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Lesson plan

Electronics basics lesson plan

A breadboard and a few parts, with one Uno blink at the start and no processor after it. What current, voltage, time and logic really do.

11 chapters, 20 lessons, about 10 hours, no board. Every lesson runs in the browser, with nothing to install.

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The unit

Objectives and materials

By the end, students can

  • Wire a loop by hand, let an Uno blink it, then read a circuit as a loop and light an LED on purpose.
  • Volts, amps and ohms in one equation, and how to use it backwards to pick a part.
  • The two ways to join parts, and the sums that go with each.
  • Split a voltage in a ratio you choose, then let a light sensor move the ratio.
  • A part that takes time, and how to choose how much time it takes.
  • A trickle into one leg switches a much bigger current through the other two.
  • Four diodes and a capacitor turn the wall's AC into steady DC.
  • Two resistors set the gain of an amplifier, and the supply sets how far it can go.
  • Turn an RC into a square wave, and gate it with a button.
  • Decisions in nanoseconds, one bit of memory, and four flip-flops that count.
  • Three wires in, eight outputs out, and as many more as you chain on.

Materials for the whole unit

  • 74HC00 quad NAND
  • 74HC595 shift register
  • 74HC74 dual flip-flop x 2
  • Arduino Uno R3
  • Buzzer
  • Capacitor
  • Clock
  • Diode
  • Full-size breadboard
  • Function generator
  • Inverter
  • LED x 8
  • Light sensor
  • Logic gate x 2
  • Multimeter
  • NE555 timer
  • Op-amp
  • Oscilloscope
  • Pushbutton x 2
  • Resistor x 8
  • Signal generator
  • Slide switch
  • Transistor (NPN or PNP)

Every part is already on the simulator’s bench, so there is nothing to buy or hand out. The counts are the most any one lesson uses, if you build it on real breadboards too.

Chapter 1. About 1 h 50 min

The first loop

Wire a loop by hand, let an Uno blink it, then read a circuit as a loop and light an LED on purpose.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Build your first circuitStart with the parts in place. Draw every wire yourself, close the loop, press Run and light the LED.25 min
  1. Your first wire
  2. Wire the button to the resistor
  3. Wire the resistor to the LED
  4. Close the loop
  5. Run your circuit
Make it blink with an UnoTwo wires from an Arduino Uno to the LED you already know, then press Run and let a program do the switching. Four steps, no code to write.20 min
  1. Pin 13 to the resistor
  2. Share a ground
  3. Press Run
  4. Watch the LED
A first circuitOne loop on a breadboard: five volts, a pushbutton, a resistor and an LED. Build the habit of reading a circuit as a loop, and work out the current in it.30 min
  1. One loop, four parts
  2. Run it, and hold the button
  3. How much current is in the loop
  4. Make it dim
  5. Why the resistor is not optional
  6. Choose a resistor yourself
The switch, and what open really meansA slide switch in the middle of a loop. Find out what a break in a circuit does, why the switch can go anywhere in it, and what a floating wire is.35 min
  1. One loop, one switch
  2. Run it
  3. Measure the loop
  4. Open it
  5. Position does not matter
  6. Make it dimmer, then find the edge
  7. Try this, mistakes, and a quick check

Materials

  • Arduino Uno R3
  • Full-size breadboard
  • LED
  • Pushbutton
  • Resistor
  • Slide switch

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "The switch, and what open really means" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 7 of its 7 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Try this, mistakes, and a quick check".

Chapter 2. About 30 min

Ohm's law

Volts, amps and ohms in one equation, and how to use it backwards to pick a part.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Ohm's law: volts, amps and ohmsOne resistor across 5 V. Change the resistor and watch the current change, then pick a resistor for a current you want. The one equation behind every circuit.30 min
  1. What you will build, and why
  2. Predict it, then run it
  3. Double the resistor
  4. Turn it round: pick R for a current
  5. Try this: a quieter circuit
  6. Common mistakes, and a quick check

Materials

  • Full-size breadboard
  • Resistor

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "Ohm's law: volts, amps and ohms" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 6 of its 6 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Common mistakes, and a quick check".

