eChalk has always led the field when it comes to engaging interactives for classroom teaching, but now we're very excited about a brand new product. Our online course is based on 'active learning' and takes students step-by-step through the new computer science GCSE. Active learning is about learning by doing. In our approach, developed by eChalk's Dr Jones, students learn new concepts and deepen understanding through problem solving, challenges, games and simulations. We could tell you about all the pedagogical thinking that makes our courses so effective and so much fun; but we'd rather let you find out for yourself! Active learning sneak preview Computer science GCSE Sample: The binary number system Click here to start learning for the fun of it!
Practise converting from binary to denary (decimal) in this exploratory resource.
This fast-paced game will make sure you understand how to count in binary.
Use the binary counting machine to explore how numbers up to 255 are represented in binary.
Watch how Bingo the binary robot converts a denary number into binary by moving through the place values.
Followed Bingo's method for how to convert from denary to binary? Use this resource to watch Bingo convert any denary number you want into binary using his technique. Perhaps even challenge yourself to convert some numbers into binary and use Bingo to mark your work.
Think you've mastered converting denary numbers into binary? Test your skills using the questions in this activity!
Challenge yourself to reach as high a score as possible in this fast-paced game that tests your denary to binary conversion skills to the limit. If you can reach 400 you're a pro!
Explore the relationship between binary and hexadecimal in this activity and learn how hexadecimal is used to represent binary numbers.
This activity will show you a simple two-step process for converting from denary to hexadecimal.
Practise the two-step process for converting denary numbers to hexadecimal with the twenty questions in this resource.
Think you've mastered converting hexadecimal numbers to binary? Try this hex version of the 'Buffer overflow' game to show off your skills.
Bingo the binary robot is back to show you how easy it is to add binary numbers. In fact, it's a lot easier to add binary numbers than denary numbers!
Practise binary addition with the questions in this activity. If you get stuck, Bingo is on hand to take you through a worked solution.
Explore sign-magnitude and two's complement negative number methods in this interactive resource.
Practise converting negative denary numbers into sign-magnitude and two's complement binary numbers.
Explore the effect of binary shifts on 8-bit numbers and how overflow can cause loss of information during shifts.
Make sure you know the truth tables for NOT, AND, OR in this activity then test your skills by building truth tables for longer logic statements.
Ten exam-style questions that test your ability to formulate truth tables based on logic circuits.
Make sure you know your type in this tricky quiz! Your challenge is to work out the Real answers from the Strings and the Integers.
Explore how the ASCII character set uses 7-bit binary numbers to store characters and punctuation used in the English language.
Explore how one bit can be used to represent pixel colours in black and white images and see if you can reproduce an image given some data.
Hexadecimal is used to represent pixel colours in images. Explore how mixing red, green and blue can make any colour and how these are represented in hex.
Explore the lossy JPEG image compression method using the JPEG Compression Machine.
Make sure you know all the key terms relating to how computers represent images in this quiz.
This quiz will test your understanding of how computers store images, including pixels, colour depth and compression.
Make sure you know all the key terms relating to how computers represent sounds in this quiz.
In this activity you'll be given a device and some useful information about what it does. Your task is to work out whether it's an input or output device.
Make sure you understand the difference between input and output devices in this sorting activity.
Test your understanding of the input, process and output model in this quiz.
Think you know your sound card from your network card? Take this hardware quiz to find out!
Match up the parts of the CPU to their descriptions.
Test your knowledge of computer buses in this difficult quiz.
Make sure you know the ins and outs of the steps in the fetch-decode-execute cycle before trying this tricky quiz.
Discover how the control, data and address buses are used to store data from the CPU into RAM.
In this animated sequence you will discover how the control, data and address buses are used to write data from RAM into the CPU.
If you really want to understand what happens when a program is executed this is the ideal place to start. Your challenge is to construct a short program to solve a simple problem, and by doing this you will discover the relationship between the registers, RAM, system bus and instruction set.
Can't tell the difference between a Mega and a milli? Freak out at the sight of Giga, micro or nano? Fear not for this game is here to sort you out. Play it to learn the values and symbols for all the unit prefixes you're likely to encounter in school.
Play solo or against another player as you race to match up the prefix with the correct symbol and value.
Can you tell your kilobytes from your gigabytes? Take this quiz to find out.
Revise the differences between Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC) and Complex Instruction Set Computing (CISC) in this tricky quiz.
A rapid-fire quiz on the factors affecting system performance.
Do you know the difference between memory and storage? By the time you complete this exercise you will.
Use your knowledge of the computer memory and inter-planetary flight to land your spaceship on the moon pads in the correct order.
A quiz to test your knowledge of the different types of memory found in a computer system.
In this activity you will compare and contrast the features of memory and storage in order to complete the table.
The title says it all really. A quiz on volatile and non-volatile components in a computer system.
Different storage devices are suited to different situations. In order to compare storage devices you need to be aware of the terms that are used to describe different properties of storage.
Compare and contrast the properties of Hard Disk Drives and Solid State Drives with this Venn diagram activity.
As you undertake this activity you will discover the advantages and disadvantages of cloud storage.
A quiz to test your knowledge of the different types of storage used in a computer system.
A client is building a mobile phone. Your task is to read their specification and pick the best storage device for the situation.
A wedding photographer is looking for inexpensive but durable storage media to order to give clients the images of their special day. Your task is to read the specification and pick the best storage media for the situation.
A teacher is planning lessons on a school computer but would also like to work on the files at home. Your task is to read their specification and pick the best storage device for the situation.
Get to grips with how flowcharts can be used to represent algorithms in this tricky quiz.
Learn about how the bubble sort algorithm works in this activity where Bingo the robot takes you through it step by step.
Test your understanding of the bubble sort algorithm in this activity where the challenge is to put the algorithm pseudocode into working order.
In this resource Bingo shows you a simple optimisation to the bubble sort algorithm that improves its performance considerably,
In this activity Bingo the robot introduces you to the binary search algorithm by walking you through visual examples.
Test your understanding of the binary search algorithm in this tricky activity where the challenge is to put the algorithm pseudocode into working order.
Watch Bingo perform a linear search and a binary search side by side to see how the algorithms differ. It's obvious that when the list is sorted the binary search is a lot quicker!
Test your understanding of the linear search algorithm in this activity where the challenge is to put the algorithm pseudocode into working order.
Test your ability to understand how an algorithm works by completing some pseudocode that counts the number of black pixels in an image.
In this activity you look at five algorithms written in pseudocode and it's your task to work out what's going wrong. The errors could be logic related, syntax related or just spelling mistakes- it gets a bit tricky!
Feeling stressed, anxious or overwhelmed? Take yourself to a place of peace and calm in only five minutes with this tried-and-tested technique.
Track and display scores for classroom quizzes and games with our handy tool. Choose from fun themes like 'Alien Abduction', 'In Your Face', and 'Snail Race'. Perfect for adding a competitive edge to your lessons.