This guide will take you through the whole project step-by-step, so you can follow along with your children and just have fun! The main emphasis of this project is that you can use recycled materials, like a milk carton, to explore coding in a different way, whilst making it very child-friendly!
What you will need
The best bit about recycled projects is that you don't need anything special to get started, a lot of it will be around the house already! You will need...Electronics:
- BBC micro:bit and programming lead - we recommend the BBC micro:bit Starter Kit
- Kitronik Halo HD for micro:bit and 3xAA Batteries
Craft Supplies:
- Used 4-pint milk carton
- Paint and paintbrushes
- Scissors
- Glue
- Any other decorative material for your elephant
How to make the elephant shape
- 1: Mark a line around the milk carton indicating where it wants to be cut.
- 2: Using scissors, carefully cut along this line - an adult should supervise younger children.
- 3: Mark and cut two half circles on either side to make the feet of the elephant.
Decorating the elephant
- 4: Use coloured paint (or anything else you'd like to use) to decorate your elephant.
- 5: Once dry, use a pen to mark on the elephant's eyes. Alternatively, you could use 'googly' eyes.
- 6: Use some of the leftover milk carton to make 2 ears for the elephant, then stick them down using glue.
Coding the BBC micro:bit and Halo HD
If you're new to coding with the micro:bit and haven't been on Microsoft MakeCode before, we advise that you have a quick read of our 'micro:bit User Guide for Beginners'. It's very simple to use, so don't be put off whilst you're halfway through!
- 7: Open a new MakeCode window for the project. Name it what you would like and then save it at the bottom of the screen.
- 8: Now add the custom blocks for the Kitronik Halo HD. You can find this by clicking on the 'cog' on the top right of the screen, selecting 'Extensions' and searching 'Halo'.
- 9: It's now time to create the code shown above. We wanted to add a 'beating' heart to ours, so that code is in the 'forever' loop. If you are unsure about the code, you can download the file here, unzip it and simply drag it into MakeCode.
- 10: The code in the 'listen for' blocks run when the microphone detects a clap. It plays a song on the buzzer (we liked the 'baddy' melody) and spins a rainbow on the Halo HD LEDs while it sounds.
- 11: Once you're happy with the code, click 'Download' and save the file under 'micro:bit'. The light on the micro:bit should flash whilst downloading then stay constant when the download is complete.
- 12: Slot the micro:bit into the edge connector and switch the Halo HD to 'on'. Now, cover your Halo HD with your elephant and admire your finished sound responsive, rainbow lit, elephant in action!
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