Picture codes represent selected information

Invent a short weather code with different symbols for the categories the group wants to record. Ask a partner to decode it and notice whether the mapping preserves the distinctions the original observation contained.

Check that different recorded categories have distinguishable symbols. A representation loses information if the same symbol unintentionally stands for several values.

Can the reader recover the intended category?

Define the symbols. Encode observations. Decode with a partner.

A triangle can represent cloudy conditions if the key says so.

A symbol's meaning is not universal. Is the key sufficient?

Include words alongside symbols.

Resources

• Human Robot Commands – Coding Without Screens Printable Game — Check the command conventions before using the sequence or debugging task.

Further reading

• CS Unplugged — Kidbots and algorithm activities
• Australian Curriculum Version 9 — Technologies overview

Read next

• An ordered card set permits a different search strategy
• Name a command block so it can be reused consistently
• Grid coordinates work when everyone reads them in the same order

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