27 core lessons in 10 modules take you from bench safety and first sketches to sensors, actuators and integrated systems - with Code Along practice on a virtual Uno and competency-based practical assessments.
Choose the week your class is in. The page remembers it and moves on to the next week every Monday.
Bench habits, the Uno board, first uploads, variables and types.
if, switch, Serial commands, loops and arrays.
Functions, RGB LEDs and buzzers, pull-ups, bounce and edges.
millis(), state machines, planning evidence and the code-correction assessment.
Hardware fault finding, the ADC, PWM on the scope, and Task A.
MOSFET drivers, servos, DC motors, stepper stations and project proposals.
The I2C LCD, buses on the scope, IR remotes, formatted text and reassessment.
Resistive sensors, thermistor calibration and Task B.
DHT11, the RTC, the environment monitor and Task C.
Task C demonstrations, extension workshops, reassessment and project plan reviews.
Subsystems proven, then integrated into a working prototype.
Testing, documentation, rehearsal and final demonstrations.
Work through the modules in order. Each lesson links to its Theory Reference reading and its Code Along practice. Lessons marked optional are extension work and final-project material.
Bench safety for microcontroller work, the Uno board, and a reliable first upload.
Code Along1. Sketch Structure & Serial Output
Variables, decisions, Serial debugging, loops, arrays and functions - the C++ every later lesson uses.
Code Along1. Sketch Structure & Serial Output2. Variables & Types3. Operators & Decisions4. Loops & Arrays5. Functions
Drive outputs, read buttons without bounce, and keep several tasks running with millis().
Code Along6. Digital Outputs, RGB & Buzzer7. Buttons, Pull-ups & Debounce8. Time Without delay()
Plan, document and prove a build, and find faults by method instead of guessing.
Code Along9. Finding & Fixing Faults
Measure voltages with the ADC and control average power with PWM.
Code Along10. Analogue Inputs11. PWM & Fading
Apply transistor drivers to the Uno, then control servos, DC motors and steppers.
The I2C LCD, how UART, I2C and SPI look on the wire, and decoding an IR remote.
Resistive sensors, thermistor maths and calibration, humidity and real-time clocks.
Code Along15. Text & Time Formatting
Combine sensors, a display and actuators into complete systems, one subsystem at a time.
Optional lessons for fast students and final projects: interrupts, libraries and extra modules.
Short, phone-friendly pre-reading and Code Along practice for every session of the twelve-week course.
Set briefs with Competent / Not Yet Competent criteria for four practical tasks and the final project.
View the assessments or rehearse Tasks A and B in Code Along
Explain microcontroller hardware, C++ structures, sensors, buses and actuator drivers.
Plan pins and power, wire breadboards, protect outputs and verify circuits before energising.
Read inputs, make decisions, schedule tasks without delay(), organise functions and diagnose faults.
Plan, measure and document builds, then demonstrate them against practical assessment criteria.
Arduino Uno, USB data cable, breadboard, jumpers, digital multimeter and oscilloscope, LEDs, resistors, transistors, buttons, potentiometer and buzzer.
Servo, DC motor with H-bridge, I2C 16x2 LCD, DHT11, RTC, thermistor, LDR and IR receiver with remote.
Stepper motors and drivers are shared stations. Ultrasonic, keypad, RFID and SD modules are covered in the extension lessons for final projects.
Extra-low-voltage DC only. Never connect mains. Motors and servos need their own supply with a common GND, and heavy loads need a driver.
After the Uno course: 3.3 V boards, NeoPixels, Wi-Fi, web servers, MQTT, BLE, deep sleep and OTA updates. Lookup notes are in the ESP32 Reference.
Search every lesson and reference page by title or topic.
Apply your electrical basics to microcontroller work: protect Uno pins, read a breadboard correctly, and make first measurements with the multimeter and oscilloscope.
2 hours02Module 1 - Getting StartedMeet the computer on the Uno: MCU vs PC, power pins, I/O groups, R3 vs R4, and optional bare-chip essentials.
2-3 hours03Module 1 - Getting StartedInstall Arduino IDE 2, select board and port, Verify, Upload, and blink the onboard LED.
