The workshop is four steps, in order. Each one proves that a single new thing works before the next step builds on top of it. So when something goes wrong, you know it's the thing you just added, not a mystery.
Meet the Pico. Get code onto it, run it, and watch it keep running on nothing but wall power, with no computer attached.
You prove: the editor connects, the code runs, the board stands on its own. 路 Slides 路 Start Here walks through this
Now wires between parts. Push a little screen onto a breadboard, connect four wires, and light it up with code you already know how to run.
You prove: you can wire two parts together and make them talk. 路 Slides
Make joints that actually last. Solder header pins onto a part, then run the same screen through your own soldered connections.
You prove: your solder joints carry a real signal. 路 Slides
The payoff. On wiring you now trust, add real sensors and take real measurements: heat, water, light, and more.
You prove: real data, from the real world. 路 Slides 路 See the sensors
Once you get to sensors, they all behave the same friendly way. Learn it once.
A station runs fine even if a part is missing or a wire falls out. Plug the part back in and it picks up again in a couple of seconds. No restart, no panic.
The green light on the Pico is honest. Blinking = your code is running. It even blinks a code
for which part is unhappy:
. . . _ . means part 4 has a
problem. Dark = nothing is running.
Each station creates a little WiFi network named after itself (like PicoLab530).
Join it on your phone and browse to the address on the screen, no internet required.
Every diagram in this guide uses the same wire colors, so anyone can read anyone's breadboard.
| Wire color | What it carries |
|---|---|
| Red | Power (3.3 volts). The part's "VCC" or "VIN". |
| Black | Ground. The shared zero. Every part connects back to it. |
| Blue (SDA) | The I2C data line. Blue and yellow are the colors on every STEMMA QT / Qwiic cable, so plug-in parts match too. |
| Yellow (SCL) | The I2C clock line. Many parts share this SDA + SCL pair. (The probes' yellow wire, on the temperature and moisture probes, is the probe's own signal, on its own pin.) |
| Green | A part's own signal wire, anything that isn't power, ground, data, or clock. |
Ready to wire one up? See the sensors →