For instructors and homeschool parents running HW-101. The course is intermediate (Belt 3/5) and intentionally tactile. This guide names the pacing risks, the common stumbles, and the grading approach.
Course shape at a glance
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Total time | ~115 hours over 14 weeks |
| Weekly time | ~8 hours student time |
| Lecture per week | ~1.5-2 hours |
| Lab per week | ~2-2.5 hours |
| Reading + independent practice | ~3-4 hours |
| Audience | Post-FND-101 students wanting hands-on electronics |
| Hardware | Arduino R4 Classroom Pack (~$165-185) + supplements (~$30-40) |
| Total per-student cost | ~$195-225 |
| Capstone | One applied project + write-up + demo video |
Pacing risks per week
| Week | Risk | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Multimeter unfamiliar | Walk through every range setting in the first hour; have students measure 5+ different things before lab 1.1 even starts |
| 2 | Voltage divider math feels arbitrary | Use the water-pipe analogy more than usual; have students predict before they measure for each divider |
| 3 | Breadboard internal layout confusing | Print the layout diagram; pin it to the wall of the lab |
| 4 | RC time constant feels abstract | Have students PREDICT the τ then MEASURE; the moment when prediction matches measurement is when the concept clicks |
| 5 | LED resistor sizing repetitive | The repetition is the point; this is the most-recurring calculation in the course |
| 6 | Transistor pinout confusion | Verify pinout with the multimeter (diode-test mode shows the junctions) before powering up |
| 7 | Highest-friction week. Arduino IDE + R4 USB drivers can be squirrelly | Pre-install IDE on classroom computers if available; have a backup R4 board on hand; budget extra 30 min |
| 8 | Debouncing feels overcomplicated | Show the un-debounced version first; students see the multiple-trigger bug; debouncing motivates itself |
| 9 | analogRead range confusion (0-1023 vs other ranges) | Repeat: ADC is 10-bit on R4 by default; the maximum is 1023, not 1024, not 1000 |
| 10 | analogWrite range vs analogRead range | Address head-on: "These don't match. Just remember they don't. Use map() to bridge them" |
| 11 | Serial output overwhelming | Encourage discipline: print one line per loop iteration max; use delays to keep Monitor readable |
| 12 | HC-SR04 timing requirements | Walk through pulseIn(); students can't see the microsecond-timing; trust + verify with multimeter on output |
| 13 | Scope creep | Insist on the lab 13.1 self-review checklist; six boxes must be checked |
| 14 | Build-week scope creep | Daily check-ins: "Did you add any features beyond your scope? Why?" |
Common student stumbles
Week 1-6 stumbles (pre-microcontroller)
- Reversing LED polarity: most common error. Eyeball or measure with diode-test mode
- Reading the resistor color code: practice this. Print a color-code card; have it on every desk
- Reading a multimeter range wrong: showing "1." (overrange) confuses students. Coach: "if you see '1.' alone, the range is too small; go bigger"
- Forgetting Vforward in LED resistor sizing: students compute R = V/I instead of R = (V - V_LED)/I
Week 7-14 stumbles (microcontroller)
- Forgetting pinMode: pin works as input by default; digitalWrite has no effect until pinMode(pin, OUTPUT). The first sketch many students write looks correct but does nothing
- Confusing INPUT vs INPUT_PULLUP: with plain INPUT, an unconnected button reads garbage. INPUT_PULLUP fixes it. Default to INPUT_PULLUP for buttons
- Mixing analogRead and analogWrite ranges: 1023 vs 255. Use map(). Address explicitly when it bites
- PWM on a non-PWM pin: results in "all or nothing" behavior. Tell students to memorize which pins are PWM-capable (3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11 on R4 Minima) or to check the board markings (
~symbol) - Forgetting Serial.begin(): nothing prints. Easy fix; common error
Safety notes
HW-101 voltages are safe (≤ 9 V battery; or USB 5 V). You cannot get a dangerous shock from these voltages. The risks:
- Short circuit damaging parts: a 9 V battery shorted directly heats up rapidly; can pop. Coach: when in doubt, measure before connecting
- LED burnout from missing resistor: not dangerous but wasteful. Brief lab 1 on always including the resistor
