Learning about Binary and ASCII with an Encoding/Decoding Game

Vocabulary

Binary Number: A number represented using only two digits, 0 and 1. Bit: The smallest unit of information that a computer can process.

ASCII: The American Standard Code for Information Interchange or ASCII (As-Key) is a system for representing letters and symbols as binary numbers.

Materials

Sheet Protector

Expo Marker

ASCII Table (Containing Only Capital Letters)

ACSII.pdf

Secret Words Worksheet

SecretWords.pdf

Setup

Provide  a sheet protector and an expo marker.

Provide students with the modified ASCII table.

Learn

In computing, data and information are often represented using binary numbers. Binary numbers are a way of representing data or information using only two symbols, 0 and 1. This is different from the way we normally represent data and information, which uses the characters we see on our keyboard or screen.

To convert text to binary, we use an ASCII table. ASCII stands for the American Standard Code for Information Interchange and it's a system for representing characters and symbols as numbers. Each character or symbol is assigned a unique number, and that number can then be represented as a series of 0s and 1s.

Play

In this activity, students will convert text to binary using the ASCII table. They will write their secret word on a sheet protector, and then erase it. They will then use the ASCII table to convert each character in their secret word into binary code. The students should write their binary code in the same order as their secret word. Once they are finished, they should erase the binary code and trade their sheet protector with someone else. The partner then uses the ASCII table to convert the binary code back into the original secret word.

Standards Used for Lesson Development CSTA K-12 Computer Science Standards 1B-CS-01, 1B-CS-02.