PROJECTS · 28 IDEAS TO BUILD

Make something real.

Example projects for every age and every area. Pick one that excites you, or use one as a starting point for your own idea. The level shows where most pupils start, but if a project looks fun, have a go.

Levels: Explorers 6–9Builders 9–12Challengers 12–15Seniors 15–18 "+" means "and older".

Coding

Software & algorithms in the Python lab.

CodingExplorers+

Maze designer

Design a maze on squared paper, write the program that solves it, then swap with a partner and see if their program works on your maze.

You'll use: Paper, then Practice Coding
You'll learn: Sequencing, debugging, planning

CodingBuilders+

Pattern printer

Use loops and print() to draw stairs, pyramids and checkerboards out of text characters. Can you make one loop draw any size?

You'll use: Python lab free coding
You'll learn: for loops, nested loops, parameters

CodingChallengers+

One solver for every maze

Write a single Python program, using sensors such as can_move_left(), that reaches the goal on every mission without being changed.

You'll use: Python lab and sensors
You'll learn: while, if / else, algorithms

CodingSeniors

Shortest-path finder

Represent a maze as a grid in Python and find the shortest route with breadth-first search. Compare it with the left-hand rule.

You'll use: Python lab free coding
You'll learn: Data structures, BFS, complexity

Web & Dev

Real web pages in Web Lab.

Web & DevExplorers+

Greeting card

Make a birthday or thank-you card for someone real. Choose the colours, fonts and message, then show it to them.

You'll use: Web Lab Level 1
You'll learn: How design choices change a page

Web & DevBuilders+

Hobby page

A page about something you love: a sport, a game, a pet or a book. Use headings, a list, a picture and your own colours.

You'll use: Web Lab About me template
You'll learn: HTML structure, CSS colours and fonts

Web & DevChallengers+

Quiz game

A multiple-choice quiz that keeps score and says "well done" at the end. Test it on a younger pupil.

You'll use: Web Lab Click me! template
You'll learn: JavaScript events, variables, if

Web & DevChallengers+

Club or event website

A site for a real school club or event, with a gallery, the key details and a clear layout that works on phones.

You'll use: Web Lab Event poster and Photo gallery templates
You'll learn: Layout, responsive design, writing for an audience

Web & DevSeniors

Portfolio site

A personal site showing off your best club projects, built from a blank page. Check it works with a keyboard and a screen reader.

You'll use: Web Lab Blank canvas
You'll learn: Semantic HTML, accessibility, CSS grid

Hardware Planned

ESP32 and MicroPython. Until kits arrive, every project here can be built in the free Wokwi ESP32 simulator.

HardwareBuilders+

Traffic light

Three LEDs that change in the right order, with the right timing. Add a button for a pedestrian crossing.

You'll use: ESP32, 3 LEDs, button
You'll learn: Sequencing, loops, timing

HardwareChallengers+

Night light

A light that turns itself on when the room gets dark, just like wall_ahead() but with a real sensor.

You'll use: ESP32, light sensor, LED
You'll learn: Reading sensors, thresholds, if

HardwareChallengers+

Reaction-time game

An LED lights up after a random wait. Who can hit the button fastest? Keep a high score.

You'll use: ESP32, LED, buttons
You'll learn: Randomness, timing, variables

HardwareSeniors

Weather station

Measure temperature and light, then have the ESP32 serve a web page showing the live readings.

You'll use: ESP32, sensors, Web Lab skills
You'll learn: Wi-Fi, HTTP, combining hardware and web

HardwareSeniors · team

Maze robot

A two-wheeled robot that drives a maze taped on the floor using the same forward(n), left() and right() commands as CodeQuest.

You'll use: ESP32, motors, motor driver, distance sensor
You'll learn: Motors, sensors, turning code into movement

Cyber

Defend by understanding attacks.

CyberExplorers+

Spot-the-phish posters

Design posters that teach younger pupils the warning signs of a scam message, then put them up around school.

You'll use: Paper or Web Lab
You'll learn: Phishing, social engineering, communication

CyberChallengers+

Password strength checker

A Python program that scores a password on length, variety and common words, and explains how to make it stronger.

You'll use: Python lab free coding
You'll learn: Strings, conditions, password security

CyberChallengers+

Bandit logbook

Work through OverTheWire Bandit and keep a logbook of each level: what you tried, what worked, and the command you learned.

You'll use: OverTheWire Bandit (supervised)
You'll learn: Linux command line, persistence

CyberSeniors

Security review

Review a classmate's Web Lab page (with permission): could user input break it? Write up what you found and how to fix it.

You'll use: Web Lab, Cyber tab
You'll learn: XSS, input validation, responsible disclosure

CyberSeniors · team

CTF team entry

Form a team and enter picoCTF, a free capture-the-flag competition for school students.

You'll use: picoCTF
You'll learn: Cryptography, forensics, web security, teamwork

AI Future

Future consideration.

AIBuilders+

Rock, paper, scissors AI

Train a model to recognise your hand shapes with the webcam, then play against it.

You'll use: Teachable Machine
You'll learn: Training data, classification

AIChallengers+

Bias detective

Train a model on deliberately unbalanced examples and watch it get things wrong. Then fix the data and compare.

You'll use: Machine Learning for Kids
You'll learn: Bias, fairness, data quality

AISeniors

Learning maze robot

A robot that learns a maze by trial and error and gets faster each time. Compare it with your hand-written solver.

You'll use: Python
You'll learn: Reinforcement learning basics

Open source

Contribute to real projects.

Open sourceBuilders+

The Snack Shack app: a broken banner image, a misspelled heading and pale, hard-to-read prices

Fix the Snack Shack

Our own deliberately broken school tuck-shop app, with 17 bugs to hunt. Spelling slips and broken pictures for beginners; maths bugs, a Python leaderboard, a traffic light and a security hole for older pupils. Fix one, then send it in as a real pull request.

You'll use: The CodeQuest Snack Shack repo on GitHub (link coming soon)
You'll learn: Debugging, reading code, tests, the fork and pull request workflow

Open sourceChallengers+

Your first pull request

Follow the First Contributions guide to make a real (safe) contribution on GitHub, step by step.

You'll use: GitHub account (age 13+, with permission)
You'll learn: Git, forks, pull requests

Open sourceSeniors

Good first issue

Find a beginner-friendly issue on Good First Issue and fix it. Documentation and typo fixes count.

You'll use: GitHub
You'll learn: Reading other people's code, collaboration

Combine areas

Capstone ideas that mix two or more areas.

Combine areasBuilders+

Online safety website

A website that teaches younger pupils to spot scams, with a quiz at the end.

You'll use: Web Lab + Cyber
You'll learn: Web, cyber, writing for an audience

Combine areasSeniors

Sensor dashboard

A web page that shows live readings from your hardware, with charts and alerts.

You'll use: Hardware + Web
You'll learn: Hardware, web, data

Combine areasSeniors · team

Secure robot

Hardware, Software and Cyber stream pupils build a maze robot together, then try to secure it against each other.

You'll use: Hardware + Coding + Cyber
You'll learn: Teamwork across specialisms

Safety first: cyber projects are only ever done on systems you own or have written permission to test. Projects that use outside sites (GitHub, picoCTF, Bandit, AI tools) are done with a teacher's or parent's permission and follow each site's age rules.