08 - micro:bit lesson 3

Fresh off our day of rest and adventure at Jaguar Creek, we returned to teaching on Thursday (Day 5) with a renewed sense of energy. This time, we traveled to Belize City (BC) to meet with a group of about 20 high school students from St. John’s College at the Pathlight BC Center, near the center of downtown, where early-morning vendors set up fruit stalls and the warm scent of fresh fry jacks drifts down the street.

The St. John's students sitting around the outside of long white tables arranged in a skinny 'U'. All are wearing uniform white shirts. Each has a laptop open in front of them and all are looking towards the presenters and a screeen at the opening of the 'U'.
CHANGE

These students weren’t new to coding—they had done programming before—but this was their first time working with Micro:bits, and they dove in headfirst. After a brief introduction to the Micro:bit’s features and functionality, they launched into an expanded Environmental Investigation Challenge, which was the most exciting and hands-on activity that we did.

Five students taking readings in a parking lot. Four are in full sun. One is in the shade. All are wearing their school uniforms, a white shirt and dark long pants. A handful of cars are parked in the lot.

Working in pairs, the students gathered real-world data on light and temperature. Their task? To explore whether there was a correlation between the two. The task wasn’t just about coding—it was about data collection, critical thinking, and scientific communication. Each team programmed their Micro:bits to take environmental readings, then analyzed their observations and prepared a short presentation of their conclusions

Watching them discuss results, compare measurements, and build arguments based on their findings was the highlight of the day. It was a perfect fusion of computer science and scientific inquiry—students weren’t just learning to code; they were learning to ask questions, explore their environment, and use data to support their ideas. It was clear that the opportunity to use technology in an investigative, collaborative way sparked curiosity and pride in their work.

Day 5 reminded us of the power of pairing learning with purpose. With just a simple device and a good question, students uncovered meaningful insights and strengthened their problem-solving muscles.

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