Children’s and Youth Scientific University: «Do it with Micro:bit»

On April 20, students of grades 6-7 took part in the offline lesson «Do it with Micro:bit» of the «Carousel of Directions» group of the Children’s and Youth Scientific University. The participants were waiting for exciting lessons from the teachers of the Department of Electric Drive and Automation of Industrial Installations – Associate Professors Olena Nazarova and Alina Kazurova.

At the first lesson, the students got acquainted with the «Micro:bit» board and its programming environment «MakeCode» and learned why this board is called a real microcomputer. The «Micro:bit» board is mega popular in Britain and is rapidly gaining popularity in Ukraine. It was created at the initiative of the BBC and is an excellent tool for learning in accordance with the STEM philosophy (science, technology, engineering, mathematics).

Thanks to the support of the British non-profit organization «Casus Pax» (facebook) and its director Holly Tann, who donated «Micro:bit» boards, each student can create their first own program.

The children created programs for managing the mood of «Micro:bit», predicted the future and found answers to questions with a magic ball, and developed their first own mini-game that develops the mental abilities and dexterity of the participants «Catch the Dot».

In the second lesson, the participants received basic practical skills in developing programs to control the micro:Maqueen Plus V2 robot car for Micro:bit. The students were divided into five teams, each of which programmed its own robot. The children were delighted when all the robots moved synchronously along the trajectory, recognizing it and overcoming obstacles using sensor signals.

The victory of the Children and Youth Scientific University in the competition for mini-grants for education from the Public Organization «Molod Online» (molod.online) and funding for the development of STEM education by the leadership of Zaporizhzhia Polytechnic University created the conditions for creating a fleet of micro:Maqueen Plus V2 robot cars for Micro:bit.

We are grateful to the students of the Children and Youth Scientific University for their active participation and interest, and to the teachers Olena Nazarova and Alina Kazurova for their initiative and creative approach.

We look forward to the next meetings!

Children and Youth Scientific University: «Do it with Micro:bit» (offline classes)

On 20 April 2024, grades 6-7 students took part in the offline classes «Do it with Micro:bit» of the «Carousel of Directions» at Children and Youth Scientific University. Olena Nazarova and Alina Kazurova, Associate Professors from the Electric Drive and Commercial Plant Automation Department, delivered exciting lessons.

First, students got acquainted with the Micro:bit board and its MakeCode programming environment. They learned why this board is called a real microcomputer. It is mega-popular in Great Britain and is rapidly gaining popularity in Ukraine. The Micro:bit board, created by the BBC, is an excellent tool for learning following the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) philosophy.

Thanks to the support of Casus Pax CIS, the British charity organization (facebook), and Dr. Holly Tann, Casus Pax Managing Director, it was possible to provide each student in the class with a Micro:bit board to create their first programs.

Children created Micro:bit mood control programs, predicted the future, and found answers to questions with a magic ball. They also designed their first mini-game «Snap the Dot,» which develops the mental abilities and dexterity of the participants.

Next, the children gained basic practical skills in developing programs to control the Micro:Maqueen Plus V2 robot car for Micro:bit. The students worked in five teams, each of which programmed their robot. The children were delighted when all the robots moved synchronously along the line, tracking it and overcoming obstacles based on sensor signals.

There has been created Micro:Maqueen Plus V2 robocars park for Micro:bit after the Children and Youth Scientific University won a mini-grant for education from MOLOD’ ONLINE public organization (molod.online). STEM education is provided under the supervision of Zaporizhzhia Polytechnic.

We are grateful to the students of Children and Youth Scientific University for their active participation and interest. We thank Olena Nazarova and Alina Kazurova, Associate Professors at National University ‘Zaporizhzhia Polytechnic’ for their initiative and creative approach.

We look forward to the next meeting!