St Michael’s Prep School Visit, Kent

On Thursday, 26 September, we travelled to Sevenoaks in Kent to visit St Michael’s Prep School, the pupils engaged very well with the technology, giving them a glimpse of the past as well as the future with our array of technology we brought along.

An array of vintage tech included a 1970s Ferguson Videostar VHS recorder, 1980s video camera, ZX Spectrum, Sony Walkman, 1970s GPO telephone and Grandstands ‘Invader from Space’ handheld video game from 1980 to mention just a few

Our collection of hardware and tech spanned a 40 year timeline, from the earliest computing and gaming devices, right up to current VR and augmented reality.

So last Thursday I had the pleasure of having Gary at my school from The Code Show. What can I say? He was exceptional. Will defo be inviting him back. Look forward to seeing and speaking with you soon Gary . .

Gary takes the pupils through some vintage computer adverts from the 1980s and 1990s before they try out some early home computers

It wasn’t just the pupils that found our visit a fascinating experience, as teachers were taken down a nostalgic trip of tech down memory lane.

Cannot recommend Gary enough. His equipment and knowledge is brilliant and the way he engages and challenges the students is fantastic . .

Vintage hardware included 1970s typewriter, mechanical calculator from the 1960s, IMSAI 8080, Sharp MZ and CBM PET

All students thoroughly enjoyed his workshops and we look forward to inviting him back soon

Jamie Booth (Head of Computing), St Michael’s Preparatory School , Sevenoaks, Kent

Recent posts

Newcastle Prep School Visit

On 17 October 2019, we travelled to Newcastle Prep School, Gosforth, Newcastle Upon Tyne, all year groups were enthralled by the stories

Like this post? Share it!

Sinclair ZX81

The ZX81 is a home computer produced by Sinclair Research and manufactured in Dundee, Scotland by Timex Corporation.

Ian McNaught-Davis

Ian McNaught-Davis (30 August 1929 – 10 February 2014) was a British television presenter best known for presenting the BBC television

David Braben

David Braben has been called “one of the most influential computer game programmers of all time”, based on his early game development

Jeff Minter

In 1981 Jeff Minter started independently writing and selling video games for the Sinclair ZX80, the first machine he owned.

The Oliver Twins

Andrew Nicholas Oliver and Philip Edward Oliver, together known as the Oliver Twins, are British twin brothers and video game designers.

Amiga 1200

The Amiga 1200, or A1200 (code-named “Channel Z”), is Commodore International’s third-generation Amiga computer

Vectrex

The Vectrex is a vector display-based home video game console that was developed by Western Technologies/Smith Engineering.

Atari 2600

The Atari 2600, originally sold as the Atari Video Computer System or Atari VCS until November 1982, is a home video game

Micro Men

Affectionately comic drama about the British home computer boom of the early 1980s. Legendary inventor Clive Sinclair battles

SAM Coupé

The SAM Coupé is an 8-bit British home computer that was first released in late 1989. The machine is based around a Z80B CPU

Sinclair C5

The Sinclair C5 is a small one-person battery electric velomobile, technically an “electrically assisted pedal cycle”.

THE DAWN OF THE DIGITAL AGE

The Introduction of the computing curriculum saw a sea change in attitudes towards the subject area , Whilst British business