LittleBits

Little Bit kits are amazing for teaching electrical circuits and engineering, but also provide students with opportunities to wonder and explore. The miniature pieces snap together with a magnetic system. Students start with a power source (electrical cord in an outlet or 9-volt battery) and add on switch (dimmer, pulse, etc.) and mechanical device (fan, buzzer, light, etc.) Once they learn the basics of how the circuit works, kids can take on Little Bit challenges to build all kinds of inventions! I had 4 Little Bits kits to work with 26 students, so I prepped baskets with the materials my groups of 3-4 kids would need along with a direction card I created. Every group needed a power source, and since I had 4 kits that each have a wall outlet or battery, I was able to make 8 baskets. Half of them were Level 1 – Set A challenges with the wall outlet and half of them were Level 1 – Set B challenges with the 9-volt battery. Since it was their first time using these materials, the tasks where outlined for them with simple circuits building up to more intricate ones. When done with the 5 challenges I had set, groups were given time to explore with their pieces. The next time we swapped A and B baskets and investigated more with the new blocks. And for our third experience with Little Bits, teams were given invention challenges. We used the instruction booklets that came with the kits, but the Little Bits website has many resources and project ideas. Get ready for fun!

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