Welcome to the MarkChrisSoft Web site. These pages contain material of interest to all teachers, as well as some which is specifically aimed at IT specialists. Of general interest are the programs Crosswords for Teachers, and Mark's Plenary Picker, specifically designed for use in all subject areas, by teachers and pupils. There are also some articles in the Teaching Material section which are concerned with IT issues, but which were written for a non-specialist audience. There are some teaching ideas for presenting certain topics in IT/Computing, links to some shareware that is available to support the theory work and a teaching program, Sorting for Teachers. There are also links to pages that give more information on the topic under discussion, as well as background material for teachers. For recreational interest see Competition Arranger, a powerful tool for those involved in organising leagues and knockout competitions (see the list of contents below for more detail). Azimnag illustrates a fascinating aspect of reading - namely that letter order is not as important as we might think!

Software licences can now be purchased using credit and debit cards, using a secure payment facility from PayPal.

These pages are mainly aimed at secondary level, however some of the material will be of interest to primary or tertiary colleagues.

A recent burst of activity on the programming front has seen three new Windows programs launched and I intend to continue developing these as well as looking for new projects to undertake. I hope that you find what is here of some use - the e-mails that I still receive suggest that some of you do...

These pages were first uploaded on 28th April 1996
They were last updated on 13th January 2007
visitors recorded by Web-Counter since 4th June 1996


MarkChrisSoft is based in the U.K.

Contents

Copyright waiver

Did you know...?

Worksheets (frame-capable browser needed)

Software for Teachers (programs and support material to download)

(Any Age) (Any age) 'A' level+

Sportsware (programs to download)

Competition Arranger

Just for fun! (program to download)

Azimnag

Teaching Material and Articles for Teachers

Contents (organised by category)

Contents (organised by age group)

Internet Links

By Teachers, For Teachers

U.K. Education Sites on The Web

Tools for Searching the Internet

Internet Services

Other Shareware Sources

Other Useful Web Pages

Background Information

MarkChrisSoft

Author's Background

MarkChrisSoft Contact Information

I hope that teaching colleagues will feel free to make use of any material found on these pages to assist you in your teaching. I intend to add to them as and when I can. If you have complementary pages and would care to send me your home page URL, I would happily consider putting a link to it from here. I welcome constructive comments, please e-mail me if there is anything you would like to raise. I hope that you enjoy your visit.

Did you know...?

1. There is some excellent, free to use software from freeware and Open Source projects. If you want to teach Logo and are on a budget, look out for public domain software. I found one from the US (MSW Logo, by George Mills and Brian Harvey) which is proving more than adequate and best of all, is free! You can download a copy by going to CNet's shareware.com site and searching for "Logo". Also recommended are Audacity (http://audacity.sourceforge.net) for sound recording and editing, Xara for vector graphics and for those with serious web skills, the Moodle learning platform (VLE). A downloadable catalogue of open source software suitable for use in education has been produced by Open Source Victoria, an Australian alliance of commercial companies.


2. Looking for a high quality USB microphone for podcasting or other audio work? I have been using the Samson C01U, which has been fairly straightforward to use, giving very good quality results at a very reasonable price. I recommend you also get the SP01 shock mount and a good quality microphone stand.


3. Look out for 2-D barcodes. They can store much more information, based on a full alphanumeric character set, in no more space than a standard barcode. They are made up of lots of small square blocks, rather than a series of parallel lines (see the item on barcodes for more on these). They are routinely used by some courier/parcel delivery companies as well as being etched onto the heat resistant tiles on NASA's space shuttle.


4. Probably the most economic way to produce your own barcodes is to use labelling software. Look carefully though, as some packages support more bar code standards than others. I have used Labels Unlimited from SoftKey, which supports EAN/JAN, UPC, Codabar, Code 39, Code 128 and others. I have seen this advertised for as little as GBP£15. Bar code readers with a keyboard wedge interface connect to the keyboard port (the keyboard can be used alongside the reader, thanks to a 'Y' splitter cable) and behave as though the bar codes have been typed in. They are an excellent way of broadening students' experience by allowing them to input data other than via a mouse or keyboard, thus deepening their understanding of the reasons why different data entry methods are used in different situations.


5. I have become a big fan of the Digital Movie Camera (previously known as the Digital Blue Movie Camera, hence the name change and more affectionately as the "Digi Blue"), available in the UK from TAG Learning and others. Low cost, chunky, fairly robust and simple to use, it allows students to experience all of the basics of creating video and stop-animation as well as taking low resolution photographs. It looks like a primary school tool, but its ease of use make it well worth considering for secondary colleagues too. It comes with some very good editing software. Version 3 sees the addition of a viewing screen and a memory card slot.

At last, Crosswords for Teachers makes it into Windows! After literally years of stop-start work, the first Windows version of Crosswords for Teachers was released in early 2006, with version 2 following in September of the same year. The latest incarnation of this popular program retains the key virtue of the original - rather than being aimed at crossword enthusiasts, this tool is designed around the needs of teachers, tutors and trainers who want to create word and number puzzles to print out or import into other documents. Sample files are included.

Soon after the release of Mark's Plenary Picker comes the first upgrade. This program supports you in delivering valuable end of lesson plenaries with a minimum of preparation. The latest version now allows users to import their own question/task categories as well as lists of student names. The software can be downloaded below, together with sample files of student names and user categories.

