Short link to this page: bit.ly/db-tas-23-3

Title graphic showing electronics

In this class, for beginning and experienced programmers and “digital makers”, you’ll create several fun projects combining coding with wiring up buttons, sensors and motors, while strengthening your programming skills, and being exposed to the big ideas of computer science.

Resources and Self-Directed Learning Time Activities

Hardware

We’ll work with several tiny computers and microcontrollers including some of the following:

The Raspberry Pi is a full-featured, but small, computer.

The Circuit Playground Express is less powerful than the Raspberry Pi, but includes many sensors and lights, and consumes less power.

Circuit Playground Express photo

The Arduino is a very popular microcontroller, with a large community creating software for it.

Software

  • Python is one of the most popular programming languages, and it’s suitable for beginning programmers as well as professionals.
  • JavaScript/TypeScript is another of the most popular programming languages.
  • C++ is used for programming Arduinos.
  • MakeCode for Circuit Playground Express makes it easy to program the CPX using blocks.
  • Tinkercad Circuits lets you try out your electronics circuits in a simulator before assembling them with real components.

Projects

The best projects might be the ones students come up with themselves, but here are some ideas:

Multiplayer Reaction/Memory Lights Game

Inspired by Simon game

Code walkthrough video

Features:

  • Raspberry Pi tiny computer
  • Python and TypeScript (a better JavaScript) programming languages
  • making a web application (webapp) with the Flask framework
  • Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)
  • electronics fundamentals
  • connecting components on a breadboard
  • reading button presses
  • lighting multicolor LEDs

Smart Thermostat

Make a smart thermostat to control your home temperature.

Dave’s YouTube Electronics Playlist should provide more ideas.

The Teacher

Dave Briccetti is a highly skilled programmer and experienced computer science teacher. Watch him teach on his YouTube channel.

Bring to Class

Bring your own laptop computer running macOS, Windows, or Linux, or use one provided by the school. The school will provide hardware to use during the class, and you’re welcome to bring your own hardware.

Circuit Wiring

Button Battery and LED

Button battery and LED Connect the LED’s long lead (wire) to the positive (+) side of the battery.

Lighting an LED On a Breadboard

A circuit on a breadboard

micro:bit

The micro:bit

We’ll use the micro:bit. They have a lot of features, including:

  • LEDs
  • sound
  • sensors (light, heat, acceleration, etc.)
  • motor control ability

Breakout Boards

A breakout board makes it easier to connect a device such as the micro:bit to other components. It is easier to connect a servo motor to the micro:bit because the breakout board has headers, pins that connect directly to the servo’s female connectors.

Bit Board Basic

Trying Out the micro:bit

Use the USB cable in the kit to connect the micro:bit to your computer. Be gentle. The micro:bit should power up and then engage you for a few minutes in an interesting way that shows some of its features.

Connect to the Breakout Board

Gently insert the micro:bit into the connector on the breakout board.

Connect the Servo

Servo connection

Make a Program

We’ll use MakeCode.

Here’s Dave’s example.

Download Directly to the micro:bit (No Drag and Drop Needed)

This requires Chrome or Edge. Click on the gear icon and choose Connect device. Once connected, push Download and that’s all that’s needed.

Battery Pack

You can disconnect the micro:bit from the computer once you have it programmed, and instead power it from a battery pack. Connect the battery pack as shown here (red to +, black to -). When disconnecting, don’t pull the wires. Pull on the plastic piece instead.

Power connection

Play Time

Play with the servo, the LEDs, sound, the accelerometer, whatever you like! Make something.

Radio Communication

This is one of Dave’s favorite features. These devices can communicate with each other using radio transmissions. If we have time we’ll play with it.

Explore Tutorials and Play

We learned that # is not called a hashtag. It’s an octothorp, pound sign, number sign, or hash. (A hashtag is made up of a hash followed by a tag.)

Here is a game idea:

from random import randint

player_name = input('What is your name? ').lower()
special_mode = player_name in ['mom', 'dad', 'sue'] 
tokens = 10

while tokens > 0:
    print('You have', tokens, 'tokens')
    bet = min(tokens, int(input('How much do you bet? ')))
    number = randint(1, 5)
    guess = int(input('Guess the number from 1 to 5: '))
    if guess == number and not special_mode:
        tokens += bet * 5
        print('Right!')
    else:
        tokens -= bet
        print('Too bad')

We wrote programs on the Circuit Playground Express with blocks:

  • turn on a pattern of light colors
  • make a light move in circles around the CPX

Python

Math quiz game

from random import randint
from time import time

right = 0
wrong = 0

while True:
    m1 = randint(2, 9)
    m2 = randint(11, 99)
    product = m1 * m2
    start_time = time()
    answer = int(input(f'{m1} × {m2} = ? (Enter 0 to stop) '))
    if answer == 0:
        break
    stop_time = time()
    duration = stop_time - start_time
    if answer == product:
        right += 1
        print(f'Right, in {duration:.2f} seconds')
    else:
        wrong += 1
        print('wrong')

print(f'You got {right} right and {wrong} wrong')

We used the Talking Name Picker to quiz students on parts of the program.

