Paper pixel letter

A 10-minute offline activity that connects art with how computers store simple images — perfect to try before your first coding class.

Your adventure

1
Draw the grid
On a blank sheet, draw a 5×5 grid (five rows and five columns). Use a ruler if you like — neat squares make the trick easier.
2
Design your letter
Shade squares so the dark squares form the first letter of your first name, block-letter style. Only use the grid — no curves outside the boxes.
3
Encode each row
For each row, write how many shaded squares are in that row (0–5), left to right. You now have five numbers — that’s a tiny “program” describing your letter.
4
Bonus round
Show a parent or friend only your five numbers. Can they guess your letter? That’s how computers often trade compact descriptions instead of big pictures.

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