Create your very own Christmas coding ornaments!
In today’s digital world, coding is as important as any other language or subject since it’s the language we use to tell computers what to do and nowadays computers are all around us.
We hear a lot about artificial intelligence but for a computer to think on its own and carry out complex tasks, it needs to be taught and programmed how to do so.
Computers work using binary code – which is a language that consists of only 1s and 0s. True! And there is a binary code for every character you can think of. For example, the title of this blog post is ‘01001000 01001001’ which is binary for ‘HI’.
So the earliest programmers used only 1s and 0s to represent numbers, letters and commands. Coding the simplest instructions must have been a painstaking, time-consuming process. So what did they do? Well, they created programming languages which are easier to use and which the computer then translates into binary code. This lets programmers input information in the computer as text and numbers to create computer software, apps and websites.
Interesting right? But did you know that you don’t need mobiles, tablets or any other kind of device to learn about coding and computational thinking? Coding unplugged activities are activities that use resources such as paper, colours, craft material and movement to bring coding and computer science to every home and school across the world.
Today we’re going to be using an unplugged binary code activity to create festive Christmas decorations for our Christmas tree! This activity can be adapted depending on the age of the participants. If you’re into coding, and would like to challenge yourself further, make sure to try out The Binary Coder activity sheet in the Take it Further section at the bottom of this page.
Get your materials ready!
If you do not have pipe cleaners, you can use string or wire instead. In that case you’ll also need scissors or wire cutters as well.
Try it out!
We’re going to create a Christmas ornament which will include a word written in binary code. The 1s and 0s of the code will be represented using different coloured beads.
Step 1
Download & open (or print) Activity Sheet 1 from here: Activity Sheet 1
Step 2
As you can see in the activity sheet, every letter is represented by a set of 1s and 0s. It’s good to note that there are two tables because there is a difference in the binary code of capital and lowercase letters.
You will need to choose a word that you want on your ornament. We gave the word ‘holiday’ as an example in the activity sheet, but it can be any word, including your own name.
Step 3: Code!
You will then need to translate the letters of your word into binary code. We suggest you use a pencil to mark the code on the activity sheet so that you can find them easily when you’re making your ornament.
Step 4: Create!
It’s now time to create your Christmas tree ornament. Take your pipe cleaner and start putting in the beads. You need beads of 3 different colours; a colour for the 1s, another colour for the 0s and another colour for the beads which will be used to separate one letter from the next.
In the example below we used a red pipe cleaner, green beads for 0s, gold beads for 1s and gold stars for the space between the letters.
Your ornament can take any shape – we chose to make ours look like a bauble.
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Share your creation with us on social media by tagging us on social media @esploramalta #esploramalta #getcuriousgetinspired
Take it further & challenge yourself!
If you use a search engine to convert words into binary code, you’ll always find a table with the codes already written down, or a website which will automatically convert the word for you. But where’s the fun in that? Challenge yourself, download Activity Sheet 2, and convert words into binary code yourself!
Download Activity Sheet 2 ‘The Binary Coder’ from here: Activity Sheet 2
After choosing a word and converting the letters from ASCII decimal numbers to binary code, follow the same steps as above to create your very own coding ornament.
Want more unplugged activities?
Explore more unplugged coding activities in the comfort of your home. Code your way through the day and code a human! Check out the following blog post to access the downloadable resources. http://esplora.org.mt/code-a-human/?lang=mt .
Don’t forget to take a photo of at least 4 of your favourite activities from Esplora’s Science Advent Calendar. Trust us, you’ll need them!
