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The Gladiators micro:bit competition is a challenge for 7 to 11 year olds in UK schools to design a fitness gadget to help Phantom and Dynamite to be their best.

And here's the prize - Phantom.

That's right, the winning school gets a visit from me.

Amazing.

And their gadget design will be brought to life by the ����ý micro:bit team.

A real life gadget and a real life Gladiator. Best school day ever.

Plus, the winning school and the 3 runners up get a £500 voucher for computing equipment. Incredible.

And a special coding day with a ����ý micro:bit wizard.

A phantom and a wizard? Magic.

So how do schools get involved? You will need:

• A great idea for a performance training gadget;
• A drawing of what it will look like and;
• An explanation of how it works.

Is there coding involved?

Nope. We're just looking for the best fitness gadget ideas and designs. The ����ý micro:bit team will help bring them to life.

I can't wait.

3, 2, 1, design!

When you bring a new product to life, you do it in stages like this: Design, make, evaluate.

We're focusing on design, and the first thing is to decide on the problem we need to solve.

What's your biggest physical challenge right now?

Think about the kind of skills that gladiators like Dynamite and I use. Which of those can we improve?

For example, strength, stamina, balance and speed. And that is the purpose of the gadget.

We can turn the ����ý micro:bit into lots of different types of gadgets. They have LED light panels you can program to make heartsor smiley faces.

It also has a speaker that you can program to make your own sounds and beats.

I’m taking this very seriously you know. Leave it to me.

What about Squat or Not? The micro:bit beeps when your legs fall out of a squat.

Nice.

What about Shimmy for the Winny? You can shimmy and the micro:bit will tell you how long you can keep going.

How would that help me be my best?

Ooh! It can play salsa.

…Okay. I'll try something else. Got it! Get ready for, drum roll… The Beef Barometer! Listen, you lift a weight the micro:bit counts your reps and plays you a victory tune.

I've done a drawing to help explain my idea. I thought about how you attach it to your arms securely and comfortably. Have I won? Are you going to come to my school?

�±����…

I'm so excited.

There's just one thing.

Yes?

You're not between 7 and 11 years old.

No.

You’re not at a UK school.

I was. Once.

You're not working as a part of a class either.

But… I am class. Look at all this.

Sorry, Mwaksy. You can't enter the competition.

My micro:bit is making a big, sad face right now.

What can your class come up with instead? For more information, including the terms and privacy notice, go to the micro:bit sectionof the ����ý Teach website, and you can see the link here. Entries close at midday on the 6th of December 2024.

Here, Phantom. Does foam finger pointing count as endurance training?

Good luck, everyone!