| Activity Outcome | Investigating different ways in which large numbers can be written in shortened form. |
| MTS Set | MTS7
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| NATIONAL Curriculum | The Number System |
| Topics | Understand Whole Numbers
Powers
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| Keywords | Powers, Large Numbers, Integers, Indices |
| Grouping | Small groups or pairs. |
| Resources | Library materials on computing. Internet Link as below. Access to a computer using Windows. |
| Lesson Notes | - Note: The steps for finding the capacity of a computer hard-drive may differ slightly from the description provided on the activity sheet.
- Brainstorm for information about each number and symbol (Gb, Mb...). Encourage students to listen to ideas, to take notes and to question those providing the information to clarify understandings.
- If your students don't have any ideas they should decide where to go to find the appropriate information including parents, friends, experts, Internet (see link below), use their imagination...
- Brainstorm for information about computer data storage before students investigate the memory capacity of their computer.
- Ask students to compare computers for performance and price from advertisements. This could be done as a mini-project where each small group provides a report to the whole class on the purchase of a computers (and associated hardware and software) for a different purpose: games, education, business, Internet, network, portability, desk top publishing, presentations...
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| Reflections | Ask students to write about their personal understanding of computers. Specific starters, such as those below, help establish thinking points.
I know these things about computers...
The things I like most about computers...
In computing I am not sure about...
In computing I need to find out more about...
I am not confident/I am confident in conversations about computers because...
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| Internet Links | |
| Answers | Pentium 2.8GHz: 2 800 000 000 cycles per second - the processing speed of a computer.
512MB RAM: 512 000 000 bytes of memory that is needed to run programs.
80GB HDD: 80 000 000 000 bytes of memory in the hard disk drive for storing data.
1.44Mb FDD: 1 440 000 bytes of memory used to store data on "floppy" disk drives.
21" Monitor: 21 inch monitor that refers to the diagonal measurement across the screen.
56Kbps: 56 kilobytes per second or 56 000 bytes per second - the speed for transferring data through a modem.
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