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CSTA California Teacher Hackathon Recordings

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CSTA California Teacher Hackathon Recordings

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The ten CSTA Chapters across California collaborated to host the first-ever CSTA California Teacher Hackathon, a full day of collaborative physical computing...

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Help Center

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Take a moment and share ideas and suggestions. We appreciate it!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdmiQ3fCDe_OvSD3OAzhAZn3rI1SgmWP7sspWUI-8v-NI48Ig/viewform

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Workshop #2 Slides:  Tracking Data with Sensors

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Workshop #2 Slides:  Tracking Data with Sensors

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Tracking Data with Sensors April 2021 Lisa Kao Melanie Mulcaster Peel District School Board Ontario, Canada http://bit.ly/microbitsensors

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Workshop #3 Slides: Hack a micro:bit Game

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Workshop #3 Slides: Hack a micro:bit Game

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micro:bit + X - CSTA California Teacher Hackathon

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https://microbit.org/
Check out Get Started, Projects, and Lessons! When you are ready to code, click on Let's Code.

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Lesson resources for teachers

Planning and teaching with the micro:bit

Primary ages 7-11

Complete, editable computing units of work and resources with cross-curricular links for art, science, geography and more, curriculum-linked to England KS2 and Code.org elementary CS Fundamentals.
Search primary lessons
Secondary ages 11-14

Units of work with downloadable, editable resources covering computing fundamentals through to cyber security, cryptography and creative design projects, curriculum-linked to England KS3.
Search secondary lessons

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The BBC micro:bit: the pocket-sized computer transforming digital skills learning.

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Code with blocks and/or JavaScript

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A Blocks / JavaScript code editor for the micro:bit powered by Microsoft MakeCode.

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A Python Editor for the BBC micro:bit, built by the Micro:bit Educational Foundation and the global Python Community.

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Requirements: Need to download & install Scratch Link software.

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Scratch is a free programming language and online community where you can create your own interactive stories, games, and animations.

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downloadable Python app
https://codewith.mu/

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https://microbit.org/get-started/user-guide/python/

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This guide shows you how to use each feature of the micro:bit in Python, with short example code and links to quick, practical projects.

Online editor

Our online Python editor is designed with teachers and learners in mind: you can easily enlarge the text size for sharing on a large screen or whiteboard, download projects as Python text files or .HEX files ready to flash onto a micro:bit. You can also use it in micro:bit classroom, our tool for making whole-class coding sessions easier to manage either remotely or face-to-face.

Using a recent Chrome or Edge browser you can download your programs direct to your micro:bit using webUSB, and interact directly with your micro:bit using the serial interface feature.

Hello, World!

Let's start by making some words and a picture appear on your micro:bit's display. Go to the Python editor and you'll see this program:

Flash it to your micro:bit by downloading a hex file and transferring it, or flash it by webUSB, and see words and pictures appear on your micro:bit.

You need to be very precise when coding in text-based languages, and Python is no exception. The spaces at the start of lines 6, 7 and 8 are important. These are called indentations, made from four space characters (or one press of the TAB key.)

You'll notice that Python programs often use a while True: statement. This is an infinite loop like the forever block in MakeCode or Scratch. The instructions indented after while True: form part of the loop: your micro:bit will keep carrying out those instructions as long as it has power.

Any instructions after while True: that are not indented won't be carried out until the loop has finished.

The Set-up page explains more about connecting and transferring code to your micro:bit:

Images

As well as showing a HEART icon, like in the example above, you can use lots more built-in images with Python. Try HAPPY, DUCK or GHOST. You'll find a list of all the built-in images in the micro:bit Python reference guide.

You can also make your own pictures this example. Try different numbers from 0 to 9 to make each LED darker or brighter:

These three projects put Python images to use and give you ideas for taking them further:

Buttons

Unlike MakeCode, Python on the micro:bit doesn't have event blocks like 'on button A pressed'. Instead, we use the infinite while True: loop to keep checking if a button has been pressed. (Actually, MakeCode programs do the same thing when they run on your micro:bit, but MakeCode hides the infinite loop from you when you're writing your code.)

Can you guess what this program does? Try it out!

Here are three projects using button inputs in Python for you to try:

Sensors

The micro:bit has many built-in sensors which you can access in your Python programs to interact with the world around you.

Accelerometer
Gestures
The micro:bit has an accelerometer input sensorbuilt-in which measures physical forces. You can use to make things happen when you move your micro:bit in certain ways, such as when you shake it, drop it, turn it on its side, face up or face down. These movements are called gestures.

These three makes show you practical and fun uses for gestures:
Data
You can also get more accurate readings of forces from the micro:bit's accelerometer in 3 dimensions. This program works as a kind of spirit level, showing a dash if it's level, or showing arrows to tell you which way it's leaning if it's not flat on your desk. It does this by measuring forces just in the x-axis:

Here are three programs that use accelerometer data in practical ways:

Temperature

The micro:bit's processor contains a temperature sensor which you can use in your programs. It's a useful approximation of the temperature around your micro:bit. This program shows how warm or cold your micro:bit is in °C when you press button A:

You could use any of these three projects in your classroom or home to monitor and log temperature data:

Light

The LED display on the front of your micro:bit can also detect light, acting as a sensor input as well as anoutput. Try this simple nightlight project: shine a light on your micro:bit, then cover it or turn out the lights and you should see the display light up.

