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Maker track

Build real machines, one working step at a time

Follow the starter kit you already own, then build a claw machine, a balance bot, a handheld console or an LED cube, each a short course checked by the simulator.

Free21 courses, 141 lessons, about 98 hours3 levels
Start at the first rungStarter kit companion: the project book
The track

Zero to expert, one course at a time

Some people learn best by building the thing they want. These courses each end in a finished project, and every lesson along the way is a working piece of it, so you never spend an evening on wiring that does nothing yet.

Start with the lessons of your starter kit, in the order its manual uses, or jump straight to a build. Short builds take an afternoon. The bigger ones, like the claw machine and the handheld console, teach the motors, screens, sensors and code that real products use.

The ladder

Every course, by level

Take them in order, or start on the rung that matches what you already know. Each course page lists every lesson.

Level 1

Start with your kit

Every lesson of a popular starter kit, in its order.

Level 2

Short builds

One afternoon, three or four lessons, one finished thing.

3 lessons 路 3 h 路 Arduino Uno R3

Build a 4x4x4 LED cube

Sixty-four LEDs from twenty wires in three builds: a shift register, multiplexing slowed down, then a cube full of animations.

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3 lessons 路 2 h 路 Arduino Uno R3

Build a balance bot

Three lessons on a two-wheel self-balancing robot: read its tilt, see what the wheels do to it, and write the PID that stands it up.

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3 lessons 路 1 h 路 Arduino Nano

Build a camera slider

A motorized camera slider on a Nano in three short lessons: homing a stepper, an eased video move, and a timelapse that settles before every shot.

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3 lessons 路 1 h 路 SparkFun Pro Micro

Build a guitar controller

A rhythm game guitar on a Pro Micro in three short lessons: frets and a strum bar that never double-strums, a whammy and star power, and your own config.

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3 lessons 路 3 h 路 Arduino Uno R3

Build a laser sword

A light saber style sword in three builds: a blade that ignites, motion you can hear, then the whole hilt with a sound font.

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3 lessons 路 2 h 路 SparkFun Pro Micro

Build a macro pad

Twelve keys, a volume knob, three layers and a screen on a Pro Micro that plugs in as a keyboard.

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3 lessons 路 3 h 路 Arduino Uno R3

Build a rhythm game

A rhythm game in three builds: notes that fall in time, buttons that judge your timing, then the whole game with combos and a high score.

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3 lessons 路 2 h 路 Arduino Uno R3

Build a solar tracker

Light sensors and servos aim a panel, an INA219 measures it, and a fair experiment compares tracked with fixed.

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3 lessons 路 1 h 路 SparkFun Pro Micro

Build load cell pedals

Sim racing pedals on a Pro Micro in three short lessons: a load cell brake on an HX711, a hall throttle and a pot clutch, and the curve that makes it feel right.

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4 lessons 路 4 h 路 Arduino Uno R3

Build a slot machine

Pull a real arcade lever, spin three OLED reels and pay out by a table whose odds you can check, on an Uno.

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Level 3

Big builds

Machines with motors, screens, sensors and modes.

6 lessons 路 5 h 路 Arduino Uno R3

Build a vending machine

Build a real vending machine piece by piece: a keypad, a screen, coins and change, spirals, a drop sensor and service mode.

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8 lessons 路 6 h 路 Arduino Uno R3

Build a claw machine

Build a real arcade claw machine piece by piece, from one stepper motor to coins, a clock, a win sensor, lights and sound.

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Outcomes

What you will be able to do

  • Finish complete projects, not just exercises, and know how each part of them works.
  • Combine motors, screens, sensors, sound and saved settings in one program.
  • Plan a build in working steps so it never sits half done.
  • Take a simulated build to a real bench with the same parts on the same pins.
Careers

Where this track leads

The jobs these skills are used in every day, with what each one does and how to get there.

Topics

Looking for something specific?

Each of these starts you on the right course and lesson for one subject.

Questions

About the maker track

I have an Arduino starter kit. Where do I start?

With the course for your kit. It follows the kit's own manual, in its order, with each lesson running in your browser on the same parts and pins.

Do I need to know electronics before a build?

No. Each build starts from its first working piece and explains what it uses. If you want the background, Electronics basics and Embedded on the Arduino Uno are the courses to take alongside.

Can I build the project for real afterward?

Yes. The parts, pins and code are the real ones, so a build that works in the simulator works on a bench with the same parts.

How long does a build take?

A short build is three or four lessons, about an afternoon. A big build is five lessons or more, a few evenings.

Tracks

The other tracks

7 courses, 56 lessons, about 41 hours

Coding track

Python and C++ from your first print to classes, tests and state machines. Every program runs on a simulated board, so a bug is something you can see.

See the track
16 courses, 126 lessons, about 97 hours

Embedded track

Arduino, ESP32, Raspberry Pi Pico and STM32: pins, timing, buses, motors, WiFi, registers and debugging, every lesson checked on a simulated board.

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11 courses, 102 lessons, about 60 hours

Electrical track

Current and voltage you can see, then transistors, op-amps, filters, power and PCBs. Every circuit runs in a real circuit simulator in your browser.

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15 courses, 107 lessons, about 82 hours

Robotics track

Motors, servos, sensors and PID control loops, then a rover, a claw machine and a balance bot, every lesson checked on a simulated board.

See the track