---
title: Fun With Buttons! 3 Step-by-Step Projects for Your Classroom
description: "There are many great projects that can be made with electronics' most basic input: the button. Learn the basics of using buttons, and find some project ideas."
image: https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/hubfs/EDU/BLOG%20Images/March%202017/kids-at-buttons.jpg
---

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# Fun With Buttons! 3 Step-by-Step Projects for Your Classroom

BY [Andrew Milne](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/author/andrew-milne) 3/16/17 9:03 AM

[0](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/fun-with-buttons-3-step-by-step-projects-for-your-classroom#comments-listing)

[teaching tools](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/topic/teaching-tools), [Maker Education](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/topic/maker-education), [student projects](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/topic/student-projects)

![](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/hubfs/EDU/BLOG%20Images/Milne%2c%20Andrew.jpg)

Last weekend SparkFun visited the Girls & Science event at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, where we unveiled our newest interactive arcade game, the Button Bopper! 

![1.jpg](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/EDU/BLOG%20Images/March%202017/1.jpg?width=750&height=415&name=1.jpg)

The design of the Button Bopper is actually pretty simple. We took 16 [Big Dome Pushbuttons](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/11274), hooked them up to an [Arduino](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/11061), then displayed the score on a [7-segment display](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/11647) (the kind used in calculators). 

![2.jpg](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/EDU/BLOG%20Images/March%202017/2.jpg?width=750&height=563&name=2.jpg)

The Button Bopper is just one example of the great projects that can be made with electronics' most basic input: the button. To learn the basics of using buttons, read this [in-depth tutorial](https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/switch-basics), then come back for some great project ideas using buttons.

## 1. Program Your Own Quiz Buzzer

![](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/EDU/BLOG%20Images/March%202017/image00_500_500.png?width=500&height=500&name=image00_500_500.png "image00_500_500.png")

Using a few buttons and a [Makey Makey](http://sparkfuneducation.com/products/makey-makey.html) you can make your own quiz buzzers. Follow [these step-by-step instructions](https://invent.sparkfun.com/cwists/preview/1513x) to mount the buttons in a cardboard box, then program the quiz game in Scratch.

## 2. Create a Reaction Timer Game

![](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/EDU/BLOG%20Images/March%202017/LCD_reactionTimer_7_500_500.png?width=500&height=500&name=LCD_reactionTimer_7_500_500.png "LCD_reactionTimer_7_500_500.png")

Have a [SparkFun Inventor's Kit](http://sparkfuneducation.com/products/sik.html)? You can use the parts in your kit to make a fun single-button game to test your reaction time. Press the button as fast as you can after the LED turns on, and your reaction time will be shown on the display. You can find instructions for making your reaction time [on InventorSpace.](https://invent.sparkfun.com/cwists/preview/1145x)

## 3. Build a Digital Trumpet 

![](https://blog.sparkfuneducation.com/hs-fs/hubfs/EDU/BLOG%20Images/March%202017/image10_500_500.png?width=500&height=500&name=image10_500_500.png "image10_500_500.png")

Ever wanted to make your own digital instrument? What about a digital instrument that also teaches how to count in binary? Check out [this tutorial for building your own “Binary Trumpet,”](https://invent.sparkfun.com/cwists/preview/1489x)a three-button digital instrument that translates binary numbers into notes on the musical scale.

Want to learn more? Check out [InventorSpace](https://invent.sparkfun.com/cwists/category) for more fun project ideas.

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