Chapter 3. About 1 h 10 min

Series and parallel

The two ways to join parts, and the sums that go with each.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Resistors in seriesTwo resistors nose to tail with an LED. One current everywhere, resistances that add, and voltages that share themselves out in proportion.35 min
  1. One path, one current
  2. Measure it in R1
  3. Now measure it in R2
  4. Where the volts went
  5. Check your arithmetic against the circuit
  6. Build one to a number
  7. Try this, mistakes, and a quick check
Branches in parallelTwo LED branches across the same supply. Each one sets its own current, the supply carries the total, and two resistors side by side come out smaller than either.35 min
  1. Two loops, one supply
  2. Each branch does its own sum
  3. And the other one
  4. Make them match
  5. Two resistors, one smaller answer
  6. Pick a pair
  7. Try this, mistakes, and a quick check

Materials

  • Full-size breadboard
  • LED x 2
  • Resistor x 2
  • Slide switch

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "Branches in parallel" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 7 of its 7 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Try this, mistakes, and a quick check".

Chapter 4. About 1 h

Dividers and sensors

Split a voltage in a ratio you choose, then let a light sensor move the ratio.

LessonTimeWhat students do
The voltage dividerTwo resistors in a row split a voltage in a fixed ratio. Read the middle with a meter, change the ratio, and build a divider for a voltage you choose.30 min
  1. What you will build, and why
  2. Equal resistors, half the voltage
  3. Make the bottom bigger
  4. Make the top bigger
  5. Try this: design for 1.0 V
  6. Common mistakes, and a quick check
A light sensor is a divider that movesA light-dependent resistor changes its resistance with light. Put it in a divider and the voltage tells you how bright the room is.30 min
  1. What you will build, and why
  2. A normal room
  3. Cover it up
  4. Shine a torch on it
  5. Try this: center it on this room
  6. Common mistakes, and a quick check

Materials

  • Full-size breadboard
  • Light sensor
  • Multimeter
  • Resistor x 2

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "A light sensor is a divider that moves" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 6 of its 6 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Common mistakes, and a quick check".

Chapter 5. About 1 h 10 min

The capacitor and RC timing

A part that takes time, and how to choose how much time it takes.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Charging a capacitorA resistor, a capacitor and a switch. Watch a voltage take time to get somewhere, and learn the one number that says how long.35 min
  1. What is actually in there
  2. One time constant
  3. How long until it is really full
  4. Empty it again
  5. Make it ten times faster
  6. Predict three of them
  7. Try this, mistakes, and a quick check
Choosing R and C for a delay you wantThe same circuit, used the other way around: start from the delay, pick the parts, and find out which of the two you should change.35 min
  1. The formula, used backwards
  2. Build a one second delay two ways
  3. The same second, different parts
  4. A quarter of a second
  5. What a 20% capacitor costs you
  6. Design it from the requirement
  7. Try this, mistakes, and a quick check

Materials

  • Capacitor
  • Full-size breadboard
  • Resistor
  • Slide switch

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "Choosing R and C for a delay you want" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 7 of its 7 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Try this, mistakes, and a quick check".

Chapter 6. About 30 min

The transistor switch

A trickle into one leg switches a much bigger current through the other two.

LessonTimeWhat students do
The transistor as a switchA tiny current into the base switches a big current through the collector. Switch an LED with a transistor and measure how much smaller the control current is.30 min
  1. What you will build, and why
  2. Switch off: nothing happens
  3. Switch on: the LED lights
  4. Measure the gain
  5. Try this: starve the base
  6. Common mistakes, and a quick check

Materials

  • Full-size breadboard
  • LED
  • Resistor x 2
  • Slide switch
  • Transistor (NPN or PNP)

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "The transistor as a switch" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 6 of its 6 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Common mistakes, and a quick check".

Chapter 7. About 25 min

Power from the wall

Four diodes and a capacitor turn the wall's AC into steady DC.

LessonTimeWhat students do
From the wall to DC: a rectifier and a capacitorOne diode blocks the negative half of an AC wave, and a big capacitor fills the gaps. Watch AC turn into smooth DC, and see what a small capacitor or a heavy load does to it.25 min
  1. What you will build, and why
  2. Run it: AC in, DC out
  3. Take away the tank
  4. Ask for more current
  5. Try this, mistakes, and a quick check

Materials

  • Capacitor
  • Diode
  • Full-size breadboard
  • Multimeter
  • Resistor
  • Signal generator

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "From the wall to DC: a rectifier and a capacitor" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 5 of its 5 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Try this, mistakes, and a quick check".