2 hours04Module 2 - Programming FundamentalsBuild readable sketches: setup/loop, named pins, suitable types, scope, and clean syntax.
3 hours05Module 2 - Programming FundamentalsCalculate, compare and branch: arithmetic, = vs ==, Boolean logic, if/else chains and switch.
3 hours06Module 2 - Programming FundamentalsWatch your sketch over USB Serial, print useful labels, and accept simple commands.
3 hours07Module 2 - Programming FundamentalsRemove repetition with for and while loops, and keep related pins and readings together in arrays.
2-3 hours08Module 2 - Programming FundamentalsPackage repeated work behind a clear name, pass values in with parameters, and hand results back with return.
2-3 hours09Module 3 - Digital I/O & TimingDrive LEDs safely, mix RGB colour, and play tones on a passive buzzer.
3 hours10Module 3 - Digital I/O & TimingRead buttons reliably: pull-ups and active-low wiring, contact bounce you can see on the oscilloscope, debouncing, and acting once per press.
2-3 hours11Module 3 - Digital I/O & TimingRun several timed tasks together without delay(), debounce a button alongside them, and sequence timed steps with a state machine.
3-4 hours12Module 4 - Engineering PracticeTurn a brief into success criteria, an IPO diagram, truth table and pin plan, then prove the build with a test table and fault log - the evidence every assessment marks.
2 hours13Module 4 - Engineering PracticeSet up the multimeter safely, check power, then signals, then code, prove each subsystem with a minimal test and keep a fault log.
4-5 hours14Module 5 - Analogue Inputs & PWMUnderstand analogue versus digital signals, measure voltage with the Uno ADC, and scale readings into engineering values.
4 hours15Module 5 - Analogue Inputs & PWMExplain PWM duty cycle, measure it on the oscilloscope, and control LED brightness from a potentiometer with analogWrite.
2-3 hours16Module 6 - Drivers & ActuatorsApply transistor and MOSFET switching to Uno outputs: size the drive, protect against inductive spikes, and verify the switch with meter and oscilloscope.
2-3 hours17Module 6 - Drivers & ActuatorsSee how pulse width sets a servo's angle, drive it with Servo.h in a safe range, and power it from its own supply with a common GND.
3 hours18Module 6 - Drivers & ActuatorsDrive a DC motor through an H-bridge: IN1/IN2 for direction, PWM for speed, and a short stop before every reverse.
4 hours19Module 6 - Drivers & ActuatorsMove a geared 28BYJ-48 stepper a counted number of steps with the built-in Stepper library, see the coil sequence on the scope, and understand why steppers can lose position.
2 hours20Module 7 - Displays, Buses & SignalsWire a 16x2 LCD with just SDA and SCL, find its I2C address with a scan, and print text and live values.
4 hours21Module 7 - Displays, Buses & SignalsCompare UART, I2C and SPI by wiring and device selection, find their Uno pins, scan the I2C bus and choose a bus for a module.
3 hours22Module 7 - Displays, Buses & SignalsWire a 38 kHz IR receiver, print your remote's codes with IRremote, and map buttons to actions in your sketch.
3 hours23Module 8 - Sensors & CalibrationTurn a resistance change into a voltage the ADC can read, calculate sensor resistance from counts, and switch reliably on light level with hysteresis.
2-3 hours24Module 8 - Sensors & CalibrationConvert a thermistor divider reading to resistance and then to Celsius with the Beta equation, calibrate against a reference thermometer, and switch a fan with hysteresis.
3 hours25Module 8 - Sensors & CalibrationRead temperature and humidity from a DHT11 or DHT22 with the Adafruit library, and reject failed readings with isnan().
3 hours26Module 8 - Sensors & CalibrationKeep date and time through power loss with a DS1307, set it only when needed, and print it as fixed-width text with snprintf.
4 hours27Module 9 - Integration ProjectsIntegrate DHT11, LDR, I2C LCD and a temperature alarm into one monitored system.
6-8 hours28Module 9 - Integration ProjectsShare I2C between RTC and LCD, then drive a servo and buzzer from alarm states without blocking delays.
