Parent coaching
You do not need to know any electronics to be genuinely useful here. These eight habits are the whole job.
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- 1
Ask for a prediction before every run
Before the green Run button is pressed, ask: what do you think will happen? A wrong prediction is the most valuable thing in the session, because it shows exactly which idea needs work. Every mission has a built-in prediction question with a hidden answer for this reason.
- 2
Let them press the button
Resist taking the mouse or the jumper wire. If you fix it, they learn that fixing is something adults do. Sit on your hands and ask questions instead. Your job is to keep them from getting stuck for so long that they quit, not to keep them from being stuck at all.
- 3
Diagnose by shrinking the circuit
When nothing works, the fastest route is to make the problem smaller. Take out everything added since the last working version. Get one LED blinking again, then add one thing back. Changing one variable at a time is the whole technique, and it transfers to absolutely everything.
- 4
Check these four things first, in this order
1) Is every leg and jumper fully pushed in? 2) Is the resistor actually there, and is it the right value? 3) Is the LED the right way round, long leg toward the resistor? 4) Is the wire on the right PHYSICAL pin? GPIO16 is physical pin 21, not physical pin 16. These four account for the overwhelming majority of failures.
- 5
The servo power check is yours to own
From Mission 09 onward the project needs an external regulated 5 V supply able to deliver at least 1 A, with a suitable insulated connector. That may be a purchase beyond the kit. Please check it yourself: regulated, correct voltage, correct polarity, insulated. Confirm the supply's positive wire touches no Pico pin, and that its 0 V is joined to Pico ground at physical pin 38. On the micro:bit track (lessons 14–15) the same check applies: external positive touches no micro:bit pin, the 3V ring or the battery connector, and external 0 V joins the micro:bit GND.
- 6
Pace it: two to three missions a week
An hour or so at a time, two or three times a week, is a good rhythm. Finishing a mission in a single sitting matters more than finishing two. Stopping mid-wiring is how parts get lost and enthusiasm leaks away.
- 7
Celebrate the diagnosis, not the result
When they say 'oh, the LED was backwards' before you do, that is the moment worth making a fuss about. Working circuits are fun; finding out why a circuit does not work is the actual skill.
- 8
What to say when you do not know either
'I don't know, let's find out' is a completely legitimate answer and a genuinely useful thing to model. The troubleshooting list in each mission, and the official links on the help page, are there for exactly this.
The honest safety summary
- Missions 00 to 08 run entirely from USB power at 3.3 V and are very low risk.
- Missions 09 to 11 add a motor and a separate 5 V supply. Those need an adult to check the supply and the wiring before each first power-up.
- The Mission 11 capstone moves a light paper flap on a table. It is not a wearable device, and a working paper prototype does not approve one. Anything near a face or body would need a full design review covering power, mounting, torque, end stops, pinch protection and a manual release.
- Nothing in this course goes anywhere near household mains electricity.
Ready to look at the course itself? Start at the workshop dashboard, or read the help and resources page.