Hello World! Happy Halloween-eve! In this post, we will construct a Makey Makey wire game that tests your hand eye coordination, STEM skills and creativity!

Big Ideas:

Geometry: Plotting x and y positions on a grid
Algebra: Creating, incrementing and manipulating variables
Number Sense: Counting and addition

ISTE Standards:

Empowered Learner, Knowledge Constructor, Innovative Designer, Computational Thinker

Task:

The first step is to construct a track (structure) as simple or as difficult as you would like. In my example I use lead free electrical soldier as it is pliable and a great conductor. The goal of our game is to traverse the track using your wand in the shortest amount of time. In my example, two second penalties are added to the final score for each touch of the track (think water hazard in golf).

The instructions for this game can be found on the Makey Makey site here.

Below is my game in action!

If you are interested in learning more about Scratch, Micro:Bit or Python, head on over to our new Code Breaker courses hosted here.

Check out this Makey Makey Wire Game! #CodeBreaker #CSForAll Click To Tweet
This game can be modified or scaffolded in a variety of ways. You may change the circumference of the wand to make the game easier or more difficult. You might wish to make the track quite bumpy (or smooth) to add different challenges. Some students may wish to not use a two second penalty but instead quit the game after so many touches (think “lives” like in video games). However you choose to go about it, the differentiated instruction is so seamless you will find yourself enjoying time with your students as they create, construct and demonstrate computational thinking skills. Remember, computational thinking is not thinking like a computer but rather thinking like a computer scientist. Design thinking requires an element of empathy. What is it exactly you are trying to create and what problems are you trying to solve? Know you audience’s needs!

Happy Halloween everyone!

For more lessons, activities and ideas, grab a copy of my book, Code Breaker, on Amazon here!