6-8 hours29Module 10 - Extension BuildsRespond to button edges with external interrupts on D2 and D3, keep ISRs short with volatile flags, and explore the other Uno interrupt families and sleep modes in the optional appendix.
2 hours core, plus optional appendix30Module 10 - Extension BuildsFull SimpleThermistor walkthrough: library folder layout, .h/.cpp class, test sketch and thermistor divider wiring.
2-3 hours31Module 10 - Extension BuildsTrigger a 40 kHz burst, time the echo with pulseIn, convert microseconds to centimetres, and handle timeouts.
4 hours32Module 10 - Extension BuildsRead a membrane keypad with the Keypad library and print each press on Serial.
2-3 hours33Module 10 - Extension BuildsIdentify cards with an MFRC522, decide allow or deny, and append timestamped events to the Velleman VMA202 SD card.
6-8 hours34Module 10 - Extension BuildsWire a 16x2 LCD without a backpack (RS, E and four data lines), set the contrast, and show text and live values.
4 hoursRefCourse ResourcesHow the course is assessed: a code-correction exercise, three practical tasks and a final project, each with a set brief and Competent / Not Yet Competent criteria.
Reference - see each briefRefCourse ResourcesWorld-class language, types, snprintf, I/O and circuit reference for this course. Read matching sections before practical lessons.
Reference - use as neededE01ESP32 Part 1 - FoundationsMeet the ESP32 family, learn classic DevKit anatomy, install Espressif support, and complete a reliable first blink/Serial upload.
2-3 hoursE02ESP32 Part 1 - FoundationsBuild a board passport: read chip model, flash and free heap, then decide when ESP32 earns a place over the Uno.
2-3 hoursE03ESP32 Part 1 - FoundationsProtect ESP32 GPIO and build a safe front-panel acknowledge button with a status LED - never feed 5 V into pins.
2-3 hoursE04ESP32 Part 1 - FoundationsLearn strapping pins and 12-bit ADC, then build a trim setpoint reader that reports LOW/MID/HIGH bands.
3 hoursE05ESP32 Part 1 - FoundationsMap Uno I/O habits onto ESP32 and build a bench lamp dimmer with a clear brightness percent readout.
2-3 hoursE06ESP32 Part 1 - FoundationsPower a short NeoPixel strip safely, then build a shelf mood strip with calm / work / alert colours.
3 hoursE07ESP32 Part 1 - FoundationsMap an 8x8 matrix with serpentine XY(), then build a desk status tile with free / busy / alert colours.
3-4 hoursE08ESP32 Part 2 - WirelessJoin the LAN, then build a network health meter that reports RSSI and reconnects if the link drops.
3 hoursE09ESP32 Part 2 - WirelessBuild a room light remote: a phone on the same WiFi toggles a named lamp and sees when it last changed.
3-4 hoursE10ESP32 Part 2 - WirelessParse JSON as a client, then build an outdoor condition lamp driven by a live temperature field.
4 hoursE11ESP32 Part 2 - WirelessBuild a remote thermostat channel: publish temperature and switch a heater-sim LED from an MQTT command topic.
3-4 hoursE12ESP32 Part 2 - WirelessBuild a first-boot WiFi setup path: try STA, then open SoftAP with a form that captures credentials on Serial.
3-4 hoursE13ESP32 Part 3 - AdvancedBuild a phone-controlled desk lamp over BLE: advertise, write on/off, then notify the phone of lamp state.
3-4 hoursE14ESP32 Part 3 - AdvancedBuild a battery-style pulse logger: wake on a timer, read a sensor stand-in, print a line, then sleep again.
3 hoursE15ESP32 Part 3 - AdvancedBuild an alive monitor: a snappy status LED in loop while a worker task samples slowly on another core.
3 hoursE16ESP32 Part 3 - AdvancedShip a field-updatable node: first USB flash enables OTA, then change the firmware version banner and blink over Wi-Fi.
3 hoursE17ESP32 Part 3 - AdvancedBuild an assessment-ready room node: STA WiFi, live comfort reading on the web, JSON for programs, and a threshold alert LED.
4-5 hours