Introduction: Interactive Fall Number Story With Makey Makey

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This project is perfect for early years folks and those who are learning their numbers. Using Makey Makey to connect to tactile numbers, users can click on the numbers to advance the story leading to practice with ordinal numbers as well as connection making with one to one correspondence.

This project has a Halloween theme, but could be remixed with a variety of number games.

Supplies

  • computer and internet to power the Makey Makey and run Scratch the program the story is created in
  • Makey Makey kit
  • copper tape or aluminum foil
  • cardboard to cut apart shapes
  • glue gun and glue
  • tape
  • scissors
  • variety of materials to make the numbers have a texture (foam, cotton ball, sandpaper, felt, bubble wrap etc)

Step 1: Making Your Numbers

  • sketch your numbers on cardboard or card stock
    • leave a tab at the top for connecting the alligator clips (image #1)
  • cover each tab with aluminum foil or copper foil
  • cover the front of each number with a different textured material
    • be creative - I used bubble wrap, felt, foam, sand paper, cotton balls and pipe cleaner
  • make a touch point at the bottom of each number with copper wire or aluminum foil which runs up the back of the number to the tab at the top (image #2)

Step 2: 5 Little Pumpkins in Scratch

Use this 5 Little Pumpkins Scratch program (image #1 and #2) and connect the Makey Makey to the story. This little program can be remixed with any of your favourite counting/finger games.

Connecting the Makey Makey (image #3):

  • red USB cable to the computer
  • space bar alligator clip to number 1
  • up arrow alligator clip to number 2
  • down arrow alligator clip to number 3
  • right arrow alligator clip to number 4
  • left arrow alligator clip to number 5
  • w (from the back of the board) to the wind
    • I used a jumper cable (image #4) to connect the w to the alligator clip
  • one more alligator clip from ground for the student to hold while making the story play

Students start the program by clicking on the green flag and progress through the number story by selecting the number/button.

Remix and have fun!