These three practical projects use light sensor data to trigger different outputs:

Compass

Your micro:bit has an input sensor for measuring magnetic fields, which you can use as a compass. This project tells you, once you've calibrated it by playing a little game, what compass bearing the top of your micro:bit is pointing towards.

Here are three projects using the compass and magnetometer to measure the strength of a magnetic field:

The new micro:bit with sound has a gold logo on the front that works as a touch sensor. Here's how to use it an extra input button in your projects:

Explore other ways of using the touch logo in these three projects:

Sound

With Python your micro:bit can make music, express itself - and even speak!

Music

Attach headphones to pin 0 and GND on your micro:bit and you can use it to make noise and play music. There are many more built-in tunes to enjoy, try ODE, BLUES or BIRTHDAY - or compose your own. If you have a new micro:bit with sound, the music will also play from the built-in speaker.

Explore music further with these three makes:

Speech

Your micro:bit can talk when you import the speech module. How could you add speech to improve a project like a compass or thermometer to make it more accessible?

Speaker
Expressive sounds
The new micro:bit with a built-in speaker can also play expressive sounds like giggles, yawns and greet you with a 'hello'. The Sound emotion badge project uses three of them:

The full list of expressive sounds includes GIGGLE, HAPPY, HELLO, MYSTERIOUS, SAD, SLIDE, SOARING, SPRING, TWINKLE and YAWN. Try them out and see which ones best add personality to your project.
Muting the speaker
Any sound you make with the micro:bit will come out of the new micro:bit's built-in speaker and pin 0 by default. You can mute the speaker using pin_speaker.disable() and the sound will still go to any headphones connected to pin 0.

Microphone

The new micro:bit has a built-in microphone that can detect loud and quiet events, and also measure how loud a sound is.

This simple Clap hearts program reacts to current loud sounds like claps to animate a heart:

You can set the threshold for loud and quiet events using numbers from 0-255, with 0 being the quietest and 255 the loudest.

You can also check the last sound event rather than the current one, like in this Clap-o-meter program that measures the duration of loud sounds:

You can use microphone.sound_level() to measure how loud sounds are. This Disco lights program makes the LED display glow brighter the louder sounds picked up by the microphone are:

Explore these and other sound measuring projects in more depth:

Random numbers

You can add more functions to Python on your micro:bit by importing modules. This program imports the random module so we can make a simple random number generator like dice:

Radio

Two or more micro:bits can communicate wirelessly using the radio module. Flash this program on to two micro:bits and see what happens when you shake each in turn:

There are over a dozen Python projects using radio. Here are three to get you started:

Pins

The strip of golden 'teeth' at the bottom of your micro:bit allow you to connect it to electronics such as switches, sensors, lights, motors - and even other micro:bits.

Get started expanding your micro:bit with these three makes:
Networking
You can communicate securely over wires with two micro:bits (no-one can snoop on your radio messages!) and learn about computer networking.

Nominet have also written a Python version of their book Networking with the micro:bit which covers wired and wireless networking.

Adding modules

You can access the micro:bit's Python file system to add Python modules to extend your programs or make using accessories easier.

Serial (REPL)

The serial REPL (Read-Evaluate-Print-Loop) feature lets you type Python commands on your computer and run them immediately on your micro:bit without the need to flash a whole program. Connect using webUSB, flash any Python program onto your micro:bit then click on the 'Open Serial' button, and click on the Ctrl-C button.

Type import love into the REPL, press enter and see what happens to your micro:bit!

The serial feature is also helpful for debugging programs as you can use it to read any Python error messages from your micro:bit. Switch to the serial mode and reset your micro:bit and you'll see any error messages on your computer screen as well as scrolling across the micro:bit's display.

Next steps

Always experiment, always explore, always learn!

Once you get used to the concepts in this guide, read the full Python documentation to learn how to take things further.

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This guide shows you how to use each feature of the micro:bit in Python, with short example code and links to quick, practical projects. Our online Python editor is designed with teachers and learners in mind: you can easily enlarge the text size for sharing on a large screen or whiteboard, download projects as Python text files or .HEX files ready to flash onto a micro:bit.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkWDYTx_mg4

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Micro:bit Basics for Teachers Part 1: The Hardware

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https://quizlet.com/585574963/microbit-mr-casas-2021-csta-hackathon-flash-cards/?new

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Microbit: Mr. Casas 2021-CSTA Hackathon Flashcards | Quizlet

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Intro to micro:bit essential vocabulary/keywords Learn with flashcards, games, and more — for free.

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CSTA California Teacher Hackathon Recordings

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CSTA California Teacher Hackathon Recordings

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The ten CSTA Chapters across California collaborated to host the first-ever CSTA California Teacher Hackathon, a full day of collaborative physical computing...

