Computer Skills

Beginner

60 mins

Teacher/Student led

+80 XP

What you need:
Chromebook/Laptop/PC or iPad/Tablet

Input and Output: Devices and How They Work Together

Learn to identify input and output devices on your computer, match them to workplace tasks, and set up your workspace ergonomically for comfort and safety during longer working sessions.

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1 Introduction
2 Key Concepts
3 Step-by-step Task
4 Common Issues
5 Independent Practice
6 Reflection
7 Lesson Summary
Quiz

1 - Introduction

Welcome

Every computer you'll use, at a Work Experience placement, at home, or at a future job, has devices plugged into it that do the actual work of getting information in and out. Today you'll map the devices on your own machine, note which ones you're confident with, and set up your physical workspace so you don't leave the screen with a sore neck. Knowing your equipment is a basic-but-invisible skill; employers expect it and rarely teach it.

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

Identify common input and output devices and what each one is useful for
Match the right device to the right task, including tasks on your Something Real project
Set up your workstation using basic ergonomics so you can work comfortably for a full class period

Warm-up

Look at the machine in front of you right now. Count how many separate devices you can see or touch (a keyboard and a mouse count as two; a built-in webcam counts as one). Are there more than you expected? Which one would be hardest to work without if it disappeared this morning?

Teacher Notes

Warm-up works well as a 30-second silent count followed by a single show-of-hands question: 'Who counted more than 5 devices?'

👇 Mark your steps as done as you complete them.

+5 XP

2 - Key Concepts

Before you start listing devices, make sure you can tell these three ideas apart. You'll use them for the rest of the lesson and on every placement you ever do.

Concept	Why it matters	Example
Input device — hardware that sends information into the computer (keyboard, mouse, microphone, webcam, scanner, touchpad)	Picking the right input saves time on placement tasks	A handheld barcode scanner at a Centra till sends the product code into the computer much faster than typing it
Output device — hardware the computer sends information out to (monitor, speakers, printer, headphones)	The wrong output wastes paper, time, or money	A receipt printer and a customer-facing monitor are both outputs, but each delivers different information to different people
Ergonomics — how your body fits the equipment: screen height, chair, wrists, lighting, breaks	The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) lists musculoskeletal problems among recognised workplace hazards; 30 seconds of setup prevents months of pain	Monitor at eye level, forearms parallel to the desk, a 20-second look-away every 20 minutes

Word-processor tools you'll use today — you've seen all three in documents before; today you apply them yourself:

Tool	What it does
Heading style (Heading 1, Heading 2)	Marks a line as a section title so the document has clear structure a supervisor can scan
Table	Rows and columns for organised information — a small spreadsheet sitting inside a document
Bulleted list	Short scannable items, not full sentences — useful for checklists

Sample row from a finished Devices I Can Use sheet (so you know what 'done' looks like):

Device	What I use it for	Confident? (Yes / Not yet)
Webcam	Video call with a member who can't come into the community centre in person	Not yet — I've never joined a call as the host

Teacher Notes

If a student struggles to tell input from output, ask: 'Is the information travelling into the computer or out of the computer?' The touchpad-on-a-laptop example usually lands the idea. The word-processor tools table gives a single-sentence reason for each feature before students apply it in the next step — point there if anyone asks 'but what actually IS a heading style?'.

👇 Mark your steps as done as you complete them.

+10 XP

3 - Step-by-step Task

Build a worked example of a Devices I Can Use sheet for a fictional Work Experience placement at a local community centre. The template you build here is what you'll reuse in the Independent Practice step with your own devices.

Teacher Notes

Students work at their own pace. The target is a document with three styled sections (Input Devices, Output Devices, Ergonomics), not perfect layout. If students finish fast, nudge them into the Extension early.

+15 XP

4 - Common Issues

If something looks wrong while you're building the document, check this table before asking.

Issue	Solution
I can't find the Heading 1 style	In Word Online, look in the Styles gallery on the Home tab. In Google Docs, the dropdown on the toolbar says Normal text by default; click it to see heading options. Or just use {{kbd:Ctrl+Alt+1}} (Windows/Chromebook) or {{kbd:Cmd+Option+1}} (Mac).
My table looks squashed and the text is cramped	Click inside the table and drag the column borders to widen them. Most word processors also have an option in the table menu to distribute columns evenly or fit to content.
The document isn't saving	Look at the save indicator near the title. If it says anything other than Saved (Word Online) or All changes saved in Drive (Google Docs), check your internet connection and reload the page — don't close the tab before the file syncs.
I don't know what one of my own devices is called	Look for a sticker or label on the device itself (usually shows brand and model), or check the settings on your computer under the hardware or devices section. Writing the brand and model in your sheet is better than guessing.

Teacher Notes

The 'I don't know what my device is' issue comes up most often with built-in webcams and trackpads. Remind students it's fine to write 'built-in webcam (laptop lid)' rather than a brand name.

+10 XP

5 - Independent Practice

Independent Practice

Your goal: Turn the worked example into a real reference you could hand to a Work Experience supervisor, so your {{code:03_devices_checklist}} shows exactly which devices on your actual machine you can use confidently for your Something Real project.

Time: ~20 minutes

Task: Open your {{code:Digital_Portfolio}} folder and create {{code:03_devices_checklist}} from inside it. Use the same three-section layout from the worked example — Input Devices table, Output Devices table, Ergonomics checklist — but fill it with real devices from the machine you're working on right now and with ergonomics checks from your actual desk. In the "What I use it for" column, tie each device to a task from your Something Real project (for example, typing the proposal, printing a sample, recording a short clip) so the document is something you'd genuinely use on a placement. If you finish early: add a fourth device to each table (maybe a headset or a phone you use for hotspot) or move straight on to the Accessibility extension from the lesson summary.

Success criteria:

The document has three clearly styled sections with headings: Input Devices, Output Devices, and Ergonomics
The two device tables each list at least 3 real devices from your own machine, with what you use them for and whether you're confident using them
The ergonomics section has at least 3 items you've actually checked at your desk right now — not copied from the worked example
A supervisor could skim the document in 20 seconds and know what kit you can handle

Teacher Notes

Walk the room. The honest 'Not yet confident' entries are where the real learning happens — students tend to overstate their skill at first. Ask one or two students to show you their ergonomics list and check the monitor height claim against what you actually see. The 'if you finish early' prompt in the Task row is important for mixed-ability groups; point fast finishers at it rather than letting them drift.

+15 XP

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This lesson is copyright of Coding Ireland 2017 - 2025. Unauthorised use, copying or distribution is not allowed.

Input and Output: Devices and How They Work Together

Teacher Class Feed

1 - Introduction

Welcome

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

Warm-up

2 - Key Concepts

3 - Step-by-step Task

4 - Common Issues

5 - Independent Practice

Independent Practice

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