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Lesson plan

Build a Halloween prop lesson plan

Five porch props on the Uno, from a fog trigger to a talking skull, each one a complete build with the safety notes that go with it.

3 chapters, 5 lessons, about 5 hours, on the Arduino Uno R3. Every lesson runs in the browser, with nothing to install.

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The unit

Objectives and materials

By the end, students can

  • Spot someone on the path and switch something big, safely and only once.
  • Open a lid and work a jaw on time with a sound from a DFPlayer.
  • Run lightning and candlelight on WS2812B strips at the same time.

Materials for the whole unit

  • Addressable RGB LEDs x 2
  • Arduino Uno R3
  • DFPlayer Mini MP3 module
  • Full-size breadboard
  • Half breadboard
  • Hobby servo
  • LED x 3
  • Microwave motion sensor
  • Motion sensor
  • Piezo speaker
  • Potentiometer
  • Relay module
  • Resistor x 3
  • Speaker, 8 ohm
  • Ultrasonic ranger

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 2 h 5 min

Sense the visitor

Spot someone on the path and switch something big, safely and only once.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Prop 1: a fog machine triggerA PIR sees someone on the path and a relay presses the fog machine’s remote for a short burst, then a cooldown lets the fog drift. The safe way to let an Arduino switch something big.70 min
  1. The safe way to switch a fog machine
  2. Run it: ready and waiting
  3. Walk up the path
  4. The cooldown
  5. Make it yours
Prop 2: a candy bowl that grabs backAn HC-SR04 watches across the top of the bowl. A hand reaches in, a piezo cackles and a servo swings a rubber hand down. Distance, a debounce for sensors, and a servo show.55 min
  1. Run it
  2. Reach in
  3. The cackle
  4. One reach, one grab

Materials

  • Arduino Uno R3
  • Half breadboard
  • Hobby servo
  • LED x 3
  • Motion sensor
  • Piezo speaker
  • Relay module
  • Resistor x 3
  • Ultrasonic ranger

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "Prop 2: a candy bowl that grabs back" 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: "One reach, one grab".

Chapter 2. About 2 h 5 min

Move and speak

Open a lid and work a jaw on time with a sound from a DFPlayer.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Prop 3: a jump-scare boxA radar hidden inside a box sees someone walk up. A servo throws the lid open, a DFPlayer screams and two red eyes flicker, then it shuts and waits for the porch to clear.55 min
  1. Three parts, one moment
  2. Run it: armed
  3. Walk up to it
  4. Shut, rest, and wait for the porch to clear
Prop 4: a talking skullA servo jaw that moves in time with a spoken line. Two honest ways to sync a jaw to a voice, and the cue list this one uses, with BUSY to know when the line is really over.70 min
  1. Two ways to make a jaw talk
  2. Run it: hello
  3. Watch the jaw
  4. Done means done
  5. Write your own line

Materials

  • Arduino Uno R3
  • DFPlayer Mini MP3 module
  • Full-size breadboard
  • Hobby servo
  • LED x 2
  • Microwave motion sensor
  • Motion sensor
  • Resistor x 3
  • Speaker, 8 ohm

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "Prop 4: a talking skull" 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: "Write your own line".

Chapter 3. About 55 min

Light the scene

Run lightning and candlelight on WS2812B strips at the same time.

LessonTimeWhat students do
Prop 5: a haunted windowA WS2812B strip throws lightning across a window while four LEDs on the sill flicker like candles, and a knob sets the storm. Two animations at once, with no delay() anywhere.55 min
  1. Run it: a storm rolls in
  2. Why lightning flashes more than once
  3. Two animations, one loop
  4. Wiring a real window

Materials

  • Addressable RGB LEDs x 2
  • Arduino Uno R3
  • Half breadboard
  • Potentiometer
  • Resistor x 2

Check for understanding

Each student finishes "Prop 5: a haunted window" 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: "Wiring a real window".

Your class

Teach this unit as a class

Start a class from this course and its 5 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.

Start a class from this courseSee the demo class
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