Time Goes On (Smart Micro:bit Clock, Stopwatch & Timeline)
Source:
Code a micro:bit stopwatch to measure activity durations (hopping, sentence writing). Connect an analog clock with a rotary encoder — turning clock hands updates the digital display and calculates elapsed time.
Categorisation
Props & Materials Required
- •Analog clock face with movable gear hands
- •KY-040 rotary encoder on hour & minute hand shafts
- •BBC micro:bit V2 controller
- •16x2 LCD display screen
- •DFPlayer Mini MP3 module + 3W speaker
Step-by-Step Instructions
Code micro:bit Stopwatch
In MakeCode, program button A = Start stopwatch, button B = Stop. Press A, hop 10 times, press B. micro:bit displays '7.4 seconds!'
Move Analog Clock Hands
Turn the analog clock minute hand from 4:00 to 4:35.
Read Digital Display & Elapsed Time
Rotary encoders read hand angles. LCD displays 'Digital Time: 04:35'. Speaker announces: '35 minutes have passed!'
Daily Routine Timeline Quiz
Speaker asks: 'School starts at 8:00 AM and ends at 2:00 PM. How many hours is school?' Child calculates 6 hours → Confirms on clock!
Why It Works & Notes
Connecting analog clock hands (angles) to digital time displays (hours:minutes) clarifies elapsed time calculations ('How many minutes from 2:15 to 3:00?'). Stopwatch experiments show how seconds accumulate.