The need for ROM
Teacher’s Notes
Lesson Plan
Length
60 mins
Specification Link
Learning objective
2.1.1/H
Computer Hardware: Memory
Explain the need for ROM in a system
Time (min)
Activity
Further Notes
5
Introduce the topic. Show students the link to the
specification. Explain the purpose and objectives of
the lesson.
Include a short question and answer
session to assess what students recall
about RAM. Ask them what they think
ROM means and its purpose – draw
on students existing knowledge and
incorporate that into your discussion
of what ROM is.
5
Show the video.
15
Pupils work through the interactive animated
activity independently.
5
Q&A with teacher to assess understanding. Use
questioning techniques to gauge how much pupils
have understood so far. Some questions that could
be asked are:
• What would happen if a computer didn’t have
ROM?
Ensure that all students have understood
the key aspects of the topic. The questions selected link back to points covered
in the video, this is a good opportunity to
see if they can connect the theory with
everyday examples.
• What is firmware?
• Does anybody have any experience/knowledge
of manipulating firmware?
15
Worksheet 1
Pupils complete the task individually.
10
Worksheet 2 – Exam Style Questions
Each pupil to answer their questions individually and to
submit for marking.
The time stated should be sufficient to
produce a simple design. However, more
time can be given if teachers wish to
turn the extension task on the worksheet
into a lesson in itself. The extension task
is deliberately broad to allow students to
express their understanding of the
concepts covered in whichever medium
they feel most comfortable with;
everything from a single sided poster to a
short film or animation.
It is extremely beneficial for students to
be able to gain an experience of exam
style questions early on. It allows them
to get used to the nature of the exam,
and provides them with opportunities to
perfect their exam technique as well as
generating plenty of revision material.
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Time (min)
Activity
Further Notes
5
Plenary
It will be useful for the teacher to collate
the post-it notes at the end of the
lesson and look through the ratings.
A quick glance should enable the
teacher to get a good feel about the
level of understanding that the class has
at the end of the lesson. A rating of
10 being the highest, most confident
and no need to revisit, with 1
representing being completely confused.
The teacher can modify this as they
wish, asking pupils to add their name,
or keep it anonymous or asking them
to add a statement about what they
struggled with.
Summarise learning that took place.
Pupils rate their confidence in their understanding of the
lesson out of 10 and write this on a post-it note. On
their way out of the class they can stick the post-it note
in an area designated by the teacher.
WORKSHEET 2 ANSWERS
1
Students may suggest 0 or 1 marks.
2
Justify your score, why did you award those marks?
Students will hopefully point out that the exemplar response doesn’t actually answer the
question; it simply describes a characteristic of ROM. This is a common error that students
make on exam papers, so this should be highlighted.
3
Now, write your own answer to the question.
Answers should include:
• ROM is permanent, non-volatile and read only.
• It therefore contains programs and data needed by the BIOS to start up the computer.
• Without ROM the computer won’t be able to turn itself on.
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