About

A toy is an item for playing with. Many different kinds of toys exist, but you can also make something into a toy, for example you can fold a sheet of paper into a paper plane. Toys are normally manufactured for children of certain ages, but some are for adults too. Radio-controlled cars and aeroplanes are examples of toys used by adults. Children have been playing with toys since prehistory. Toys are fun, but they are also important for learning as they improve a child’s imagination and their physical abilities, and they foster friendships between children.
 

Your task

Design a battery operated toy for children of an age group of your choice. Your battery operated toy must be fun. Your toy must be good for children, it can help with their learning, or improve their imagination or their physical abilities, or help them make friends. You may make your battery operated toy of any suitable material, but it should work by using electrical parts. It may use simple electronics, but it must safely enclose the electric parts. Construct a working model of your battery operated toy and test it. Work on this project as a team with your classmates.
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The design thinking stages

Follow the five design thinking stages to ensure that you think of everything and do everything necessary in order to succeed in your design project. First, you must UNDERSTAND the design topic and the needs of the users. With that understanding, you can DECIDE what is important to your design solution and what is not so important. Then you CREATE to come up with ideas and improve them. Then you BUILD your chosen design idea in a physical form and improve it through trial-and-error. Finally, you TEST your built design idea to get the opinions of users. ​​​​​​​Use the methods from the Design Thinking for Schools website as you follow the design thinking stages.
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​​​​​​​Note for teachers

Doing student design projects that use electrical parts or microcontrollers such as Arduino requires:

• teachers who are able to supervise such a project;
• laboratories or workshops with electrical and electronic parts and tools;
• and students who are trained to work with electricity, tools, and equipment.

Read the guide for teachers on Safety for the BUILD Stage for Level III to safely supervise this design project.