Drip Irrigation Kit(micro:bit): Lesson1 - Know Your Controller The Water in the Earth

1. Engage: Where is Water All Around Us?

Start the lesson by showing images/videos of Earth's water (oceans, rivers, rain, glaciers, even a glass of water).

Ask students: "Raise your hand if you've seen water today—where? In the sink? Outside as rain? In a puddle? Let's list all the places!"

Key Question:
Did you know Earth has a lot of water, but most isn't for drinking? Let's find out why!

Show a simple infographic to introduce:  

Activity 1
Give students cards with water sources.
(You can find and cut out the cards from the end of the activity sheet.)
Ask them to sort into "salty" vs. "fresh" piles, then match to the correct percentage.

2. Explore: How Does Water Move?

Play the audio "The Journey of Water" and guide students to explain the process of the water cycle.

Evaporation: Sun heats water (e.g., oceans) → turns to water vapor.  
Precipitation: Vapor meets cool → forms clouds → Clouds release water (rain, snow) → flows back to oceans/land.
Transpiration:plants absorb water from the soil and release water vapor back into the air.

Key Question:
Why is the water cycle critical for plants, animals, and humans? How does it keep Earth's water supply balanced?

3. Engineer: Meet the Micro:bit

Show the micro:bit board: "This is our brain today!”.  The board integrates an LED screen, a speaker, and multiple sensors. Let’s use these to simulate a step of the water cycle."
It allows students to get hands-on with coding and digital making. Use it to inspire your students to recognize the power of technology in the real world.
Create a simple project, and let the students try to find where the light sensor located.

Key Question:
We want to simulate the evaporation process of water. Which sensor on the main board can detect sunlight? Where is the sensor located?

25 LEDs arranged in a 5x5 grid make up the display for showing pictures, words and numbers. They can also act as sensors, measuring how much light is falling on your micro:bit.
Demonstrate connecting the board to a computer (Micro USB cable).  

Demonstrate how to create your first project.
Go to the Makecode editor and create a new project.

Now find the if-else block. It’s in the Logic category in the toolbox. Put this in the forever block.

Find the comparison block. It’s in the Logic category in the toolbox. Put this in the if-else block.

Add the light level to comparison block.

Change the number to 100.

Add show leds to the if condition. The code inside the if block only runs when the condition is true, which means the micro:bit will show a sea pattern when the light level is below 100.

Complete the code in the else section.

Connect the device and download the code to micro:bit.

Demonstrate the first project (Simulate Sun heats water, it turns to vapor):
When you activate the light sensor, the LED screen will show the water vapor raise up.

4.Experience: Your Turn to Code

Activity 2
Give students 2-3 minutes to complete their first project.

Activity 3
Guide students to observe and discuss:
1.What will be displayed if you flash the light sensor on the micro:bit?
2.How fast does the GIF flash?

5.Challenge: Modify Your Code

Activity 4
Give students 1 minute to think and discuss: can vapor flash faster or slower?
Guide them to modify and test their codes.

6.Elaborate: Water Cycle in Our Lives

Key Question
How do humans use the water cycle? (e.g., water treatment plants, desalination)

Activity 5
Create a simple water cycle model using everyday materials (e.g., a plastic bottle, soil, and water). Label evaporation, condensation, and rainfall!