Puzzle WEB TASK

NOTE1 : Some of the pictures may be a little different than what you see. Ask for help if you need it!

NOTE 2 : IF YOU HAVE TROUBLE READING THIS SCREEN, ASK FOR OR GET A COLORED SCREEN COVER FOR YOUR MACHINE.

ALWAYS ASK FOR HELP WHEN YOU CAN'T FIGURE IT OUT ALONE!

In this Task, you will...

label the common parts of a computer.
complete sentences from a reading passage on computers.
solve problems that use computer numbers.
create and complete a computer jigsaw puzzle.

When you complete this task, you will evaluate yourself. You will complete a Rubric (Self-Evaluation Form).

Read the Rubric and the Checklist before you begin. Then return to this page.

CLICK THE ARROW TO GO TO THE RUBRICS AND CHECKLIST.

NOTE: You will be moving from this page to your own computer as you work. To go back and forth between two documents on your PC, use your keyboard. Hold down the key "ALT" and click the key "TAB." That will take you back and forth between two documents.

STEP 1 - READ THE PASSAGE BELOW.

Sometimes, the computer is in a box and the monitor is sitting on the box.
A laptop computer has all of the same parts, but they are all together in one unit.
The mouse on a computer controls what you do on the machine. A mouse usually has two parts where you rest your fingers: the left side and the right side. When you move your mouse over text, you will see a flat line on the screen. That line looks like the letter "I." That is your cursor. You may also see an arrow that moves on you computer. You place the cursor or the arrow where you want to work on your screen.
A computer mouse may not have two parts if you are working on a Mac computer. The mouse on the right has one part, and it is also portable. It is not connected directly to the machine through a cord. It works sort of like a portable phone. NOTE: The are two different types of computers, based on how they present information: PC's and Macs.) This task is designed for PC users, but the basic working terms apply to both.
The parts that support a desktop computer are connected to it by cables that hook into the computer. There are different kinds of cables, but they all have the same purpose - to help you, the user, complete tasks. Cables connect to ports or to slots at the back of the computer box or tower.
How does a computer know what to do? It is given directions by computer programmers. They create codes in computer language that tells the machine what to do. Those directions are stored or remembered in areas called "drives." A computer drive works like your memory. It keeps information until you decide to use it. All computers have a hard drive. The hard drive is in the computer and it stores all of the information you need to operate the machine. If you could see the hard drive, it would look something like the image on the right.
You computer also has other drives. They help you expand the amount of information (data) that you can save and share when you work. For example, when you produce a document, or file, that you want to keep, you save that file. Saving a file is the same as placing a document in a file folder. Where do you save you file or document? You save it on any drive that you select. It is important to save your work often so that you don't lose it if the computer stops working. It is also important to remember where you save your work so that you can find it later.
Computers may have an "A" drive, which is usually for a floppy disk, like the one on the left. The "A" drive is a small slot that holds your floppy disk.
Other drives include slots for CD's, DVD's or Zip disks. They are designed to help you store and share additional information (data). These drives keep you from overloading your hard drive. Imagine how nice it would be if we could do that with our minds! We could simply put different experiences on a CD and use them when we wanted to. Taking a test would be easy. We would just take the CD to the test, load it, and work off of it without cluttering or overloading our memory with other stuff!

Now go the the RUBRICS page and evaluate yourself! When you finish, save your work.