MakerBuddy for schools
Students build working gadgets with real sensors, lights and motors, with no coding needed. Two or three students share each kit, and every class reuses it.
One kit: a board with 6 parts built in, plus 9 parts that plug in.
What students learnSensors, lights, motors and if-then rules, in 32 free lessons of 45–60 minutes. No coding needed.
How many kitsOne kit for every 2 or 3 students. A class of 30 needs 10 to 15 kits, plus a spare.
What it costsPakistan: PKR 40,000 a kit, 2–8% off from 10 kits. Other countries: USD 200 a kit, plus delivery in a written quote.
What your school needs2.4 GHz Wi-Fi or a phone hotspot, and a laptop or iPad for each group.
How to startTry one class first. Every lesson has a demo that runs in the browser, even with no kit.
MakerBuddy gives your school three things: a reusable electronics kit, a free dashboard (the control page) and 32 free lessons in order. The kit is built around an ESP32 board, a small Wi-Fi computer. Students spend class time building and testing, not fixing loose wires.
Six parts are built into the board: two lights, a button, a knob, a light sensor and a buzzer. Nine more plug into labelled sockets. Most plugs fit only one way, so there are fewer wiring mistakes.
Between classes, delete the last group's rules in the dashboard. Turning the board off or holding its button does not clear them.
Beginners see live readings on screen. They make the kit react with simple if-then rules, with no coding.
Confident students can go further on the same board, with its web API or its open Arduino code. You do not need a second kit for them.
Students guess what will happen, test it, write down the results, fix mistakes and explain their choices.
Terms 1 to 3 each end with a task to assess (lessons 8, 16 and 24). Lesson 31 is a capstone project and lesson 32 is a showcase.
The lessons are for ages 10 and up. Younger students can join with an adult nearby. Each lesson has three parts: theory, an activity and a challenge. Each also has teacher notes, a short "Did you get it?" check and a "Try it" demo that runs in the browser with no kit.
32 free lessons45–60 minutes eachno coding needed
Term 1Weeks 1–8 · 8 lessons
Get the board on Wi-Fi, control its lights, read a button and a light sensor, then build a traffic light.
Some of the lessons
Term 2Weeks 9–16 · 8 lessons
Read temperature, distance and movement, turn a small motor, and switch a low-voltage fan or lamp with the relay.
Some of the lessons
Term 3Weeks 17–24 · 8 lessons
Sense gas and soil moisture, write messages on the screen, plan with flowcharts and make your first no-code rules.
Some of the lessons
Term 4Weeks 25–32 · 8 lessons
Make rules that react to sensors and timers, build an automatic parking gate, then design and show your own project.
Some of the lessons
Step-by-step plans and flowcharts, true-or-false logic, loops, and rules that react when something happens. For example: "If it gets too hot, turn on the fan."
Curriculum words: algorithms, Boolean logic, control flow, event-driven rules.
Students measure heat, light, distance and soil moisture with real sensors. They compare two thermometers side by side (lesson 11). They set trigger points like "too hot" and back their claims with real readings. In lesson 16, pairs write down five kinds of reading every 5 minutes.
Curriculum words: measurement, calibration, patterns, thresholds, uncertainty, evidence.
In small teams, students describe a problem and build a first version. They decide how to test it, improve it, record their work and present it.
Curriculum words: problem definition, prototyping, test criteria, iteration, documentation.
Teachers: see what the lessons give you in class.
Each kit is one MakerBuddy IoT Kit V1.0 board and 9 plug-in parts. The board comes in purple or green; both are the same design. Pick a filter to see the parts by job. Each part links to the lesson that teaches it.
The kit photo at the top of this page also shows connector cables, a small bulb, a small fan, craft sticks and a screwdriver. Ask us which of these extras come with your order.
No accounts: readings and commands stay on your own Wi-Fi
Students control the kit from the free MakerBuddy web app, on a laptop or iPad. The phone app is not in the app stores yet. See what IT needs to set up.
All 32 lessons, the teacher notes and the project ideas are free to read online. You can use them with or without buying kits.
The board's software (firmware and web app) is open source under GPL-3.0. The board design is open under CC BY-SA 4.0. The sensors are common parts with standard names, like the DHT11 and HC-SR04. See the open files on GitHub (opens in a new tab).
Plan one kit for every 2 or 3 students, plus a spare. Kits are not used up, so one set serves every class that uses it.
Pakistan
PKR 40,000 per kit
Order on this site, then pay by bank transfer to the UBL account of OR97, the company that makes MakerBuddy. The form takes up to 200 kits.
Volume discounts
Outside Pakistan
USD 200 per kit
Tell us where the kits are going and how many you need.
