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McAuliffe-
Shepard Blog

Distance Learning
Module: Getting Started
with Binary Code
April 01, 2020

In this introduction to
coding, learn how
computers store
information in numerical
format and test your skills
at reading & writing in
binary!

01001000 01100101
01101100 01101100 01101111
00100001
Does this set of numbers look like a random
jumble? Believe it or not, these numbers hold
a special message just for you!

Want to learn how to read it? Like any code, to

decipher the meaning of the message, all you need
is the right key…

A code is a system of communicating that

substitutes words, letters, or symbols with OTHER
words, letters, symbols—even images. The
meaning of the message is hidden, unless the
reader knows what each piece of the code
represents. To understand a coded message, you
have to do some translating: moving from what the
message says to what it means.

For example, if I gave you the following code:

you could read and write some words using

just those shapes.

You would write ROOM like this:

And you would write DOOR like this:

• How would you use this code to write MOOD?

• What other words could you spell with just

these 4 characters? (hint: they don’t all have
to be four letters long!)

Try it!
Use shapes or symbols to come up with your
own code, and use it to spell your name. To
take it a step further, try using colors to
signify upper and lower case.

There are many kinds of code in the world.

For example, Braille uses a system of raised
bumps to represent letters, allowing blind
people to read information from a surface
using their fingertips. Morse code uses dots
and dashes—electronic signals that are very
short or a little longer, if you hear them—to
spell words. Computers use a system called
binary code to send, receive, and store
information.

The word “binary” means that something has TWO

options. In binary code, messages are transmitted
using combinations of only two symbols: the
number 1 and the number 0.

Wires carry informationthrough a

computerin the form of electricity.

When binary code is transmitted as a series of 1’s

and 0’s, each digit in the series is called a bit. 8
bits in a row is called a byte.

A computer that can only understand single-digit

messages—for example, 1 = on and 0 = off—has a
single bit processing capacity. This computer can
only send and receive two possible messages:
either 1 or 0. It can only carry out two commands.

A computer that understands two-digit messages

has a two-bit processing capacity. There are now
FOUR possible messages that it can send and
receive: 00, 01, 10, and 11. Note that adding just
one more bit to the sequence doubled the
computer’s processing capacity.

If we add one more digit—sending three-bit

messages—the computer would now be able to
understand EIGHT possible messages: 000, 001,
010, 011, 100, 101, 110, and 111. We have doubled
the processing capacity once again.

Increasing the number of bits allows a computer

to carry out more, and more complex,
commands.

Most computers send and receive messages using

an 8-bit binary code—each letter and punctuation
mark is represented by a series of 1’s and 0’s that is
8 digits long. To read a code in 8-bit binary, all you
need is the key:

Remember the long series of 1’s and 0’s at

the beginning of this lesson?

01001000 01100101
01101100 01101100 01101111
00100001
This message is written in 8-bit binary code, and
the table above is the key we need to decipher it.
We can use the table to translate the code from
groups of 1’s and 0’s to the letters they represent.
We can see from the key that:

01001000 = H

01100101 = e

01101100 = l

01101100 = l

01101111 = o

00100001 = !

The message 01001000 01100101 01101100

01101100 01101111 00100001 in binary code
translates to H e l l o ! in English.

For a computer, each character of this message

would be equal to 8 bits—or 1 byte—of memory.
The entire message, which is 6 characters long,
would require 8 x 6 = 48 bites (6 bits) of memory.

Try it!

Write your name in binary

Use binary code to write your name, representing

each letter with a series of darkened and blank
circles instead of 1’s and 0’s. A darkened circle
represents a 1, and a blank circle represents a 0.

C L I C K H E R E F O R AC T I V I T Y
WORKSHEET

Make a binary bracelet or necklace

Create a paper bracelet with your initials in binary,

and wear your coding knowledge for everyone to
see! To take it a step further, string together actual
beads on a piece of cord or a pipe cleaner. Decide
which color of bead represents 1’s and which
represents 0’s (similar to the darkened and blank
circles in the activity above), and spell your entire
name using the beads. You can even add different
colors for upper and lower case.

C L I C K H E R E F O R AC T I V I T Y
WORKSHEET

What other objects can you use to send messages

in binary? We found an example on this website
that spells out words using peas and carrots!

Participating at Home?
Share a picture of your
work!
Tag us on Facebook, Instagram
(@msdiscoverycenter), and Twitter
(@msdiscoverycntr)

 Guest User  Source

 Distance Learning Module, At-Home STEM Activity
 Distance Learning, Distance Education, Online Education,
STEM, STEM Learning, STEM In Action, Coding, Binary,
Techology

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 

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