Introduction to Physical Computing with Arduino

In this first lesson, students will be introduced to Tinkercad, where they will build and test programs throughout the course. They will also do preliminary research on various Arduino example projects and set their goals for the course.

In this lesson, students will take a deeper look at developing, testing, and running programs on Tinkercad. They will learn how to write and run programs on the simulator and will develop their own programs using the delay and digitalWrite commands.

In this lesson, students will learn about comments and pseudocode, why they are important, and how they help organize and plan programs. They will also learn the basic difference between analog and digital components and how to use the analogWrite command in their programs.

In this lesson, students will build their first physical circuit using a breadboard with their Arduino devices. They will learn to use variables to control components, along with the analogRead and map commands.

In this lesson, students will learn some tips and tricks for debugging physical circuits. They will learn to use the Serial Monitor and the print and println commands to display values on their screen.

In this lesson, students review content with a 15 question Unit Quiz.

In this lesson, students will connect and control a servo motor using their Arduino device. They will learn to use for and while loops to control components, along with the write command from the Servo library.

In this lesson, students will learn how buttons can be used to allow for additional user input in their programs. They will learn to use conditionals to control components, along with the digitalRead command.

In this lesson, students will learn about sensors and why they are so important in physical computing. They will use an ultrasonic range finder to detect attributes of the Arduino’s environment and write programs that will make decisions based on these values.

In this lesson, students will learn about sensors and why they are so important in physical computing. They will use various internal sensors to detect attributes of the Arduino’s environment and write programs that will use functions with and without parameters to more clearly organize their code and make it more reusable.

In this lesson, students will learn how motor controllers can be used in their circuits to control DC motors. They will explore the different ways to control the direction and speed of motors in their programs, setting them up to use this very adaptable component in many future programs.

In this lesson, students review content with a 15 question Unit Quiz.

In this lesson, students will learn build complex circuits with LCD screens. They will experiment with the millis command to count time and will use all of the concepts they’ve learned up to this point to complete their first larger projects- a digital watch and an elevator.

In this lesson, students will research, develop, and present a lesson to their peers on the use of a new sensor with their Arduino devices.

Students will get a chance to follow instructions written by someone they’ve never met to replicate a project in this lesson. They will then evaluate and improve these directions to make them more effective for a target audience.

In this final lesson, students will put together all of the concepts learned throughout the course to create a project of their choice. They will work individually, or with partners or groups to creatively develop a program of their choosing.