Computer Basics · Meet Your Computer · Lesson 5 of 5

Challenge: Grandma's New Laptop

Help Grandma unbox, charge and use her very first laptop.

The box arrives

Your grandma just bought her first laptop. She is excited but a little nervous. She asks you to come over and help her get started.

The box holds the laptop, a charger and a small booklet. You open the laptop and turn it on. A strip appears along the bottom of the screen. On it is a small logo made of four squares.

She also has a TV in the living room. She would love to see family photos on it.

You want her to feel calm and in charge. So you explain each step in plain words. You let her do the pressing and clicking herself.

First, she wants to know what kind of computer she has.

A slow evening

The battery is low, so Grandma plugs in the charger that came in the box. Then she presses the power button. She types her PIN, and the desktop appears.

Later that evening, the laptop gets slow and the sound stops working. She has already saved the letter she was writing. The laptop is not frozen. The mouse still moves.

She asks what to try first.

Photos on the TV

The next day, Grandma wants to show family photos on her big TV. She asks which cable to buy.

You look at the side of her laptop. Next to the USB ports is a wider port. It has two slanted corners on one side.

A thank-you note

Before you leave, Grandma types a short thank-you note to you. She wants your name to start with a capital letter, like it should.

She is a little slow on the keys, and that is perfectly fine. You remind her that she can't break the computer by trying things.