We're excited to be stocking the excellent MonkMakes kits and interface boards for the BBC micro:bit and Raspberry Pi. Having grown out of the inspiring educational books by Simon Monk, MonkMakes design and manufacture products for the electronic hobbyist and maker. The MonkMakes boards for the BBC micro:bit have a labelled clearly with large text and diagrams, so that kids can see exactly what each board does. Connectors are alligator clip friendly, while also allow screws to be used for mounting and wiring in larger projects.
Speaker for micro:bit
The usual question when we connect speakers directly to the micro:bit is often, "Can we make it louder?" - this board is great value as it combines both an amplifier and speaker. We recently incorporated this into a demonstration for Kid Inventors Day, and it was able to easily be heard above the crowd. The ease and flexibility of connection means that the speaker can easily be connected and disconnected from the micro:bit, with very visible connections - fantastic for teaching or demonstrating concepts to groups or individuals. The speaker can be connected to pin0, making it compatible with existing MakeCode and MicroPython tutorials online. Read more here.
Sensor for micro:bit
The MonkMakes sensor board provides sensors to measure levels of sound, temperature, and light. Each sensor can be wired to a single pin, and all work independently, meaning that you have the option to wire up all at once, or just the sensors you need. Again, this board has flexible connections, and allows power to be connected from either side, with the other side able to feed other MonkMakes boards at the same time. Reading the values of the sensors is as easy as doing an analog read of the micro:bit pin, corresponding to the connected sensor. Read more here.
Relay for micro:bit
The MonkMakes relay for the BBC micro:bit makes explaining relay switching easy, due to the large text indicating connections and an obvious switch diagram - for connecting inline. This came in handy for adding a water pump to a soil moisture sensor demonstration, allowing observers to instantly understand what the relay does. As shown on the board itself, this is a solid state relay for up to 16 volts at 2 amps. Since only two alligator clips are required, this relay works well with other boards. Read more here.
Electronics starter kit for micro:bit
The MonkMakes electronic kit combines all the above boards with additional accessories and a well-written 30 page instruction booklet that includes clear explanations of projects, paired with colour illustrations, and accompanied with code examples for both MakeCode and Python versions. This kit is suitable for children as young as 10 with some adult help. Read more here.
Puppet kit for Raspberry Pi
This kit lets you program a Raspberry Pi to control a string puppet. As with the electronics kit, it is documented with an instruction booklet that includes different projects to code. The kit includes all parts, except for the Raspberry Pi. Read more here.
See the collection of MonkMakes products in our store here.