MISSION 03 · BASIC ELECTRONICS
Can you make a light that needs two separate permissions before it turns on?
2 · Give It a Job
Your new skill: Use two controls as an AND rule.
Revisit the skill you will reuse: Previous main-path mission
Match the names to your parts before you build. New parts appear when you first need them. You can point, say the name or show a grown-up.
A battery supplies energy that can make a light glow or a motor turn. A holder keeps its connections in place.
Look for: Find the + and - marks and the matching holder or snap connector.
Before using it: Use only the supply named in this mission. Never join + straight to -; disconnect before rewiring.
Your turn: With power disconnected, trace the path from + through the parts and back to -.
This reusable building board joins some holes with hidden metal strips, so we can connect parts without soldering.
Look for: Find the centre gap, row numbers and power rails. The gap separates the two halves.
Before using it: Five holes in one numbered strip usually join; the strip across the gap does not. Some power rails have a break. Match your board diagram.
Your turn: Point to two holes on the same connected strip, then two that are separated by the gap.
A wire makes an electrical connection between two points. A clip lead grips a terminal.
Look for: Jumpers have small plug ends; clip leads have metal jaws. Colour helps us track a connection.
Before using it: Colour does not change a wire's job. Check both ends and keep bare metal away from other terminals.
Your turn: Follow one wire from start to finish and name what it joins.
A resistor limits current in a path. Beside our LED it helps protect the light from too much current. Its resistance is measured in ohms.
Look for: Look for a small body with two legs and coloured bands; match its labelled value to the mission.
Before using it: A resistor can face either way. Values such as 1 kΩ and 10 kΩ are different: k means one thousand. Keep the specified value.
Your turn: Point to the resistor in the LED path. Explain why replacing it with a plain wire is not our test.
An LED turns electrical energy into light and works in one direction. We use it to show what a circuit is doing.
Look for: An untrimmed ordinary LED often has a longer anode leg and a shorter cathode leg. A flat rim often marks the cathode.
Before using it: Confirm polarity with the part card if legs are trimmed. Use the mission's resistor in series; never connect an LED straight across the battery.
Your turn: With power off, identify the two legs and point to its protective resistor.
A push button changes an electrical connection while you press it. It gives our circuit a short instruction.
Look for: Match the two-leg or four-leg part to the supplied card. It springs back when released.
Before using it: Our instructions specify the working pair of terminals. A four-leg button has internally joined pairs, so do not guess which pair switches.
Your turn: Press and release it without power. Predict which state will make our signal turn on.
A switch opens or closes a path and stays in the position you choose.
Look for: Find its labelled terminals and the ON and OFF positions.
Before using it: Keep an off-board switch outside the breadboard as instructed; use leads to its terminals. Rewire only with power disconnected.
Your turn: Move it to OFF, then trace the place where it stops the circuit path.
A video demonstration will appear here when it is ready. You can follow the written step now.
Before we build, match these names to the parts in front of you. Battery and holder. A battery supplies energy that can make a light glow or a motor turn. A holder keeps its connections in place. Find the + and - marks and the matching holder or snap connector. Use only the supply named in this mission. Never join + straight to -; disconnect before rewiring. Breadboard. This reusable building board joins some holes with hidden metal strips, so we can connect parts without soldering. Find the centre gap, row numbers and power rails. The gap separates the two halves. Five holes in one numbered strip usually join; the strip across the gap does not. Some power rails have a break. Match your board diagram. Jumper wire and clip lead. A wire makes an electrical connection between two points. A clip lead grips a terminal. Jumpers have small plug ends; clip leads have metal jaws. Colour helps us track a connection. Colour does not change a wire's job. Check both ends and keep bare metal away from other terminals. Resistor. A resistor limits current in a path. Beside our LED it helps protect the light from too much current. Its resistance is measured in ohms. Look for a small body with two legs and coloured bands; match its labelled value to the mission. A resistor can face either way. Values such as 1 kΩ and 10 kΩ are different: k means one thousand. Keep the specified value. LED or light emitting diode. An LED turns electrical energy into light and works in one direction. We use it to show what a circuit is doing. An untrimmed ordinary LED often has a longer anode leg and a shorter cathode leg. A flat rim often marks the cathode. Confirm polarity with the part card if legs are trimmed. Use the mission's resistor in series; never connect an LED straight across the battery. Push button. A push button changes an electrical connection while you press it. It gives our circuit a short instruction. Match the two-leg or four-leg part to the supplied card. It springs back when released. Our instructions specify the working pair of terminals. A four-leg button has internally joined pairs, so do not guess which pair switches. ON OFF switch. A switch opens or closes a path and stays in the position you choose. Find its labelled terminals and the ON and OFF positions. Keep an off-board switch outside the breadboard as instructed; use leads to its terminals. Rewire only with power disconnected. Pause and point to the part that will do the main job in this mission. If it is missing or looks different, ask a grown-up before building.
WHAT YOU'LL USE
Kit list: match the named parts to your box and its component cards. Home list: gather these before starting; some may also be supplied in your kit. Reuse components between missions. Stop and ask a grown-up if an essential part or label is missing.
BEFORE YOU BUILD
Power off. The ON/OFF switch stays outside the breadboard. Plug one male-to-male jumper into each switch terminal. Place only the 2-leg push button across E8 and F8.
YOUR REWARD
PREDICT BEFORE YOU BEGIN
What do you think will happen? Say it, point to it or draw it. Then test your idea.
YOUR CHALLENGE
NEW POWER-UP
Use two controls as an AND rule.
You already know: a circuit needs one complete path New power-up: series controls and AND logic This prepares you for: sending information with a momentary button
Each coloured strip is one connected group. Different numbered rows stay separate. This explains the board; use the mission’s exact connection reference for component positions. Check rail breaks on your supplied board.
CONNECTION MAP
BUILD PATH
STEP 1 OF 8
Connect the 9V red and black leads to the + and - rails.
A video demonstration will appear here when it is ready. You can follow the written step now.
Connect the 9V red and black leads to the + and - rails.
WHAT'S REALLY HAPPENING?
This is AND logic. Condition A and condition B must both be true. If either control opens the path, current cannot complete the circuit.
Treasure boxes, guarded machines and safety systems can require two permissions before operating.
FAIR-TEST CHALLENGE
Change one feature, keep the rest the same and repeat your comparison.
WHEN IT DOESN'T WORK YET
Likely cause: A control has been bypassed
Try this first: Power off and make sure every current path passes through both controls.
Likely cause: Button legs may be in the same strip
Try this first: Rotate or move the button so the correct legs use separate strips.
Likely cause: Open path or LED backwards
Try this first: Test the LED circuit first, then add one control at a time.
CLEAN, RESET AND STORE
Switch off and disconnect all power. Let moving parts stop. Put the parts back in their kit compartments.
NEXT SKILL
Send a repeatable signal another person can decode.