical operators, if statements and iteration, although there is plenty of practice opportunities in this lesson.
This ready to use lesson is suitable for KS3 and GCSE computer science pupils.
It includes an attractive dyslexia friendly PowerPoint presentation that includes differentiated lesson objectives, a video and lots of practical programming practice. It also includes a comprehensive 2-page teacher’s lesson plan.
This ready-to-use lesson is perfect for non-specialist teachers, newly qualified teachers and teachers who are teaching Python for the first time.
Duration: 1 lesson
In this lesson your students will learn about:
Why comments are used by programmers
How to add a comment to a single line of code
How to block out larger sections of Python code using comments
How empty lines can be used both in the code and in the output
Re-enforces the importance of good variable names.
.
What are you waiting for? Take action straight away and download your FREE copy of this wonderful low-prep lesson today that will keep your pupils engaged and making progress.
Click Here To See More Of My Great Python Lessons
How can you teach your students about network topologies, in an engaging way? The key is to break up the theory into small manageable chunks and reinforce each section with a variety of activities. And that is exactly what this lesson does.
Why spend hours making your own resources when it is all done for you? Download this lesson today and save yourself all that preparation.
WHAT IS INCLUDED?
Suitable for GCSE Computer Science pupils following either OCR GCSE Computer Science (J277) or AQA GCSE Computer Science (8520) syllabuses.
This lesson includes:
an attractive dyslexia friendly PowerPoint presentation,
differentiated lesson objectives,
4 videos to change focus and break up the lesson,
loads of individual and group tasks and questions,
2 printable ready to use worksheets for classwork,
A set of taboo cards for the plenary
3 differentiated exam style questions which can be used either in the plenary or set for a homework task,
a comprehensive 3-page teacher’s lesson plan including ALL THE ANSWERS.
.
WHAT DOES IT COVER?
With virtually no preparation (apart from photocopying the worksheets and taboo cards) you will be ready to teach about your classes about:
Ring network topology
Bus network topology
Star network topology
Full mesh network topology
Partial mesh network topology
.
**DURATION: **1 lesson
Check out these other great resources by Nichola Wilkin (nwilkin):
Network types
Network hardware
What is the internet?