5 Activities to Introduce MicroBits

Last year I was lucky enough to receive a class set of BBC Microbits. I’d obviously seen them, played with them, and tinkered a bit, but nothing in the classroom. On Twitter and blogs there are some AMAZING projects you can do with the pupils, but for a beginner some of them can seem out of reach. They often involve other parts you need to buy, or hours of crafting. I’m not knocking them, I think they’re fantastic, but below I’ve listed 5 activities a beginner class can just straight in to. Instant results to hook your pupils, and get them intrigued and engaged with what you can do with a Microbit!

1. Rock Paper Scissor

Easy start to hook them in! Who doesn’t love this game?

2. Thermometer

This one is just so easy it’s silly, but the kids really get into it. The code basically displays the temperature on the LED matrix. It’s not 100% accurate as it can be effected by the heat from the processors or the Microbit in the children’s hands.

3. Reaction Game

This one is great as you can get the kids coding and then playing in pairs. Each child holds a button, and it’s fastest finger first to see who the winner is. They kids enjoy it, and it worked well when we did a class competition for an overall winner. Like the FA cup, only nerdier! Had to split the code so hope it’s readable! Click on the image to increase the size if needed.

4. Compass

Does what it says on the tin really. This was great in the summer term/early September as we got to do some coordinates and directional work out on the field. You could also look at making it more advanced in the future by adding NE/SE/SW/NW.

5. Robot Heads

This one is great for a bit of stem. The sheet below is a great size for the Microbits when you print it on A4 to create a robot head. The pupils can code different faces by pressing the different buttons, or got a step further and code it on different tilts. Paper is a bit fiddly, so try to use card if you can!

 

Hope you find some of these useful, or please pass them on to someone who you think will!