Chapter 8. About 20 min

The op-amp

Two resistors set the gain of an amplifier, and the supply sets how far it can go.

LessonTimeWhat students do
The op-amp: a gain you can chooseTwo resistors set the gain of an inverting op-amp amplifier. Turn a tiny wave into a big one, then push the gain until the top and bottom get chopped flat.20 min
  1. What you will build, and why
  2. Run it: ten times bigger
  3. Turn the gain up until it clips
  4. Try this, mistakes, and a quick check

Materials

  • Full-size breadboard
  • Function generator
  • Op-amp
  • Oscilloscope
  • Resistor x 4

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "The op-amp: a gain you can choose" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 4 of its 4 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Try this, mistakes, and a quick check".

Chapter 9. About 1 h 5 min

The 555

Turn an RC into a square wave, and gate it with a button.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Timing with no processor: the 555A resistor, a capacitor and a 555 make a square wave with no code in sight. Measure it, then change the parts to change the rate.30 min
  1. What the chip is doing
  2. Run it and count
  3. Watch the capacitor
  4. The output side
  5. Change a part, change the rate
  6. Predicted against measured
The 555 with a reset pinThe same astable, gated by a button on the reset pin instead of switched in the supply, driving a buzzer. Why gating a chip beats switching a load.35 min
  1. Where the button is, and where it is not
  2. Silence, on purpose
  3. Press it
  4. Watch the sawtooth
  5. Let go, and look at what stopped
  6. Make it a different note
  7. Try this, mistakes, and a quick check

Materials

  • Buzzer
  • Capacitor
  • Full-size breadboard
  • LED
  • NE555 timer
  • Pushbutton
  • Resistor x 3

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "The 555 with a reset pin" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 7 of its 7 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Try this, mistakes, and a quick check".

Chapter 10. About 1 h 30 min

Logic gates and a latch

Decisions in nanoseconds, one bit of memory, and four flip-flops that count.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Gates, as real chipsAND, XOR and NOT with two buttons and three lamps. Fill in the truth tables by pressing, and find out what a real chip has that the symbol does not.30 min
  1. Two inputs, three answers
  2. Both, for AND
  3. One, for XOR
  4. Nothing, for NOT
  5. Fill in the table
  6. What a real chip has that a symbol does not
One bit of memoryTwo NAND gates wired into each other hold an answer after the input goes away. The smallest memory there is, and the reason a switch stops bouncing.30 min
  1. Each gate watches the other
  2. Set it
  3. Reset it
  4. It is still there
  5. Read it as a number
  6. What it is actually used for
Flip-flops that countA D flip-flop wired to toggle halves a clock. Four of them in a chain count in binary, and the lamps spell out the number.30 min
  1. A latch that waits for a clock
  2. Watch the first stage halve the clock
  3. Chain them
  4. Read it as binary
  5. Make it count down
  6. Why nobody builds it this way

Materials

  • 74HC00 quad NAND
  • 74HC74 dual flip-flop x 2
  • Clock
  • Full-size breadboard
  • Inverter
  • LED x 4
  • Logic gate x 2
  • Pushbutton x 2
  • Resistor x 5
  • Slide switch

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "Flip-flops that count" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 6 of its 6 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Why nobody builds it this way".

Chapter 11. About 30 min

The shift register

Three wires in, eight outputs out, and as many more as you chain on.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Eight outputs from three wiresA 74HC595 driven by a clock and a switch, with no processor anywhere. Load a pattern by hand, watch it march, and find out what the latch is for.30 min
  1. A row of flip-flops in a line
  2. Fill it with ones
  3. Empty it again
  4. Load a pattern by hand
  5. What the second row is for
  6. Count the pins you saved

Materials

  • 74HC595 shift register
  • Clock
  • Full-size breadboard
  • LED x 8
  • Resistor x 8
  • Slide switch

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "Eight outputs from three wires" on their own, without opening the hints. The simulator checks 6 of its 6 steps as they go.

Then ask each one to explain, in a sentence or two, the last thing it asked of them: "Count the pins you saved".

Your class

Teach this unit as a class

Start a class from this course and its 20 lessons are assigned in one go, in order. Students join with a six-character code or printed login cards, and each one’s work comes back to you.

The class tools are free for 30 days for one class of up to 20 students, with no card. The lessons themselves are free either way.

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