7P4 Micro:bit

For the warm up project, I made my name flash across the screen. For my interactive project, I made a micro:bit compass. One arrow will appear on the screen at a time. The direction it points depends on which was the compass is facing. There are eight directions.

I learned how to write code for a physical object. In the past, I've only coded things like the Minecraft agent and VR characters. For this project, I had to write code for something I could physically hold in my hands. The code I wrote for this project was a little bit more advanced than in previous projects. I learned how to code the micro:bit so if a certain thing happened it would do a certain thing, and if something else happened it would do something different.

This project ties to a few of the MITECS standards. One of these standards is Empowered Learner. This project is tied to Empowered Learner because I had to find a project that I wanted to, and figure out how to do it. This project is also tied to Digital Citizen. In the warm up project, I had to be safe by only including my first name. A third standard this project is tied to is Knowledge Constructor. On the MITECS website, under Knowledge Constructor, it says that students "Plan and employ effective research strategies to locate information and other resources..." I had to do this several times during this project. I had to research micro:bit projects to figure out what I was going to make. Then, I had to find a program that I could use to write the code for my project. I also had to find information on what to do to fix the problems that I ran into.

I ran into a problem when I tried to transfer the code to the micro bit. The words TILT TO FILL SCREEN scrolled across the screen. I looked it up, and figured out that the compass had to be calibrated. I watched a video, and the next time I tried to transfer my code, I was able to make it work.

If I could do this project again, I might try a different project. I am now a little more familiar with the micro:bits, so I might be able to try something a little more advanced. There are a ton of amazing project ideas out there that sound like fun.

The skills I gained in this project might be useful if I wanted to be a computer programmer or engineer. In this project I learned how to program a mini computer, so I might be able to build upon those skills so I can program larger, more complicated computers. I also began writing code for a physical object, which would probably be very important for any piece of technology I might design as an engineer.