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http://doyourbit.microbit.org/
Brings together the micro:bit and the UN’s Global Goals. Make sure to check out the winners from 2019 & 2020!

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Just some ideas of what can be done with the micro:bit. The ideas/activities listed, for the most part, use only the components in the micro:bit Go Kit along with some inexpensive additional supplies.
http://bit.ly/microbit-crosscurricular

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Micro:Bit - Curricular Integration Ideas

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A collection of Micro:bit projects

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BBC micro:bit | Free Platform for Coding, Making and Inventing | Make | Tech Will Save Us

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The BBC micro:bit is a pocket-sized computer that you can code, customise and control to bring your digital ideas, games and apps to life.

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Simple Animatronic With Micro:bit Cohillway

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Teams can use this Jamboard template to do their brainstorming, if desired. You must be signed in to a Google Account and a copy will be made for you when you click on the image below.

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Team 1 Members: Ira, Jasmine, Mark, and Matthew

Project idea: Microbits buried under sand around hatchlings nest like a fence to deter them from going the wrong direction and with sound and light to redirect them to go the opposite direction to head toward the ocean. Baby sea turtles would activate the Microbits  buried under the sand using the pressure sensor on the v2. Once the pressure sensor is activated the Microbit plays a sound and lights up.

Project code: click here to view

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Members: Art Lopez, Daniel Pearson, Emilio Davila, Matt Brutlag

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Team 15

The panel will use less LEDs when the ambient light intensity is high; and more LEDs when it is low.

Our group came up with 3 ways of doing this :

project:https://makecode.microbit.org/_J1vVKR1L35bm

https://makecode.microbit.org/_6aMHcuTx6Uv9

https://makecode.microbit.org/80791-92336-31045-02685

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Team 11
Terry, Leo, Myra, John, Trevor, Keith

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Team 18 Game using Scratch with micro:bit
Link to presentation

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Gamify your gardening and turn your potted plant into a digital pet with a micro:bit

Team 13 - Don Isbell, Stan Masaoka, Jen Rushing, Tyson Ruszler

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Team 13 - micro:bit - Plantagotchi - Gamify your plants!

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Members: Amanda, Mike, Owen & Brian (mentor: Becky!)
Project: Save the Turtles!
Video presentation
Our Code

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Go green with a SMART Trash Bin. It makes recycling fun and easy,  keeps track of recycling goals, celebrates your accomplishments and reminds you when to empty the bin. Reducing waste has never been easier!

Abigail Joseph - San Jose

Jorge Flores - Palmdale

Lily Mora - Vallejo

Suba Marti - Redwood City

Viji Rangaswamy - San Jose

Mentor: Daniel Sandoval Villa (Microb:bit Champion)

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Team 6 micro:bit soil moisture sensor Wakelet

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Team 6 micro:bit soil moisture sensor Wakelet

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https://wakelet.com/wake/RRuIShmPH85dKboiDuaRX

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micro:bit soil moisture sensor - Wakelet

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Use two micro:bits in this project to measure the level of soil moisture and then send the data via radio to a receiving micro:bit that will live stream the information.

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Team 8

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Team 10 - Toilet Water Consumption Monitor

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Team 10 - Toilet Water Consumption Monitor

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Team 10 Members:
Brett Tanaka, Mariana Hernandez, Sarah Peters & Joseph Stymeist

Project Concept:
Our project concept was to develop a way to monitor the amount of toilet water (Full and Half Flush). We had some technical issues and tried troubleshooting with different variations of the code.

Project Code 1:
https://makecode.microbit.org/_EJR4sH8iKRwu

Project Code 2:
https://makecode.microbit.org/_gzp6qU0DfJeY

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My first micro:bit project. So so so excited with the possibilities.

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Slides - https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1-atn_SWoGHRohsN-JryOjQHpqh2Pz1U9upmMH71sXlU/edit?usp=sharing

Captain Code - https://makecode.microbit.org/_2RVJ8MC5x30A

Fisher Code - https://makecode.microbit.org/_XgoDaX8scV8C

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Open in a new window and then File/Make a copy to complete your team's presentation. You do not have to use this template.

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NeoPixel Hedgehog Necklace

In this activity guide, you will learn to program an infrared remote control to change the color of lights on a NeoPixel strip.
Total read time: <7 minutes Skill level: Beginner
Street Corner STEAM

On Wednesday evenings, I lead a free STEAM activity in a location that also serves free meals. Activities are designed for 10-12 year old students, but in reality we have five-year-olds through senior adults who attend. There are three activity tables: sewing, painting, and drawing, as well as one special project I bring each week - such as this one. The goal of Street Corner STEAM is to offer socially-distant and spontaneous play to build skills and confidence with technology. Below you will see pictures from Street Corner STEAM.

Materials for this project:

There are five main electronics parts for this project.