We reply with a written quote that includes delivery to your address.
Delivery depends on your address, so every order starts with a quote.
Anywhere
The board design, the firmware and the web app are open source on GitHub.
You find the parts and build the board yourself. No ready-made Gerber files or parts list are published.
Prefer email? Write to info@makerbuddy.cc. Give your school's name, country and city, how many students or kits, and when you want to start. Ask about delivery times, warranty or invoices before you order.
Teach all 32 lessons in order, one a week, in four terms of 8 lessons. Or teach only the terms that fit your computer, science or design classes. See the lessons in order.
Run a weekly club. Students first build projects with step-by-step help. Then teams invent their own and show them at an event at the end. Our 50 project ideas help teams pick.
Give teams a challenge, such as saving energy, helping people with disabilities, or making a room smarter. Each team builds a working model and presents it.
Teachers practise on the same kit before class. They learn the parts, try a lesson and practise fixing common problems. With no board, they can type demo as the device name in the dashboard to see sample readings.
Two things can stop a first lesson: Wi-Fi the board cannot join, and school laptops that block the browser extension. Check both with your IT lead before the first class.
No student accounts are needed. Readings and commands travel only on your own network.
The web app and the Chrome and Edge extensions use Google Analytics. The Firefox extension does not. Read our privacy policy.
The board's controls have no password and no encryption. Keep the kits on a private classroom network. Never make them reachable from the internet. More in technical details.
On managed laptops, ask IT to allow the free MakerBuddy extension for Chrome, Edge or Firefox. Without it, the web app shows an install screen that cannot be closed.
Each kit runs on 5 V through the board's micro-USB port. Ask us if a cable and charger come with your order. If not, have a micro-USB cable and a 5 V USB charger for each kit.
Plan
Decide which classes take part, what they should learn, how many lessons a week you can give, and your budget.
Try it first
Start with one teacher, one class and one lesson the teacher has tried. In Pakistan you can order from 1 kit; discounts start at 10.
Get ready
Check the Wi-Fi and the browser extension. Choose where to store the kits and how many students share one. The checklist below covers it all.
Teach
Follow the four terms in order, from lights and buttons to full automation. The course ends with a capstone project and a showcase.
Check
Ask teachers what worked. Look at students' projects, their notes and the end-of-term tasks in lessons 8, 16 and 24.
Grow
Use what worked in more classes, clubs or school branches.
Before your first lesson: tick each item as it is done. Ticks are saved in this browser only.
MakerBuddy is the STEM education brand of OR97. OR97 makes the kit.
Ready when you are
Order kits online in Pakistan, or ask for a written quote anywhere else. Questions first? Write to us with your class sizes.
Showing all 15 parts.
These work as soon as the board has power. Nothing to plug in.
The brain is a small Wi-Fi computer (an ESP32) on the same board. The plug-in parts go into labelled sockets, and most plugs fit only one way. The distance sensor and the text screen use four wires, matched by name.
They sense temperature, humidity, distance, movement, smoke or gas, and soil moisture.
They move, switch or show something.
Ideas: Parking gate, clothesline, moving character
Taught in lesson 14
Ideas: Small fan or bulb that turns itself on (low-voltage only)
Low-voltage things only. Never connect mains electricity.
Taught in lesson 15
How many kits does your class need?
One kit for every 2 or 3 students keeps everyone hands-on.
Students sharing one kit
You need 11 kits for PKR 431,200.
30 students ÷ 3 per kit = 10 kits, plus 1 spare.
You pay by bank transfer after you order.
Outside Pakistan? Kits are USD 200 each. Pick your region above and we send a written quote with delivery.
Will the course fit your timetable?
Set the weeks you can give it and the lessons each week. You do not have to teach all 32.
Lessons each week
Students reach all 32 lessons.
1 lesson a week for 32 weeks is 32 lessons. They go from the first lesson to the final showcase. They finish all four terms.
Class time: about 24 to 32 hours (45–60 minutes a lesson).
Term tasks and showcase
Will it work on your school Wi-Fi?
Answer four quick questions. The panel tells you what is ready and what to do first.
1.Is the school Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz?
Most routers and most phone hotspots offer 2.4 GHz. The board cannot join a 5 GHz network.
2.Does it join with just a network name and password?
No sign-in web page (a captive portal) and no username (enterprise Wi-Fi).
3.Will the board and the students' laptops or tablets be on the same network?
The dashboard talks to the board over your own Wi-Fi, not over the internet.
4.Which devices will students use?
Pick all that apply.
What MakerBuddy needs
Internet is needed only to open the web app or install the extension. Readings and commands stay on your network.
Test a device before the day: open the dashboard and type demo as the device name to see sample data with no board.
