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Year 10
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Hexadecimal

I can explain how numbers are represented in hexadecimal and why it is useful in computer science.

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Year 10
OCR

Hexadecimal

I can explain how numbers are represented in hexadecimal and why it is useful in computer science.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Hexadecimal is often used by humans instead of binary because it is easier to read and interpret and uses fewer digits.
  2. Hexadecimal is a base-16 number system.
  3. The digits used for hexadecimal are 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, A, B, C, D, E and F.

Keywords

  • Hexadecimal - a base-16 number system that uses the digits 0-9 and the letters A, B, C, D, E and F

  • Base-16 - a number system that uses 16 digits

Common misconception

Hexadecimal numbers are used to take up less memory on the computer.

Computers still only process and store binary data. Hexadecimal is used by humans to help them process long binary sequences more easily but the underlying number of bits is still the same.


To help you plan your year 10 computer science lesson on: Hexadecimal, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Take time to model the coutning process of hexadecimal and especially the overlap between place values. Even though pupils will be unfamilar with the use of letters, the counting process is still the same as any other number system.
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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is the binary number system based on?
base-10
Correct answer: base-2
base-8
base-16
Q2.
Which number system uses the digits 0 to 9?
binary
hexadecimal
Correct answer: decimal
octal
Q3.
What is the name of the electronic switch used in computing?
Correct Answer: transistor
Q4.
In ascending order, give the results of the rules of binary addition: 0 + 0, 0 + 1, 1 + 1, 1 + 1 + 1.
1 - 00
2 - 01
3 - 10
4 - 11
Q5.
What happens when you shift a binary number to the left?
It divides the number by a power of 2.
It adds 1 to the number.
It subtracts 1 from the number.
Correct answer: It multiplies the number by a power of 2.
Q6.
In binary, what is 110 multiplied by 1000?
Correct Answer: 110000

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is the name of the base-16 number system?
Correct Answer: hexadecimal
Q2.
What value is missing from these hexadecimal values? 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, A, B, C, D, E, F
Correct Answer: 0, zero
Q3.
Match these number bases with their correct definition:
Correct Answer:hexadecimal,a base-16 numbering system that uses the values 0 to 9 and A to F
tick

a base-16 numbering system that uses the values 0 to 9 and A to F

Correct Answer:binary,a base-2 numbering system that uses the digits 0 and 1
tick

a base-2 numbering system that uses the digits 0 and 1

Correct Answer:decimal,a base-10 numbering system that uses the digits 0 to 9
tick

a base-10 numbering system that uses the digits 0 to 9

Q4.
Why do humans use hexadecimal instead of binary?
It's faster.
It takes up less memory.
Correct answer: It's easier for humans to read and interpret.
It uses more digits.
Q5.
Which of the following is NOT a value used in hexadecimal?
9
A
F
Correct answer: G
Q6.
What is the hexadecimal equivalent of the binary number 1010?
Correct answer: A
B
C
D