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Meet the Micro:bits
Coding is easy and fun when students meet the micro:bits. Learn to write and download code, so you are ready to create your own scientific tools!
Meet the Micro:bits
Coding is easy and fun when students meet the micro:bits. Learn to write and download code, so you are ready to create your own scientific tools!
Student Edition
(English/Spanish)
Student Edition
(English/Spanish)
Student Edition
(English/Spanish)
California Wildfires
Computer Programming is an important skill in STEM! If you can code, it will serve you well in any branch of science, as there is a great need for scientists who can also program. These fun activities will help you build a foundati in programming logic.
Programming
Grade 4
Grade 5
Grade 6
Computer Programing Challenges and Activities
Meet the micro:bits:
Get your students familiar with how to use the micro:bits. You will be using the micro:bits as a scientific tool in NGSS correlated activities in STEMTaught units this year.
Students program their micro:bit to answer questions about themselves. When a classmate pushes buttons on your micro:bit they can learn how many pets you have and what you favorite food is.
Try these three activities to introduce yourself to STEMTaught Programming:
Use these activities as a fun Friday activity or enrichment activities to get familiar with how to use Scratch programming.
Grade 4 Scratch Tutorials
Make your bubble bot move from start to finish on different backgrounds with your key commands!
Difficulty Level: Basic
Bubble Bots are on the Move
Manipulate angles and coordinate axes
Students assign movements the bubble bots to make them move over geometric puzzle backgrounds. Make your bubble bot trace obtuse angles, acute angles and various triangles, parallelograms, and shapes.
Shrimp Game Part 1- Move in x and y
Program a shrimp to move with your key commands!
Difficulty Level: Basic
Students program their micro:bit to transmit morse code. They get in groups of two and send messages to eachother.
Students create a song by arranging musical notes in a block of code. They then program their micro:bit to play the song using alligator clips and a pair of headphones.
Simple Light Sensor (Degrees C)
Students program their micro:bit to measure light intensity.
Students program their micro:bit to measure light intensity.
Students program their micro:bit to display random number sequences in order to create a memory game.
Grade 5 Scratch Tutorials
Students program their micro:bit to measure the speed of their Blocky car as it rolls down a ramp.
Bubble-Bots are on the Move
Manipulate angles and coordinate axes
Students assign movements to bubble-bots to make them move over geometric puzzle backgrounds. Make your bubble-bot trace obtuse angles, acute angles and various triangles, parallelograms, and other shapes.
Model an atom and animate the movement of an atom's electrons and nucleus with computer programming logic!
Difficulty Level: Super Easy
Simple Thermometer (Degrees C)
You can code the instructions that teach your micro:bit how to be a digital thermometer that measures in degrees Celsius.
You can code the instructions that teach your micro:bit how to be a digital thermometer that measures in degrees Celsius.
Program IronSprite to be magnetic when clicked, program BismuthSprite to change color when clicked, Program SulfurSprite to catch fire (reactivity), program IndiumSprite to get squashed (Ductility), Program AluminumSprite to fly (density), program GalliumSprite to melt when clicked (melting point).
Students program their micro:bit to mimic a coin flip. With the programmed micro:bit device, students can get a random heads or tails with a 50/50 chance.
Scratch Programing
Creating a Variable
Students create a variable and assign a random value to their variable to randomly flip a penny.
Model the planets orbiting speeds with this scratch tutorial! This Tutorial builds off of the skills gained in the Atom Modeling Tutorial. Students learn how to insert a mathematical function into the code.
Students program their micro:bit to be a step counter. You can measure out your planet stations using the microbit to mark your planet stations before the planet walk.
Digital Thermometer (Degrees F & C)
Program your own digital thermometer
You can code the instructions that teach your micro:bit how to be a digital thermometer. Learn to insert a mathematical function to help your micro:bit convert Celsius to Fahrenheit.
Inter-planetary Birthday Calculator
Calculate your age in any other planets' years. See how old you would be if you lived on another planet. Students learn how to create a variable and insert a mathematical function into the code.
Difficulty Level: Must do the preceding G5 labs as a prerequisite
Grade 6 Scratch Tutorials
BittyHack Programing Challenge
One bacterium divides to make two bacteria every 20 minutes. Starting with one bacterium, how many bacteria would you have after 60 min, 120 min, 240 min? Hot long would it take to get to 1 million bacteria??!!! Create an interactive program to model the multiplication rate of bacteria.
The Digestive System_ If and If Else Statements
In this lab students learn how to use an if statement and an if-else statement. They use programming logic to program a game to guide a hamburger through the digestive system, but there’s a catch - the hamburger can’t touch the sides, or they'll have to start over.
Difficulty Level: Not too complicated
In this lab, students make an interactive Punnett square tool with a cute cat that lays eggs. Students learn how to use keystroke controls, the cloning function, and motion controls using if/then statements.
Difficulty Level: Intermediate
Digital Temperature Transmitter
Program your own digital thermometer
You can code the instructions that teach a pair of micro:bits how to become a remote sensing thermometer. Use one micro:bit to transmit its temperature reading on a radio channel. Use your other micro:bit to receive the signal.
Program your own conductor tester
You can code the instructions that teach a of micro:bit how to become a circuit.