1. micro:bit - Go pack - $18.00 (set of 10 - $160.00)

2. basic:bit - $4.99 - 1 per project

3. NeoPixel Strip - $4.99 - 1 per project

4. Infrared receiver sensor - $2.90 - 1 per project

5. Infrared remote control - $4.95 - 1 per project

6. Free software: MicroBlocks

Note: These materials are fully reusable.
Optional:

A stuffed animal or toy

If you want to help a group to create their own toys, I like this kit: Woodland creatures felt animal kits - 12 sewable felt kits - $22.99, but you can also make your own toys basically for free from old socks

Connecting the electronics

Use the five screws that come with the basic bit to connect it to your micro:bit.

There are three pins available to you: Pin 0, Pin 1, and Pin 2.

When you attach the NeoPixel strip and infrared sensor, be sure to line the black wire up next to the letter /G/ which stands for 'ground.' If you plug the wires in backwards, your program won't run properly. Make sure the slide switch on the basic:bit is set to 'P0', not to the speaker.

Get to know your materials

1. Connect your micro:bit via USB to your computer.

2. Open MicroBlocks and be sure you have a green circle in the top left corner.

3. Add the NeoPixel library to MicroBlocks.

Connect your micro:bit via USB to your computer. Then, open MicroBlocks and be sure that you have a green circle in the top left corner.

Add the NeoPixel library to MicroBlocks.

At this point you can play with the NeoPixel library. Below is sample code I shared with the students in Street Corner STEAM. With these code snippets, they were able to create new scripts.

Starter scripts for students to get to know their materials.

Infrared sensor and remote control

Infrared light is invisible to the human eye, but if you look at it through the lens of a video camera, including most cellphone cameras, you can see it. Below is a way to use the remote control with your NeoPixel strip.

Pressing each button on the infrared remote control causes a series of flashes with a UNIQUE pattern of delays.

How can we use these unique signals in our code?

Here is one way to find the unique signal for each button on the remote. Don't forget to add the IR Remote library to your tool bar. See how here: https://microblocks.fun/cards/mb_IR_Remote_Control.pdf

Bring it all together and use your IR remote to control your NeoPixel necklace

NeoPixel and IR activity cards for your students

What you get in this post: Seven activity ideas for exploring coding and electronics, including printables, slides, a materials list, and sample code. The first activity is ideal for students as young as 8.
I used to think coding was overwhelming - that for every one thing I learned, there were a million more that I would never learn. Coding felt like a list of endless and unknowable details that I would drown under. But through activities like this potato battery experiment, I've learned that's not true. Whether you code with a single block of code or 86 million lines of code, you're doing the exact same thing: playing with electricity.

Connecting a potato battery to an LED allows current to flow, making the LED light up. My computer works the same way: tiny transistor switches control the flow of current in millions of tiny wires. Although my computer has a lot more wires and switches, at the lowest level it is just turning things "on" and "off" with electricity, just like my potato battery.

After I realized that, coding and electronics were no longer overwhelming and I started to play. Anyone creating technology - making us laugh with animated films, healing us with medicine, keeping us safe while we travel - is taking up tools to do one thing: creatively move electrons.

I hope the activities below will help you to think of electricity as a raw material that you and your students can play with.

Getting started playing with electricity

In this hands-on activity, students will create a potato-powered night light by connecting several potato "battery cells" in series to light an LED. In an optional extension, students can experiment with different colored LEDs to discover how many potato cells are needed to light each color. Finally, they apply what they have learned by designing (on paper) their own night lights. This potato-battery night-light project was created by John Maloney and myself.

Ellie needs help from her sister

Sara and her little sister Ellie are home alone when a big storm makes the power go out. It's getting dark, and Ellie is afraid. Sara knows that even a small light would comfort Ellie but, unfortunately, their flashlight doesn't work. However, Sara recently learned how to make a battery in science class and, even better, she still has some LEDs from that class in her backpack! In science class, they made lemon batteries, but Sara remembers that her teacher said that potatoes might also work. After a quick search, she's found everything she needs. Can she put the pieces together to light up the LED and keep Ellie from being afraid?
Lesson plan ideas, including materials list
Resources for your students (Make a copy of these slides)

What comes after potato batteries?

A picture like the one below is a good example of something that used to intimidate me (and sometimes still does). However, instead of feeling like I am about to drown, now I just think of the potatoes in the experiment above.

Look closely at the 7-segment display plugged into the breadboard above (only three of the seven segments are lit up). Each segment is like a single LED from Sara and Ellie's nightlight project above. One wire is connected to one LED segment on the display. The picture above is like setting up seven potato battery experiments, one potato battery experiment for each LED segment on the display.

However, in the potato battery experiment, I had to clip and unclip the wires to make the LED turn on and off. In this set up, I can write code to turn the LED segments on and off. The 7-segment display stays wired up, and my code turns the lights on and off.

Bridging potatoes and 7-segment displays

Going from potato-powered LEDS to programming 7- segment displays isn't as big of a leap as you might think.

You can start by plugging your potato-battery into the computer using a micro:bit and measuring the voltage of your potatoes using MicroBlocks.

Step 1: Connect the potato cells in series (as described in the activity sheet above).

Step 2: Connect an alligator clip to pin 1 of your micro:bit (I did this with a yellow wire in the picture above). Then, connect a second alligator clip to the GND pin on your micro:bit (I did this with the green wire in the picture above).

Step 3: Open MicroBlocks and create a script that reads the analog value of pin 1. Above I am using the "say" block to show the number on the screen. 1.5 volts will read as about 500.

Step 4: Measure the voltage of one potato cell. Clip the yellow wire to a penny and the green wire to a nail. Write down the number you see (For me, it's 267 in the picture above). Then, move the green wire to the nail of the next potato (keeping the yellow wire on the penny of the first potato). What number do you see now? Do this two more times, moving the green wire to the next nail each time.

Step 5: How many volts does your four-cell potato battery generate?

Another way to play with electricity

Here is another way to use MicroBlocks and your micro:bit to play with electricity as a raw material.

From potato-powered to micro:bit-powered

Instead of clipping and unclipping the LED to turn it on and off (as I had to do with the potatoes), I can code the A button on the micro:bit to turn the LED on and the B button to turn it off. In other words, pressing A switches electricity to flow and pressing B stops electricity from flowing.

Draw and play with electricity

While exploring electricity as a raw material, I like to sketch and write what I am learning.

Tiny electronics

With the power of coding, you can create anything! Below is an example of electronic jewelry that communicates secret messages by fast-flashes of light. 1 flash = A, 2 flashes = B, and so on.

This is the code powering Geo's LED bracelet. Remember: We are only playing with electricity. Letter A needs to flash once, Letter B needs to flash twice, etc. So when I type a message to send, the code on the right looks at each letter and decides how many times to flash.

Here is a link to download the sending code and the receiving code: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/2/folders/1W4fOoJEPJMP-OjdQP1pdXvvBDW3WWkiN

Want more programming fun?

Try coding your own flashlight tag game to play with friends - it's like laser tag, but with flashlights! Use the activity cards below to help you. Find more activities here: https://microblocks.fun/learn#activity_cards

Thank you for stopping by!

I can't wait to see what you make.

-KatieDays

Buttons A and B

Tilt Sensor (accelerometer)

Compass

Thermometer

Light Sensor

Radio Communication (kind of an action too)

Write code for your loveable pet

25 leds

sound
Try this code to give your animal a beating heart animation with the micro:bit Try this activity to use the buttons with your micro:bit

1. Go here: Make it: Code it projects

2. Select the feature you want to use in the search filter on the left

One way to make a sock bunny:

One way to make a sock bear:

I created the owl by accident. Here is the process of making the owl.

Skills

Use physical objects to control digital animations and sound

Use math (you won't realize you did)

Use music (you'll probably realize you did)

What you get

Three ways to help Pete find his beat using micro:bit, MaKey MaKey, and Scratch

Loads of supplemental teaching resources for music, coding and Scratch 3.0

Most people don't know this, but there is a reason Peter Cottontail always came hip-hoppin' down the bunny trail.

He was a famous DJ, and he loved to make music. Though the secret to his music lived in his tail.

One day a terrible DJ accident happened and Peter lost his cottontail.

Now he is just known as "Pete who lost his beat."

Can you help Pete find his beat?
Materials:
Pete: 1 sock, fist-full of stuffing, two rubber bands, and scissors

micro:bit glove: glove, binder clip, micro:bit with battery pack

MaKey MaKey dance pad: 1 file folder, aluminum foil (about the size of half a sheet of computer paper), glue, scissors, MaKey MaKey

Pete is just a sock bunny. Follow this tutorial to make your own. If you don't like this tutorial, search "No sew sock bunny" to find many versions. You can also search "No sew sock animal" to finds lots of other creatures to make with a sock.

Materials: 1 sock, fist-full of stuffing, two rubber bands, and scissors.

Glue a piece of foil onto the bottom of Pete. This will help him to dance on the MaKey MaKey dance pad.

Materials: glove, binder clip, micro:bit with battery pack
Get your micro:bit glove ready to control Scratch
Go to this website: https://scratch.mit.edu/microbit

1.) Install "Scratch Link"

2) Install "Scratch micro:bit Hex "
Third, Make MaKey MaKey Dance Pad
Materials: 1 file folder, aluminum foil (about the size of half a sheet of computer paper), glue, scissors

Pete will dance to the left in Scratch when he is in this position.

I gave Pete three moves on my dance pad, though in the picture above, only move 2 is connected.

1. When Space Key Pressed

2. When Left Arrow Pressed

3. When Right Arrow Pressed

See all three moves on the MaKey MaKey dance pad in action here (video starts immediately with dance moves).
Open Scratch and add the micro:bit and MaKey MaKey extensions.

Choose a stage and sprite that you like. I took a picture of Pete and uploaded him into Scratch to use as my sprite.

I used this video to help me to remove Pete's background in Scratch.

Now, help Pete find his beat. Try this code. How else can you help Pete?

See this code in action with the micro:bit and MaKey MaKey (video starts immediately at code in action).

Want more with music, coding, and Scratch 3.0 ? Thank you to Jared O'Leary from BootUpPD for sharing these resources with me.

Jumping Game with Music- https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/75311050/

Jumping Game with Sound Effects- https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/78887338/

Toggle Music with a Button- https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1pLnYS5j_20OrqzVdk5hPMTIip8scpEkaXqo-lCbZKWE/edit?usp=sharing

Create Music Player- https://docs.google.com/document/d/1vgbzvO_I4vEIEvYxRZehxuLu6c7vt8s5Mr97o1LKq3o/edit?usp=sharing

Make Music with Ten Block Challenge- https://docs.google.com/document/d/16t0p6zIsFabKhmXKaTZSIxs1nxejegQukmz1MjpFt-c/edit?usp=sharing

More resources from Jared himself- https://jaredoleary.com/music-coding

Beatbox Machine- https://docs.google.com/document/d/1C0DpoBDRHdbIWs4hcn7g4HjI86Mpjv2U2blGjjFT20k/edit?usp=sharing

Let's Invent! Celebrate Scratch Month Episode Two with MaKey MaKey and micro:bit!

What you get below:

materials list

sample code

extension idea

What you get below:

4 simple activity cards with quick demo videos

1) Move

What you get below:

1. Copy the Code - tells you how to copy the game you see here

2. Hack the Code - gives you ways for students to modify the existing code

3. Teach Students - A suggested instructional sequence for helping students to build their own games from the ground up.

1) Use this link to open Scratch: https://champierre.github.io/scratch3/

2) Click on the "Add extension" icon (bottom left corner)

3) Scroll down and select "Facemesh2Scratch" extension. Note: It will take a while to open. Your computer will look like it's locked up, but it isn't.

4) Download this Scratch code: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oBknAF2ihOVd1cYClAh-6mx6CyfTEc9I/view?usp=sharing (Open the link. Then, right-mouse click on the file and select "download"

5) In Scratch, select: File -> open, and open the code you downloaded in step 4. (Be sure to open that code AFTER you do steps 1-3. The Facemesh2Scratch extension has to be open first.)

6) Click the green flag and start playing the game.

Q: How can I speed up the scroll?

A: Increase the speed of the "glide."

Q: How can teachers suggest students modify the code?
Simple:

1. Increase speed of the game

2. Change the Flappy Bird sprite to your favorite character

3. Reduce distance between the pipes

Intermediate:

1. Play a sound when the Flappy Bird touches a pipe

2. Create a score board. Add a point when Flappy Bird makes it through a pipe. Lose a point if Flappy Bird touches a pipe.

Design thinking:

Create a fun game for others who are in quarantine and not moving as much. How can you help more people move in a fun way? Not everyone can do push-ups. What other kinds of movement can you inspire with your game?

Q: What is the easiest way to share code with students?

A: Students need the Facemesh2Scratch extension loaded in Scratch before they open the code linked in the above section "Copy the Code". Follow steps for "Copy the Code" above to share with students.

1) Use this link to open Scratch: https://champierre.github.io/scratch3/

2) Click on the "Add extension" icon (bottom left corner)

3) Scroll down and select "Facemesh2Scratch" extension. Note: It will take a while to open. Your computer will look like it's locked up, but it isn't.

4) Practice using this code to see what happens.

Does anyone in your class know how to do this? Let them teach others. Students can also use tutorials, such as the one below.

What problems do your students still need to solve in making their game?

Form interest-based groups around remaining problems using a platform like Flipgrid. Allow students who are trying to solve similar problems to work together. Get the students name their own problems and find people who share similar problems. Don't go too fast at this step. There is a lot of learning in being able to name the problem you are trying to solve. Answer their questions with questions.
Encourage them to:

1. Name the problem

2. Identify resources they already know about that could help

3. Identify resources they wish they had

4. Ask them how they can obtain the resources that they wish they had.

5. There will likely be many problems. Ask them to focus on the hardest problem first.

Places to find resources they will possibly need:
Youtube Scratch tutorials

Scratch community help pages

Identify an expert in the field to reach out to

Have fun.

<3

-KatieDays

Ever since I saw the Little Bot project from Matt Chilbert at BirdBrain Technologies, I've day dreamed about using his ideas to make a plushy rabbit toy.
Little Bot - BirdBrain Technologies
But, have you ever tried to mount a motor into toy stuffing? Making a squishy toy that has motors inside isn't easy. Below is the story of how I tried - and am still trying. I didn't have directions to follow. I just knew that I wanted a plushy bunny that would "look around" like a real rabbit.

For each idea in this process, I tried lots of other ideas before I moved on to the next idea. Also, sometimes I got on an airplane in between ideas because I travel a lot for work. (Those photos are below, also.)

My goal is to create a simple robot plushy that mimics life-like behavior. If you have shareable resources on this topic, please email them to me katie@katiedays.com. I'd love to see them (and share them in the next blog post.)
This 14 second video has music.

1. Insert electronics from the tail of the bunny, not the head.

2. Try attaching the head separately and last. This might make for a more emotionally appealing face because you can get the details right before attaching it.

3. Use fabric that doesn't shred easily. Felt or wool might be a better option than what you see in my photos. (I used micro felt because it was extra soft. I thought it would move nicely with the micro servos, but it ended up just fraying easily at the edges.)

