Creative STEAM projects with Micro:bit
Buinho Education is a sub-branch of Buinho, a fablab located in the South of Portugal (www.buinho.pt). Micro:bit is the most popular microcontroller in STEAM education worldwide. And for the last 5 years, Buinho has been specializing in finding creative and innovative approaches to its use in the classroom.
In this course, you will be given a collection of activities and projects that take advantage of the full potential of Micro:bit.
Finally, the course also introduces new ideas and innovative uses for the Micro:bit including toy hacking, IoT, and kinetic art, among many other disruptive ideas.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course aims to impart a comprehensive set of best practices for utilizing the Micro:bit microcontroller, with a focus on utilizing it creatively for teaching Sciences, Computational thinking, Mathematics, Electronics, and Environmental Sciences in the classroom.
The Micro:bit, more powerful and user-friendly than the Arduino, quickly became the most popular choice for Education, and it can easily be found in most schools in Europe. However, despite its increasing popularity, the Micro:bit’s potential is often overlooked and teachers reveal difficulties in creating activities besides coding and simple built-in sensors manipulation.
This course aims to expand the possibilities of the Micro:bit by introducing new ideas for its use, connecting it to external devices and components, and providing teachers with the tools to fully utilize its potential in STEAM activities. It is a comprehensive introduction to the Micro:bit, covering not only the basics but also innovative techniques that can be used to enhance the classroom experience throughout the school year.
In the “Creative STEAM projects with Micro:bit” course, you will learn the basics of Micro:bit and then explore new concepts related to sensors, physical computing, robotics, and product hacking, while developing fun and engaging STEAM projects with your students.
Whether you are a teacher of IT, Biology, or English, this course will provide you with concrete ideas and projects for incorporating digital skills into your curriculum. Participants will gain introductory knowledge in electronics, including how to identify electronic components, troubleshoot and repair broken devices. The course will also focus on developing computational thinking and creative coding skills using Make Code and its extensions. Through hands-on projects such as building internet-connected weather stations, DIY robots, interactive Teddy bears, and cool bio lab experiments, you will learn how to bring these new technologies into your classroom and engage students in new ways.
The courses are made in a fablab/makerspace environment, which means that the participants will be granted free access to other digital prototyping equipment like laser cutters or vinyl cutters, which can be helpful for the customization of the machines – Inside a fablab, the only limit is your imagination!
As such, all the tools will be provided, we just ask the participants to bring a laptop as it will be needed for the software training.
By taking this course within a fablab, participants will also have free access to one hour of online courses and tutorials prepared by Buinho and available on our e-learning platform. Finally, the course also includes a cultural program, providing the opportunity to visit Portuguese landmarks and experience a bit of our Culture.
In Portugal, Buinho has been successfully teaching robotics, coding, and digital fabrication to children and youth from elementary to secondary school years, and we want to share some of our experiences with you. We have vast experience in teaching and capacitating teachers from different school years and with zero experience in these subjects. This course is therefore meant for both beginners and experienced Micro:bit teachers as we will provide strong foundations while introducing new and innovative manners of using the Micro:bit
Target Groups – Elementary, Middle and Secondary School teachers
Duration of the course – Five days
Total Cost of the Course – 400€
Note: Each class will have a maximum of 12 participants to provide higher quality standards and more individualized support.
Timetable
Day 1
10:00 – 12:00
Welcome session and introduction
We will receive the participants in the working space, making a short introduction to Buinho’s experience in the educational field. We will also dedicate some time to getting to know the participants but also their sending schools. You can bring a presentation.
We will start introducing the Micro:bit, with practical and simple activities. You will have the first contact with Makecode, Microsoft’s coding app for Micro:bit, and we will share with you some fun ice-breaking activities to use with your students with Micro:bit.
13:00 – 15:00
Controlling external devices with Micro:bit – Maths and Physics
In addition to providing a basic introduction to Micro:bit, we will also spend time discussing the Makecode Extensions Library and how to effectively utilize it to control external components such as various types of motors, sensors, screens, and other devices. We will also demonstrate how to create a DIY humidity control system to control the water needs of a vase, while teaching our students important Math and Physics concepts.
Day 2
9:00 – 12:00
Micro:bit and Toy Hacking – Circular Economy and Electronics
13:00 – 15:00
Toy Hacking continuation
The workshop on Toy Hacking will proceed as planned. As the session progresses, attendees will develop increasing levels of confidence and skill that will be valuable for future endeavors in the classroom. It is crucial to allocate sufficient time for experimentation and to allow participants to proceed at their own pace. Through hands-on experience, participants will discover how Toy Hacking can be applied to a variety of projects, such as those related to the circular economy and art.
Day 3
10:00 – 17:00
Cultural day
The group will travel together to the beautiful and romantic town of Cascais for a special cultural day that includes sighseeing, visits to museums, shopping, and a visit to the most Western point of Europe!
Day 4
9:00 – 12:00
Science projects with Micro:bit – Biology, Physics, Chemistry
In this workshop we will introduce the new components as a new breakout board compatible with ultrasonic sensor, dust sensor, CO2 sensor, light sensor and water level sensor, including RTC Timing and WIFI module. This kit allows you to build projects such as air quality monitoring, environmental noise detection, environmental quality monitoring station, automatic watering detection and many more STEAM projects.
This workshop will guide you on how to integrate IoT technology into your Science curriculum in innovative ways. You will learn how to connect and share data with open-source repositories, enabling your students to compare important aspects of citizen life, such as air quality in their neighborhood, with other communities worldwide.
13:00 – 15:00
Making Art with the Micro:bit – Arts, Engineering, Robotics
In the afternoon we will further expand our experiments by using the Buinho bot. The Buinho bot is a Micro:bit controlled rover bot that can generate drawings in blank papers. The chassis is made with 3D printing and we will add some external components as continuous servo motors and distance sensors. You will learn how to utilize the Micro:bit to produce amazing artwork or teach geometry, all while having a great time with your students.
Day 5
10:00 – 12:00
12:00 – 13:00
Delivery of the final certificates and Europass
To finalize these seven days training courses we will take the group session, prepare a final surprise gift for all participants and deliver the final certificates of attendance and Europass.