- Hot resistor: a resistor running near its power limit gets noticeably warm. Tell students this is a sign to upsize the resistor or reduce the current
- Capacitor backwards: an electrolytic capacitor installed with reversed polarity can fail loudly (small pop; no risk of injury at HW-101 voltages, but startling). Walk through polarity in week 4
No safety equipment beyond reasonable care is required. Eye protection is a nice-to-have for the capacitor lab; not strictly required at HW-101 voltages
Grading rubric for the capstone
Three dimensions equally weighted (per CAPSTONE.md):
- The hardware works (33%). Demo video shows the project actually running. No fakes; no broken parts
- The schematic matches the build (33%). A grader can reproduce the wiring from the schematic. Every wire shown; every part labeled
- The write-up is honest (33%). Five sections present. "What surprised you" names a specific moment. Reflection is specific, not generic
The rubric template is at worksheets/TEMPLATE-capstone-rubric.md. Use that as the source-of-truth scorecard
What earns less than full marks
- Demo video does not show the circuit running
- Schematic missing or incomplete (wires not drawn; parts not labeled)
- Write-up "what surprised you" section says "everything was great" (no specific surprise; the section asks for honesty about a specific moment)
- Code does not run as shipped (instructor or grader cannot reproduce)
What earns extra acknowledgment
- Detailed account of failed attempts and what was learned
- Polish beyond minimum (clean wiring, organized code, well-designed enclosure if attempted)
- Forward-thinking v2 section that shows real engineering insight, not just "add more features"
Bridging to next courses
If a student is asking what to take next:
- Loved the physical-electronics weeks (1-6): lean toward continuing with practical-electronics tracks; or take CSA-101 next (the FPGA work uses HW-101's instrument fluency every week)
- Loved the Arduino weeks (7-14): CON-101 (Virtus Console) when it ships; embedded-development is the closest extension
- Loved the sensor + actuator integration in the capstone: explore robotics tracks (not yet in academy; external resources are abundant)
- Did not love HW-101: that is real feedback. Software-only tracks (PEN-101, AI-201, AI-301) do not require physical electronics. HW-101 is a prerequisite for CSA-101 + CON-101 specifically; other tracks have other prerequisites
When students get stuck
If a student is two weeks behind by week 6, take action:
- Schedule a 1-on-1 to diagnose the specific concept that did not land (usually it's voltage-divider math or LED resistor sizing)
- Pair them with a stronger student for a study session
- Repeat the labs they missed; the labs are short enough to redo
If a student is two weeks behind by week 10 (Arduino weeks), the pattern is different:
- Often it's IDE / driver / USB issues (Windows is the worst offender)
- 30-minute pair-session usually unblocks. The hardware works; the software path has snags
- If the IDE simply won't cooperate on a student's machine, recommend they try the academy workbench (browser-based) for the labs they can do there; switch back to local IDE for the labs that need a physical Arduino
Logistical notes
- Kit delivery: order kits at least 2 weeks before week 1. Arduino's classroom pack has occasional shipping delays
- Discord / community: academy maintains HW-101 cohort Discord; invite at enrollment
- Office hours: lead instructor offers ~1 hr/week synchronous office hours; weeks 7, 12, 13, 14 see the most demand
- Capstone grading turnaround: 7 days from submission
Where HW-101 fits in the academy
HW-101 is the academy's hands-on physical-electronics gate. Students who finish HW-101 are ready for the FPGA + microarchitecture depth of CSA-101 and the embedded-gaming work of CON-101. They have:
- Physical-instrument fluency (multimeter, breadboard, probe)
- Microcontroller programming basics
- Sensor + actuator integration habits
- One shipped applied project to point at
The instructor's job is to keep the course's claim ("you can build real physical things that do real things") visible week after week. By the capstone, the student has done it; the closing-bridge lecture is the moment to name what was just accomplished
Instructor guide v0.1 prepared 2026-05-11. Updates after the first pilot cohort.