The New Year saw the first release of a MarkChrisSoft DOS program rewriten for the Windows platform (Sorting for Teachers 1.0W). Aimed at 'A' level as well as more advanced computing courses, Sorting for Teachers allows sorting algorithms to be studied in detail.

Demonstration copies can be downloaded in one of two ways:

1. By clicking on the name of the program. This will download a copy of the program .EXE file only.
2. (Recommended) By clicking on the self-extracting zip file, which includes the .EXE file, plus program documentation and sample data files/exercises. You will download a single program, which I recommend you save in a new folder/directory. When you run the program, all the files will be automatically extracted. This is generally smaller and will download more quickly than the raw .EXE file. Where a Windows help file has been written, this will be included in the self-extracting zip file. It must be kept in the same folder as the program file in order to be accessible.

Please e-mail me for any further details that you may require. See the worksheets section for other related teaching material.

Full functionality will be unlocked when you enter your user name and registration number (normally sent via email).

User names for individuals are normally the first name followed by the surname, e.g. Mr David Brown would be allocated the user name David Brown. User names are displayed on screen when the program is running, so if you would prefer an alternative version (e.g. Mr D Brown, D Brown, Dr Brown, etc.), please make sure you specify this when ordering. User names for institutions are normally the name of the institution.

Crosswords for Teachers 2.1W (All ages)

This is a flexible, easy to use puzzle creator that can produce printed crosswords, wordsearches and crossnumbers for use as starters, plenaries and homeworks. Puzzles can be exported in rich text format (RTF) for use in other Windows programs. Suitable for all ages, it builds on the original DOS version that was recommended by the British Dyslexia Association. Grids can be up to 24 by 24 containing up to 50 items. Wordsearches can be printed in upper or lower case mode, with or without a list of the words and a list of clues. Crossnumbers can include items with leading zeros, which means that binary and other number systems up to base ten (decimal) can be featured. Hexadecimal numbers can also be included as there is an option to allow digits A to F as well as 0 to 9.

Version 2 adds a very powerful new feature - the ability to build up libraries of words or numbers, containing up to 100 items. Each item can have up to 3 clues associated with it. Puzzles can then be constructed manually or automatically using one or more libraries. Puzzles that have already been created can be easily converted into a new library or added to an existing one.

The Create a Puzzle menu item guides you step by step through the puzzle creation process and the Simplify button allows you to reduce the number of menu choices on offer to the bare minimum - ideal for new users or if you prefer a simpler interface.

More information is provided to the user, eg. telling you how many items do not have clues and helping you to identify items that have been repeated.

Puzzles can be exported as generic RTF (rich text format) files, which can then be opened by a wide range of word processing and desk top publishing software.

Self-extracting zip file containing Crosswords for Teachers, its help file and some sample puzzles

Some ideas for how you might use word and number puzzles in the classroom

Purchase Crosswords for Teachers licences, using PayPal

Crosswords for Teachers, single copy licence for a named individual, £10.00: (not available to institutions)	Preferred user name:
Crosswords for Teachers, site licence, £50.00: (Unlimited copies for a single site)	Preferred user name:
Crosswords for Teachers, site licence extra, £70.00: (As for site licence, plus permits home use by all staff whilst they remain employees of the institution)	Preferred user name:
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Comments from users of previous versions of Crosswords for Teachers: It is excellent, so easy to run and very useful.
Jean Hutchins, British Dyslexia Association

I don't know how I managed without version 1...
GJ, Hants

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Mark's Plenary Picker 2.0 (All ages)

This program, designed for use with a data projector, large screen, or interactive whiteboard, supports the delivery of education-enhancing plenaries. The teacher/tutor or student/pupil presses the "pick" button and a question/reponse type is automatically selected from a set of eight generic questions. If required, the program can also randomly generate a number to select which student is invited to respond. The range of numbers produced can be altered to fit the group size being taught. There are different question sets and colour schemes that can be chosen.

Version 2.0 also allows the user to import lists of students, so that they are picked by name. Users can also create their own lists of questions/response types so that they can be closely geared to the needs of a particular teaching group and/or subject.

Self-extracting zip file containing Mark's Plenary Picker and some sample files

Mark's Plenary Picker - Customising


Purchase Mark's Plenary Picker licences, using PayPal

Mark's Plenary Picker, single copy for individual purchase, £5.00:	Preferred user name:
Mark's Plenary Picker, site licence, 500 students/pupils or less, £25.00:	Preferred user name:
Mark's Plenary Picker, site licence, 1000 students/pupils or less, £40.00:	Preferred user name:
Mark's Plenary Picker, site licence, more than 1000 students/pupils, £50.00:	Preferred user name:
Mark's Plenary Picker, site licence, teacher training institution, £25.00:	Preferred user name:
View current selections / make payment:

Sorting for Teachers 1.0W ('A' Level and beyond, grades 11-12+)
A program that demonstrates four popular sorting algorithms and allows a detailed inspection of how they work. It covers the exchange (bubble), insertion, selection and quick sorts. It can by used by teachers for whole group teaching using a data projector and by students for one-to-one study. It is a good vehicle for encouraging students to study some algorithms in detail, boosting their understanding of programming techniques. Suitable for 'A' level, GNVQ Advanced, first degree and similar advanced computing courses. There is a student workbook (see below) in RTF format (rich text, suitable for Windows programs).
Key learning objectives: