A little room to wonder
Computing
Computing concerns representing information and designing processes that work on it. You can explore many of its ideas with paper before writing code.
How can I write instructions that still work when the input changes?
An algorithm is a process
An algorithm is a sequence of steps for a task. A program expresses instructions so a computer can carry them out. Instructions can include choices and repetition as well as a straight sequence. To check an algorithm, work through specific inputs rather than assuming that clear intentions produce clear instructions.
Representing information
Computers represent information using agreed codes. A picture can be described as pixels with numerical colour values; binary uses two digit values, 0 and 1. The representation affects what can be stored or processed. The card-sorting machine pictured here is an older example of physical information organised for a machine to read.
Simplify, divide and test
Abstraction leaves out details that do not matter for the current problem. Decomposition divides a larger task into smaller parts. Testing then asks whether those parts and their combination behave as intended. Try unusual inputs as well as convenient ones: a rule that works for three items may fail when the list is empty.
Only if you feel like trying
Test a sorting rule
- Write the numbers 8, 3, 3 and 1 on separate scraps of paper.
- Write an exact rule for arranging them from smallest to largest, then follow only what you wrote.
- Try your rule with one number and with no numbers. Add a missing instruction rather than hiding the awkward case.
Optional. Use paper or talk through the idea; no account, purchase or public sharing is needed.
Look at the sources.
These references informed this introduction. You can check who published them, what evidence they use and whether you would ask another question.
- CS Unplugged, University of CanterburyComputational Thinking and CS Unplugged
Research checked 1 November 2026. External pages have their own content and privacy practices.
Where could this connect?
These are editorial links between subjects. You choose which, if any, to follow.
AI & Learning from Examples
Learning from examples is a computing method whose inputs, rules and outputs can be inspected.
Follow this connection
Algorithms & Debugging
Algorithms and debugging make a computing process explicit enough to inspect and improve.
Follow this connectionBinary & Digital Data
Binary representation separates information from the physical system used to store or transmit it.
Follow this connectionDesign
An interface translates what a system can do into choices a person can understand.
Follow this connectionGames
A game program needs rules for input, decisions, changing state and feedback.
Follow this connectionMathematics
Logic, patterns and counting help explain whether an algorithm works and how much work it requires.
Follow this connectionNetworks & the Internet
Network protocols make exchanges between different computing systems interpretable.
Follow this connection