Computer Skills

About this course

Twelfth grade is written for a student about to leave home. The programming unit is a complete Python course from setup and a first program through variables and data types, string operations, conditionals, loops, lists, functions, dictionaries, reading and writing files, and error handling, ending in a capstone the student builds and documents: a quiz game, a calculator, a password generator, or a grade tracker, each with stated requirements of at least three functions, a loop, a conditional, user input, clear names, and comments, plus a written README explaining what was learned and what would be added with more time. The five-step plan-code-test-debug-present process is taught alongside it.

The software unit is the most career-minded in the whole K-12 sequence. It covers advanced Word and Google Docs, Excel and Sheets with data analysis and charts, PowerPoint and Slides, email management in Outlook and Gmail, cloud collaboration, note-taking in Notion or OneNote or Obsidian, creating and signing PDFs, video-conference conduct in Zoom and Teams and Meet, Canva design, research with Google Scholar and Zotero, and a closing lesson on the tools employers actually screen for, including how applicant tracking systems parse a resume and why a visually elaborate template often fails them, what belongs on a LinkedIn profile, and where to host a portfolio. The internet safety unit is equally practical for someone about to open their own accounts: password managers, two-factor authentication, phishing, HTTPS and VPNs and public Wi-Fi, social engineering, device privacy settings, fraud, identity theft prevention and recovery, and safe online banking. The systems unit surveys hardware, operating systems, binary, networking, security, the cloud, databases, algorithms, artificial intelligence, maintenance, and society's dependence on all of it. Digital citizenship closes with an artificial intelligence ethics lesson that draws a firm line between AI as a tool for brainstorming, grammar, and explanation and AI as a substitute for work submitted as your own, and argues that the struggle removed by outsourcing is the same struggle that builds the capacity to think.

The course lists 108 lessons in 9 units of 12, each about 40 minutes, ending with a ten-question quiz that grades itself and a written Apply or Reflect task. You should know before planning your year that units 7, 8, and 9 are exact repeats of units 1, 2, and 3, so there are 72 distinct lessons and 36 lessons of repeated material. You may want to treat those as review, or to spend the recovered time on the capstone project instead. For the hands-on work your family needs a computer with a real keyboard, Python installed (free from python.org), an office suite, a PDF tool, and internet access. Every tool named in the course has a free tier or a free equivalent.

What the course covers

• Python from setup through files, dictionaries, and error handling
• A capstone project with planning, testing, and documentation
• Hardware, operating systems, binary, and networking
• Cloud services, databases, algorithms, and artificial intelligence
• Advanced word processing, spreadsheets, and presentation software
• Email management, cloud collaboration, and note-taking systems
• PDF creation and signing, video-conference conduct, and Canva design
• Research with Google Scholar and citation managers
• Resumes that pass applicant tracking systems, LinkedIn, and portfolios
• Password managers, two-factor authentication, VPNs, and public Wi-Fi
• Fraud, identity theft prevention and recovery, and safe online banking
• Artificial intelligence ethics and academic honesty
• Media literacy, copyright and fair use, and digital reputation
• Typing code, professional documents, dictation, and ergonomics

What your student will be able to do

• Design, build, test, and document a complete Python program of your own
• Produce professional documents, analytical spreadsheets, and signed PDFs
• Write a resume that survives automated screening and set up a portfolio
• Secure your own accounts, banking, and devices as an adult would
• Recognize identity theft and know the recovery steps
• Draw a defensible line between using AI as a tool and using it dishonestly

Scope and sequence

All 9 units of Computer Skills for Grade 12, in the order they are taught.

Every lesson, by title

All 108 lesson titles are listed here — nothing is withheld until you download. Open a unit to read its contents.

One whole lesson, exactly as it comes

This is a real lesson taken from the middle of the course — the teaching text, the practice, the homework, and the first three quiz questions with their answers. It is not a marketing excerpt.

What you will need

Drawn from the materials named across all 108 lessons of this course. Most families already own most of it.