Wearable technology
Integrating a heart monitor into an item of clothing
In this activity students will design a piece of wearable technology that integrates a heart monitor into an item of clothing such as a t-shirt or sock.
The lesson can follow Design a personal heart monitoring system with the micro:bit, where students will programme their own heart monitor.
This is one of a set of resources developed to aid the class teaching of the secondary national curriculum, particularly KS3. It has been designed to support the delivery of key topics within design and technology (DT) and science.
Activity: Integrating a heart monitor into an item of clothing
In this activity students will explore how to make a piece of technology wearable.
As well as investigating how they might attached a heart monitor to a piece of clothing, learners will also need to consider how to make their design commercially viable (i.e., it must be attractive, affordable, sustainable etc).
Students will sketch and annotate their idea, explaining their material choices and how the different components work. If time allows, they can also create a prototype using modelling materials such as card.
Download our activity overview for an introductory lesson plan on designing wearable technology.
The engineering context
As well as creating innovative solutions, engineers must also think about how to commercialise products (otherwise, they might not sell or even ever make it to market – for example, Google Glass).
Suggested learning outcomes
By the end of this lesson students will know how to integrate an electric device such as the BBC micro:bit within a product. They’ll also be able to design and annotate ideas using technical language.
Download our activity sheet and other teaching resources
The activity sheet includes teachers’ notes, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your class’s and your schools’ needs.
You can download our classroom lesson plan below.
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