Makey Makey Circuit With Breadboard

This is a simple project to introduce electronics to a group of students.

Steps 1-7 - Introduce a simple circuit with the Makey Makey.

Steps 8 - Extend to a circuit in series.

Steps 9 - Extend to a circuit in parallel.

Let's start by collecting the recommended materials.

• Makey Makey (with cable)
• Breadboard
• USB battery pack (for use with a mobile phone or Laptop, also works)
• 2 LEDs - any colour
• 1 push button
• 4 male to male dupont jumper wires

Insert the button across the rail of the breadboard.

Place the LED into the breadboard, place the legs into different numbered rows, take note of which leg went into which row as we will need those for the other connections.

Note that for an LED (Light Emitting Diode), current can only travel in one direction so you might need to swap the wires if the LED doesn't light up.

Turn the Makey Makey over to expose the back and find the Dupont connections which we will need.

We will need the EARTH connection found on the bottom.

We will need one of the WASDFG connections.

We need the KEY OUT option on the top on the left side.

Grab one of the Dupont wires and plug it into one of the WASDFG connections, it does not matter which letter because we just need to use the KEY OUT (good for any KEY action). Connect the other end of the wire into one side of the button.

Grab another Dupont wire and connect it from the EARTH to the button.

The button has four connection points - you want to connect the wire to the other leg on the same side of the breadboard rail as the WASDFG wire.

Grab another Dupont wire and connect it from the KEY OUT connection on the Makey Makey to the same row as the long leg of the LED

Grab another Dupont wire and connect it from the EARTH connection on the Makey Makey to the same row as the short leg of the LED.

Test it out. This is the simple circuit.

Here is a demo of a simple circuit.

A single LED connected to the KEY OUT connection.

This is the simplest way to add another LED.

Add another LED - the long leg of the second in the same row as the short of the first LED.

Move the Dupont wire from the shortest let of the first LED to the shortest leg of the second LED.

Test it out. You now have a circuit in series.

This is another way to add another LED.

Add another LED - using a Dupont wire you want to connect the long leg of the second in the same row as the long leg of the first LED. And connect the shortest leg of the first LED to the shortest leg of the second LED with final Dupont wire.

Test it out. You now have a circuit in parallel.

Here is the final product using both the KEY OUT and MS OUT for two different circuits.

The only changes would be that the button connections would be EARTH to KEY OUT/MS OUT and the LED connections would be EARTH to WASDFG/arrows on the right side of the back.

Thanks for following and excited to see your projects.

Here are a few close up pictures with a single LED and two LEDs in series.