micro:bit COVID-19 Design Challenges

With the shift to online learning, the InkSmith team understands that educators are finding new ways to engage and equip their virtual classrooms. In an effort to show our support to educators (and parents alike) as they develop lesson plans for an digital environment, we've created free learn-at-home curriculum for students to complete at home. These challenges are specifically designed for students to create solutions to conquer COVID-19 in their own communities using design thinking principles. 

Below, you will find free downloads for challenges involving micro:bit block coding that have been modified for students in grades 5-8 or 9-12, as well as teacher-facing guides to help you explain the design challenge effectively.

The goal of each lesson is to have students brainstorm ideas to solve a problem for a persona that's given and then create their solution using the micro:bit Makecode Editor.  Once students have taken a screenshot or screen recording of their solution in action, teachers can review to assess the effectiveness of the solution. For students that have a physical micro:bit at home, a photo or video of the physical prototype can also be submitted. 

InkSmith believes that challenging students to create relevant real-world solutions is the best way to equip them with the critical thinking and digital skills they’ll need for our changing world!

Accessing micro:bit Makecode Editor
Students do not need to create an account to use micro:bit's Makecode Editor. Simply direct them to this link where they will be able to open a new project and use the block code editor to program their solution. To test the solution, students can press the small green "play" button on the left-hand of their screen at any time. More details on how to program solutions with micro:bit can be found in the design challenge package. 

FREE Learn From Home Content: micro:bit Design Challenges