CONNECT
The evolution of poster presentations is remarkable, going from simple manual creations to today’s highly interactive versions.
Today, posters offer the possibility of interaction through resources such as videos, animations, and graphics. They transform the learning environment, making it more engaging and are an essential tool for conveying information in a clear and visually appealing manner.
Furthermore, the use of circuit boards in poster projects adds an extra layer of interactivity and creativity. These boards allow the creation of simple circuits that allow students to interact with the information by touching electrically conductive objects, further enriching the educational experience.
CONTEMPLE
The circuit board is part of a creative interaction kit. This board allows the transformation of ordinary objects into “commands,” which means they become touchpads*. These objects send information to the computer just like input devices such as the keyboard and mouse. With it, we can create various projects, even a banana piano or a video game controller with modeling clay.
*Touchpad: A sensitive device that executes a command when touched.
To make the circuit board work, the use of conductive materials is necessary. These are materials that conduct energy, such as metals (copper, gold, silver, and aluminum), seawater, and our bodies. But there are also materials that are not conductors of energy, such as rubber, Styrofoam, glass, pure water, and oil, which cannot be used to make the circuit board work.
As we have seen, the board makes projects more fun because it turns any object that conducts energy into a real keyboard.
Get to know some of these objects:
- Fruits and vegetables: bananas, apples, lemons, or carrots can be used as keys or buttons.
- Aluminum foil sheets: small pieces of aluminum foil connected to the board’s pins can be touched or pressed to send signals.
- Pencils: used to draw circuits or connect objects directly to the board’s pins.
- Water: it conducts electricity, so it is possible to use containers with water as part of the circuit. For example, by dipping fingers into water cups and touching conductive objects, signals are sent to the computer.
GETTING TO KNOW THE BOARD
The board has the shape of a video game controller. On the front, there are contact points for directional arrows (left, right, up, and down), space bar, and mouse click functions.
It is important to know that there is a bottom bar called Earth, which serves as a grounding wire, meaning it diverts the electrical current from devices to the earth.
On the back of the board, there are jumpers (connectors) to be used as other keys (W, S, A, D, F, G) of a standard keyboard, as well as connections to control all mouse functions (right/left click).
HOW TO CONNECT THE BOARD
Connect the USB cable to the computer and connect the alligator clips to the contact points of the board and to the conductive objects that will be used in the project.
The circuit with objects requires grounding. For this project, grounding will be done by the colleague interacting with the circuit. They should hold one end of the alligator clip connected to the Earth bar with one hand while pressing the object with the other hand. See what happens!
HOW TO ADD THE MAKEY MAKEY BOARD EXTENSION TO SCRATCH
In the “Code” tab, click the “Add Extension” button and then select the Makey Makey option.
There you go! The board will be added to the program.
You can also choose the program’s language.
In the Menu Bar, click the 
icon and choose the Brazilian Portuguese option.
Watch the video and see some project examples:
BUILD
Divide the class into teams of up to five students and distribute the circuit board kit to each of them.
Instruct students to create a sound poster with the circuit board. Instruct them to follow all the steps in order. In the example, we used the Earth-Moon-Sun System theme; you can choose another theme.
ATTENTION!
• When starting and finishing the projects, make sure to clean the alligator clips, as there should be no residues. Use a brush or cotton swab for cleaning.
• Each kit should be connected to a computer. If the school does not have the necessary number of computers per team, each group can alternate the use of the computer to execute their project. At this moment, be mindful of the time of use so that everyone participates.
• When the project needs to be presented on a metal table, it is advisable to cover the table with a cloth or plastic towel, with cardboard or brown paper to not interfere with the project’s operation. If presented on the floor, a rubberized surface, such as EVA, is recommended.
• Opt for newer modeling clay, as older ones may be dried out and may not work.
• The wires cannot touch each other and must be secured with masking tape or Scotch tape.
• The contact between the alligator clip and the aluminum foil needs to be very firm. Use insulating tape to secure them.
Step 1: gather the materials.
