This guide to disruptive technologies provides ideas and rationale for why disruptive technologies should be taught as part of the Design and Technology secondary and post-16 curriculum. It provides examples of disruptive technologies, discusses how they might be introduced in a classroom setting and supports in...

This activity, from the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), explores how the antenna part of body centric antennas (BCAs) work and encourages students to consider ethical issues surrounding the use of advanced technology to control prosthetics.

This longer-duration activity involves prototyping a low-power lighting system. It could be used in an off-timetable workshop or across a series of lessons.

Students are challenged to work through the whole design process, and to place a micro-controller (in this case a BBC micro:bit) at the centre of the...

This activity, suitable for a multi-lesson sequence or a single extended session, challenges students to design and prototype a simple motion-sensing alarm. The device is intended to prevent theft or the accidental picking-up of a bag.

Motion is sensed using the accelerometer built-in to the BBC micro:bit,...

The BrickPi is an add-on board for the Raspberry Pi. It is used to interface with Lego Mindstorms sensors and motors to create robots and other projects. This small collection includes practical tips to get started.

In this resource, students will use the theme of football on the Moon to learn how electronic intercom circuits can help players communicate. Students will gain an understanding of how sound waves travel and are received to allow them to be heard in the ear. Building on students pre-existing knowledge of circuits...

In this resource from the European Space Agency, students design and program a LEGO- built rover. Basic instructions are first programmed with the LEGO brick. Then, to remotely control the LEGO-built rover, students program it with the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 software. The objective is to conduct a space experiment...

This sample of a teacher guide introduces basic robotics using Lego NXT hardware and software The general nature as well as the origins of robotics are covered. NXT robots are then introduced, as well as some basic mathematical and other considerations for using robots in the classroom. The importance and impact of...

This edition of the Computing at School newsletter, from a time of extensive curriculum change, includes:

*Arguments for teaching computational thinking

*Introduction to Arduino

*A short article about JavaScript in secondary schools

Work done in this Nuffield 13 - 16 module followed from the B units called ‘Breathing and circulation’ and ‘Food and digestion’, also from the S unit ‘Circuits’. This D unit provided enough material for eight double periods during a Further Science course and built on...

This edition of the Computing at School newsletter focuses broadly on computing in primary schools, and contains articles covering:

*The new National Curriculum Programme of Study for Computing

*Designing a new computing curriculum in your school; adapting previous curriculum models

*Computing...

This activity, suitable for a cross-STEM project day or series of lessons, focuses on how information can be provided to travellers on the London Underground. Students are asked to consider user needs – what information would they need to see, and how might their requirements be communicated? A deep understanding...

This resource focusses on learners designing a robot to act as an assistant referee during a game of football on the Moon. They will consider the challenges associated with playing football on the Moon and the duties of an assistant referee. Students will produce a labelled sketch of their idea to meet a set of...

In this challenge, students are asked to evaluate an existing product – a step counter or pedometer. They then create a step counter to encourage healthier lifestyles among teenagers. It is based on a BBC micro:bit device which includes an accelerometer capable of detecting ‘shake events’. These events are then...