4. Try micro servos with plastic gears instead of metal gears to save a few dollars.

2 micro servos (plastic gears) 2 micro servos (metal gears) micro:bit ring:bit MicroBlocks
Felt, embroidery floss, needle (any will do)

Eva Foam 10mm thick (You can get Eva Foam at JoAnn fabrics)
Eva Foam 2 mm thick Stuffed Rabbit Directions Rabbit Template (Choose from lots of interesting and free patterns here)
Cutting knife/cutting mat

Sharpie marker

First, I started with a simple cardboard version. (Hey, it looked like a rabbit to me.) I programmed it in MicroBlocks.

Well, that was easy enough. I put a picture of the MicroBlocks bunny Rosa on the front and called it a day. That was all I had time for before I went to FETC in Miami, Florida for work.

Once I returned from FETC, I had to go to the BETT show in London right away. So, my bunny project waited a few more days.

Once I got back from BETT, I had a new idea to try. I chopped up a memory foam pillow, and made a servo shelf with 2 pieces of 10 mm Eva Foam. The Eva Foam securely held my servos, but the servos weren't strong enough to move the 2mm black foam (AKA: future bunny face) the way I liked. So, I ordered micro servos with metal gears, thinking they'd be stronger. (This may not have been necessary because the most recent design I've used is fairly small and light weight.)

Also, memory foam is difficult to cut without special tools. Of the tools I had available, a bread knife was the best solution.

After I tried that idea, I had to pack my suitcases again to go to TCEA in Austin, Texas. TCEA was a strangely green trip.

Once I got home from TCEA, I spent a lot of time preparing for the class John Maloney and I were teaching at Infosys Winter Pathfinders. We had video meetings most mornings.

After one of our morning meetings, I started working on the code for my future rabbit. I knew I wanted to use the radio feature of the micro:bit to wirelessly send messages from one micro:bit to another micro:bit, in order to control the servos. Below is the program I wrote.

During the class we taught, I managed to find a few minutes to try making another type of bunny head.

Once I got back from Infosys Winter Pathfinders with John, I was ready to dive into my project because I had 8 full days before traveling again.

First, I decided that I had a good concept for stabilizing the servos with Eva Foam from the memory foam rabbit.
This is a soft and durable way to stabilize the servo motors, so I decided to keep it.
Next, I decided it was time to get a real pattern. I knew I wanted a plushy rabbit, so I searched free rabbit patterns. I chose the pattern below because I thought the servos would fit well in the neck. (I noticed that the distance between the base of the rabbit and it's neck was similar to the height of my servos stacked on top of each other.) So, I traced the pattern and cut out the shapes from my fabric.

Even though the directions showed me how to stitch these pieces together, I still had to figure out how I was going to insert my motors. I also needed to figure out how I would attach the motors to the rabbit itself.

Next time I will NOT insert the motor in the front (as I tried here). Next time I will stitch up the front of the rabbit and leave the back open. There are several seams on the front of the rabbit, and trying to stitch them together while holding the motors in place was very tricky. This trickiness combined with the fraying fabric makes the front of my first-draft rabbit pretty raggedy.
Here's what happened. (The black thing sticking out of the side when the head turns is a piece of 2mm foam. You'll see more about that piece below.) See how well it works?
So this is what went inside of the rabbit's body.
Yes, it's a bit floppy outside of the rabbit, but once it goes inside, it seems to work okay. There is definitely room for improvement in this form.
Once I sealed my servo motors inside of the rabbit, I didn't know how exactly they would move. Using MicroBlocks was a good choice for me because I could quickly make changes to my program. I needed to find out how far my rabbit's head could move without looking crazy, or worse, falling apart. By using MicroBlocks, I could test in real-time (no waiting for something to download) the range of my servos inside of the rabbit.

Pressing A on the micro:bit causes the rabbit to rest. Pressing B on the micro:bit creates a random rabbit movement. My next step is to make these radio controlled features so that I can remove the wires (as you saw in my example code above.)
This 14 second video has sound.
If you have shareable resources on the topic of simple squishy robots, would you please email them to me, Katie@katiedays.com? I'd like to learn from them and include them in my next blog post.

" We have to make safe places for students to take creative risks, and trust students in those places."

I remember taking a risk in 6th grade art, though at the time, I didn't know I was. Using British English to title my drawing "Colour Tower" made perfect sense to me. I was reading the Chronicles of Narnia at the time, and thought it was cool how the words were spelled differently than I was used to. The word "colour" felt exotic to me - like much more vibrant colors emerged when you spelled it that way.

As soon as my "Colour Tower" was hanging in the hallway at school, the disgusted-sounding taunts began. "Doesn't Katie know how to spell? That's stupid."

I never had a chance to explain myself, and I didn't want to. I felt embarrassed and ashamed. I stopped spelling the word color with the letter U, and my world became a little less bright. For girls, creative risk-taking in middle school can be wildly terrifying. But, some girls don't just stop using the letter U to spell new words in middle school - worse things happen. They can stop leaning into their academic talents and using the power of their minds coupled with the power of their hearts. Their true passions can become secretive and hidden. They sometimes stay locked for years, or never get unlocked at all. That's painful.