• 1 placa de circuito;
• 1 cabo USB;
• 5 clipes garra tipo jacaré;
• 1 fita isolante;
• material impresso ou desenhado
(Sol, Lua e planeta Terra);
• folhas de cartolina preta, color set
ou EVA;
• 4 colchetes tipo bailarina;
• 1 fita-crepe;
• 1 tesoura sem ponta;
• 1 cola;
• lápis de colorir ou canetinha.
Passo 2: pesquise imagens e informações sobre o tema Sistema Terra-Lua-Sol.
Passo 3: inicie a construção do cartaz.
Passo 4: para propiciar a interação do cartaz com os visitantes, utilize os colchetes bailarina, que funcionarão como botões. Eles devem ficar na parte de trás do cartaz, a no mínimo 5 cm de distância um do outro, para que não se toquem. Ao colocar o colchete na parte da frente, preste atenção à posição para que ele não cubra nenhuma informação do cartaz.
Crie os botões seguindo as etapas:
• Etapa 1: escolha os locais do cartaz onde serão colocados os botões (SOL, LUA e TERRA).
• Etapa 2: crie um botão para cada imagem do Sistema Solar. É importante medir a distância das pernas do colchete bailarina até a borda do cartaz. Insira um colchete na frente do cartaz e,
na parte de trás, dobre as pernas dele para que fiquem fixas.
• Etapa 3: certifique-se de que as pernas dos colchetes não estão se encostando.
Passo 5: na parte de trás do cartaz, pregue um lado do clipe jacaré em uma das pernas do colchete e cole um pedaço de fita isolante para fixar. Faça isso em uma das pernas de cada um dos colchetes utilizados no cartaz, reservando um clipe jacaré para o aterramento.
Passo 6: conecte o outro lado de cada clipe jacaré e o aterramento às entradas correspondentes na placa de circuito.
Passo 7: para conectar a placa de circuito ao computador, utilize o cabo USB.
Passo 8: execute o programa Scratch no endereço <https://scratch.mit.edu>. Nele, cada botão será programado para que ocorra a ação esperada quando a tecla correspondente
for pressionada. Como exemplo, escolhemos o tema Sistema Solar para criação do cartaz. Ao tocar nos botões, iremos ouvir e ver algumas informações referentes ao Sol, à Lua e à Terra.
Passo 9: adicione a extensão da placa de circuito. Para isso, clique na função Adicionar
uma Extensão e, em seguida, na opção Makey Makey.
Para utilizar essa função, é necessário estar conectado à internet.
Passo 10: em seguida, adicione a extensão Texto para Fala, na mesma função.
Passo 11: agora, monte a programação do cartaz sonoro.
a. Clique na extensão Makey Makey, arraste o bloco quando a tecla espaço for pressionada para a área de scripts. A opção “espaço” deverá ser trocada de acordo com as conexões dos clipes garra de jacaré feitas com a placa de circuito.
b. Clique em Som , arraste o bloco pare todos os sons para a área de scripts e insira-o embaixo do bloco anterior.
c. Clique em Aparência , arraste o bloco diga Olá! para a área de scripts e insira-o embaixo do bloco anterior. Depois, altere o texto “Olá!” para o texto relacionado ao tema escolhido.
d. Crie outro bloco de comandos e repita as etapas realizadas nos itens a e b.
e. Clique em Texto para Fala, arraste o bloco fale Olá para a área de scripts e insira-o embaixo do bloco anterior. Depois, altere o texto “olá” para o mesmo texto escolhido no item c.
f. Para cada botão criado no cartaz sonoro, faça as etapas descritas nos itens a até e. Lembre-se de trocar a opção “espaço” no item a para as opções correspondentes às conexões feitas
na placa de circuito.
Passo 12: para interagir com o cartaz, você deverá segurar o clipe jacaré de aterramento com uma mão e um dos botões com a outra. Experimente e observe como o cartaz sonoro funciona.
CONTINUE
Share the construction results with the class.
• What was it like creating a sound poster with the circuit board?
• Did you have any difficulty making the connections with the ballerina brackets?
When finished, all materials must be stored.