Visualize all those mysterious electronic signals with an oscilloscope! Learn how to build and use a super simple $30 oscilloscope perfect for electronics hobbyist applications. It’s also a great way to get started using some of the fancier oscilloscopes! Reading and Changing the Oscilloscope Display Every oscilloscope has a window that displays the voltage output…
What is SDD? Spec-Driven Development (SDD) is a form of AI prompting for software development. Instead of starting with code and documenting later, SDD starts with documentation and then generates code. In this technique, the documentation uses one or more files called specifications (“specs”) that define basic criteria for a desired outcome, such as: What…
So what is Vibe Coding anyway?? Vibe coding is an AI-assisted coding approach where you describe what you want in natural language (i.e., the way you would talk to a friend), and an AI generates code for you. Similar to pair programming, which involves two humans collaborating closely on code, “vibe coding” uses an AI…
If you’re looking for educational programs for your kiddos (or something to soothe your soul), I highly recommend Fred Rogers iconic show. I recently stumbled across a website that provides a weeks worth of Mister Rogers episodes for free! The episodes span the years of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood with each set going through a complete…
Build fabulous, futuristic, and adjustable wearable lights with just a few inexpensive (and deliverable) parts! Attach to to all sorts of accoutrements and swap out colors to match outfits/feelings/holidays/all the things! Difficulty: Beginner+ Read time: 5 min Build Time: 30 – 60 min Cost: ~ $5 Materials One (1) coin cell battery One (1) coin…
Turns out Ms. Frizzle from The Magic School Bus had it right all along! In the era of the Next Generation Science Standards, there is a great deal of evidence that experiential and project-based learning are effective approaches to education. As described in the Cambridge Handbook of Learning Sciences, project-based classrooms provide opportunities for students…
My dog, Marley, is, like most dogs, the goodest boi. But he also has a lot of anxiety, mostly when I am not home. I panic every time I come home and Marley is not there to eagerly and enthusiastically (and loudly) greet me at the door because I know that he has locked…
Do your pets trap themselves in rooms? Do you wish you could make your home more accessible for your furry* friends?? Now you can, hooray!! This project uses a micro:bit microcontroller to pull open a door when a (pet-friendly) switch is pushed. We’ll need a micro:bit (probably helpful), a high-torque motor, and some mechanical parts…
Teaching is HARD. It involves so much: planning and organizing, understanding content well enough to break it down and scaffold and explain in different ways, communication, improvisation, empathy, being able to identify what’s working and what’s not and quickly pivot, debugging and troubleshooting (both literally with tools/tech and metaphorically with curriculum), motivating, inspiring, and so,…
I am so proud of all of my students, especially when they tackle and conquer difficult projects, like one of my students did recently when she completed a prototype of her Mini Robotic Table. … A Robotic Table?! Heck yes!! It is just as hilarious and awesome as you are imagining. But like most projects,…
What’s better than a table with wheels? A table that you can drive around! This tutorial will teach you how to build your very own Mini Robotic Table, a project that was conceived and designed by one of my students (she was 10 when we started). We built this table because, in the words of…