I think I was one of these middle school girls, too. How was I ever going to lean into my own talents, when I was obsessed with matching what I saw everyone else doing? It was easier to conform than to try something new and risk feeling embarrassed.

How can we help more middle school girls feel confident to take creative risks?

We have to make it less unusual for a middle school girl to do something different from her peers, and that starts with us doing something different for our students. We have to make safe places for students to take creative risks, and trust students in those places.

While I don't believe tools themselves solve the problems we are talking about, trusting students to take creative risks with tools they may never before have used can have a profound impact on their life.

You don't always need tools to help inspire confidence, but there are some good ones that can help. They are beginner-friendly and cost as little as $15 per kit, but the possibilities are endless. They rely on students' minds and hearts to bring them to life.

Library

STEAM/Maker Space

Computer Science Education

Interdisciplinary

The micro:bit is a tiny programmable computer that makes STEM, computer science, and coding easy and fun. With this one device, students can start taking creative risks in nearly any subject. Check out www.microbit.org for free lesson plans and student project ideas.

MicroBlocks is a small, fast, human friendly programming language specifically designed for tools like the micro:bit. MicroBlocks is perfect for libraries, maker spaces, and anywhere with lots of people and resources coming and going.

Just plug your micro:bit into your computer, open MicroBlocks, and click the gear icon to "update firmware". That's it. Double-check to make sure the USB icon has a green circle behind it to show the connection is good. (See it in action below.)
Note: This 16 second video has sound.
You can do a lot with the buttons, sensors, and display built right into the micro:bit, but you can also do more by adding accessories. The basic:bit is one way to easily add accessories.

Attach your micro:bit to the front of the basic:bit with 5 screws that come with the basic:bit. (See photos below.) Use the same battery pack that came with your micro:bit to power it all. MicroBlocks makes it easy to start programming your basic:bit instantly.

(Note: If it is difficult for your school to order basic:bits from that website above, try this one: https://chicagodist.com/products/elecfreaks-basic-bit-for-micro-bit-three-way-i-o-expansion-mini-version. The price goes up a bit, but the transaction should be smoother.)

(Note: If it is difficult for your school to order from that website, try this one https://chicagodist.com/products/neopixel-rainbow-led-strip-and-gvs-conector-10-leds. The price goes up a bit, but the transaction should be smoother.)

Attach your NeoPixel strip to the basic:bit. The MicroBlocks NeoPixel activity card makes it easy to learn. Because the basic:bit comes with a piezo speaker built in, try using the sound and NeoPixels together. The MicroBlocks sound activity card will help you.
Note: This 4 second video has sound.
This project was made using the winch and crank build videos at the BirdBrain Technologies Build page. This puppet uses two position servos: one in the eyes and one in the mouth. The MicroBlocks servos activity card makes it easy to get started with servos. Also, this puppet is being powered by the ring:bit instead of the basic:bit. You can make a puppet with a basic:bit, but the extra battery in the ring:bit will help your puppet last longer. However, the ring:bit doesn't have a piezo speaker built in like the basic:bit does.
Note: This 5 second video has sound.
Getting Started

A Little More

Rainbow Ready

Puppets
A teacher builds a model bridge with a micro:bit powered servo driving a car back and forth. The project is programmed using MicroBlocks. Contact me Katie@katiedays.com with questions.

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In this activity guide, you will learn to program an infrared remote control to change the color of lights on a NeoPixel strip. Total read time: <7 minutes Skill level: Beginner On Wednesday evenings, I lead a free STEAM activity in a location that also serves free meals.

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@visionsbyvicky

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@drabigailjoseph

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Team 16
Use the micro:bit to collect sound data, store it in a file and then export to another environment for analysis.
We were able to use the microphone to record the data, and then use a datalogger to put it into an array.  Bluetooth can be used to collect the data and turn the radio on and off to preserve battery life.
We were able to get one micro:bit to append data from other micro:bits for an aggregate set.  Next, we created a data file which is stored on a local device. This would then be exported to an environment such as repl.it to create visualizations.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1kKGLueCdcET_wCByTPmPG4dH8zwXsOVumiT3okFmRPc/edit

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Sound Level Measurement in Python using the Micro:bit

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Be sure to connect with your micro:bit Champion/Mentor!

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https://twitter.com/amalong

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https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdmiQ3fCDe_OvSD3OAzhAZn3rI1SgmWP7sspWUI-8v-NI48Ig/viewform

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@MrJBohrer

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Tweets by MrJBohrer

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@btwarek

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Tweets by BTwarek

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@KatieHenryDays
https://twitter.com/KatieHenryDays

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It’s only happy when someone says the word “green.” By https://twitter.com/derrallg

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Diane Horvath (microbit champion) @techmonstah

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Diane Horvath (microbit champion) @techmonstah

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Middle School Makerspace/Tech Integration Specialist

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Tweets by techmonstah