Python

Silly Sentences

from random import choice
from time import sleep

adjectives = ['silly', 'happy', 'playful']
nouns = ['monkey', 'grocer', 'fisherman', 'turkey', 'boy', 'girl']
verbs = ['jumps', 'walks', 'eats', 'swims', 'plays']
adverbs = ['quickly', 'eagerly', 'reluctantly', 'menacingly']

while True:
    print(f'The {choice(adjectives)} {choice(nouns)} {choice(verbs)} {choice(adverbs)} ')
    sleep(2)

Turtle Graphics

from turtle import fd, lt

def polygon(sides):
    for _ in range(sides):
        fd(200)
        lt(360 / sides)

polygon(5)
polygon(6)

input()

Reaction/Memory Game

We’ll start working on a multiplayer game where you have to push buttons matching a sequence received from the game server (another micro:bit), and be correct, and be faster than the other players. Sequence game

Server Code

sequence_length = 2

def make_sequence() -> str:
    global sequence_length
    seq = ''
    for _ in range(sequence_length):
        seq += '12'[randint(0, 1)]
    sequence_length += 1
    return seq

def send_sequence():
    radio.send_value("pattern", int(make_sequence()))
    
def on_received_value(name, value):
    if name == 'winner':
        basic.show_number(radio.received_packet(RadioPacketProperty.SERIAL_NUMBER))
        basic.show_icon(IconNames.HEART)
        basic.pause(1000)
        basic.clear_screen()

radio.on_received_value(on_received_value)
input.on_logo_event(TouchButtonEvent.PRESSED, send_sequence)

Client Code

current_seq = ''
responding = False
remaining_seq = ''

def on_received_value(name, value):
    global remaining_seq
    if name == 'pattern':
        for letter in str(value):
            if letter == '1':
                basic.show_leds("""
                ##...
                ##...
                ##...
                ##...
                ##...
                """)
            else:
                basic.show_leds("""
                ...##
                ...##
                ...##
                ...##
                ...##
                """)
            basic.clear_screen()
            basic.pause(100)
        responding = True
        remaining_seq = str(value)

def check_for_win():
    if not remaining_seq:
        radio.send_value("winner", 0)
        basic.show_icon(IconNames.HEART)
        basic.pause(2000)
        basic.clear_screen()

def process_response(button_char: str):
    global remaining_seq
    if remaining_seq:
        if remaining_seq[0] == button_char:
            remaining_seq = remaining_seq[1:]
            check_for_win()
        else:
            basic.show_icon(IconNames.CONFUSED)
            remaining_seq = ''
    
def on_button_pressed_a():
    process_response('1')

def on_button_pressed_b():
    process_response('2')

radio.on_received_value(on_received_value)
input.on_button_pressed(Button.A, on_button_pressed_a)
input.on_button_pressed(Button.B, on_button_pressed_b)

Python

Storing more complicated data

  • lists
  • dictionaries

Reverse Guessing Game

low = 1
high = 100
guess = 0

def produce_guess():
    global guess
    guess = (low + high) // 2
    basic.show_number(guess)

def on_button_pressed_a():
    global high
    high = guess - 1
    produce_guess()
    
def on_button_pressed_b():
    global low
    low = guess + 1
    produce_guess()
        
input.on_button_pressed(Button.A, on_button_pressed_a)
input.on_button_pressed(Button.B, on_button_pressed_b)
produce_guess()

Programming Arduino using TinkerCad Circuits

TinkerCad

Python Review and Quiz

  • lists, dictionaries
  • Reverse guessing game

RGB and Human Vision

TA Dorian Shows His 8-Bit Breadboard Computer Work in Progress

One of Ben Eater’s Kits

Ben Eater’s Kits

Circuit Wiring

Lighting an LED In TinkerCad Circuits

A circuit made with TinkerCad

Why do we need a resistor?

Delayed Gate Controller Program for micro:bit

Snap! Project: Treasure Chest

Picture of Treasure Chest game The project

Raspberry Pi Demo

Delayed Gate Controller Program for micro:bit

Beauty and Joy of Computing for Middle School

2023-07-24

  • Makecode for micro:bit
  • Intro to Python
  • Self-directed learning time

2023-07-25

  • Makecode for micro:bit
    • Servos and radios
  • Python
    • Quiz on yesterday’s code
    • Number guessing game, without the high and low responses
  • p5.js
    • Trying out the elevator sim
    • Painting program
      • noStroke, fill, rect, ellipse, mouseX, mouseY

2023-07-26

  • Quiz on Makecode and p5.js
  • Makecode boat project with radios and two micro:bits
  • Quiz on Python
  • Finish guessing game by adding high and low responses
  • Make a math multiplication game

2023-07-27

  • Quiz on Python
  • Python with EduBlocks
    • Number guessing game
    • Coin toss simulator

2023-07-28

  • Quiz on Python
  • p5.js
    • 3D
      • a cube near each corner of the canvas (translate, box)
  • micro:bits and such
    • different buttons send radio codes which, when received, cause different actions

2023-07-31

  • Quiz on Python
  • More Python
    • functions
      • including what they look like in 10 popular languages
    • lists

2023-08-01

  • Python quiz/practice
    • functions
    • lists
  • Ultrasonic sensor with Makecode for micro:bit

2023-08-02

  • Self-directed learning time
    • Finish ultrasonic sensor project if you like
  • Tinkercad circuits
    • Battery pack with motor and switch
    • Potentiometer
    • Arduino programming
      • Blinking the builtin LED and an external LED
      • Burglar alarm with a passive infrared sensor
  • Break
  • Acropolis Robot, Mantis Demo

2023-08-03

  • microblocks.fun
  • Playstation VR2 fun

2023-08-04

  • p5.js
    • review of spinning cube
    • moving rectangle
    • HSB and changing hues, saturation, and brightness
  • Python
    • functions
    • lists
    • dictionaries