Lesson Plan

• Describe the purpose of buffers in managing data transfer between devices and the CPU.
• Explain how different buffer types (input, output, double, circular) address rate mismatches and timing differences.
• Analyse the impact of buffer size and policies on throughput, latency, overflow and underflow.
• Apply basic buffering concepts by tracing a simple keyboard‑to‑CPU example.
• Evaluate design considerations such as synchronization and read/write strategies.

• Projector or interactive whiteboard
• Slides illustrating buffer types and diagrams
• Sample code snippets (e.g., C/Java) demonstrating input/output buffering
• Handout with key terms and a producer‑buffer‑consumer diagram
• Worksheets for tracing buffer operations
• Laptop computers with an IDE for quick coding demo

Begin with a quick demonstration: type rapidly on the keyboard while the screen updates slowly, highlighting missed characters. Ask students to recall how the CPU and I/O devices communicate and why timing mismatches occur. Explain that today they will identify the role of buffers and how to evaluate their effectiveness, which will be assessed through a short tracing activity.

1. Do‑Now (5’) – Students list situations where data loss might occur without buffering. Share responses.
2. Mini‑lecture (10’) – Define buffers, show the producer‑buffer‑consumer diagram, and compare input, output, double, and circular buffers.
3. Guided example (10’) – Walk through the keyboard‑to‑CPU scenario, using a flowchart to illustrate FIFO behavior.
4. Hands‑on coding (15’) – Students modify a provided snippet to add an input buffer and observe the change in output.
5. Group analysis (10’) – Teams calculate throughput before and after buffering using the given formula and discuss latency trade‑offs.
6. Check for understanding (5’) – Quick quiz via Kahoot or exit ticket with three conceptual questions.

Summarise that buffers decouple producer and consumer speeds, improving throughput while requiring careful sizing to avoid overflow or latency. For the exit ticket, ask each student to write one design consideration for a buffer in a real‑time system. Assign homework to research a real‑world application (e.g., video streaming) and describe the buffer strategy used.