Control

Imagine a robot with no instructions for when to stop, wait, or repeat.

It would be complete chaos!

That's where Control blocks come in.

Control blocks help your program:

Wait before doing something
Repeat actions
Make decisions
Count through numbers
Stop when needed

Think of Control blocks as the traffic lights of your program. They keep everything moving in the right order.

What Are Control Blocks?

Control blocks tell your program:

WHEN to do something

HOW OFTEN to do it

HOW LONG to wait

WHEN to stop

Without Control blocks, your program would simply run from top to bottom once and then end.

Think of Control blocks as the manager of your program.

Control Category

[INSERT CATEGORY IMAGE HERE: Control]

Figure 5.1 – Blocks available in the Control category.

The Control category can be organized into four simple ideas:

WAIT

↓

DECIDE

↓

REPEAT

↓

STOP

Control Block Reference

Block	What It Does	When To Use It
Delay	Pauses the program	Wait before the next action
If	Makes a decision	Run code only when a condition is true
Repeat Times	Repeats a fixed number of times	Blink an LED 10 times
Repeat While	Repeats while a condition remains true	Keep checking a sensor
For Each Range	Counts through numbers	Count from 0 to 10
For Each Item	Goes through list items	Process a list one item at a time
Break	Stops a loop early	Exit a loop immediately
Pass	Does nothing	Placeholder block
Running Time	Tracks program time	Build timers and clocks
Time Difference	Calculates elapsed time	Measure how long something takes
Timer Setup	Creates a timer	Scheduled events
Timer Action	Perform an action after a period	Automatic actions
Reset	Restart the board	Start over
WDT	Watchdog timer (advanced)	System protection
Memory Tools	Memory management (advanced)	Advanced projects

Delay

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: Delay]

Sometimes your program needs to wait.

The Delay block pauses the program before moving to the next instruction.

Example

LED ON

↓

Wait 1 Second

↓

LED OFF

Real-Life Example

Think about a traffic light:

Green

↓

Wait

↓

Yellow

↓

Wait

↓

Red

Without the delay, all lights would change instantly.

Tip

Delay means "Pause here before continuing."

Making Decisions with IF

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: IF]

The IF block lets your program make decisions.

If the condition is true, the code runs.

If the condition is false, it does not.

Example

IF Button Pressed

↓

Turn LED ON

Concept

Question

↓

TRUE?

↙ ↘

YES NO

↓ ↓

Action Skip

Real-Life Example

IF it is raining

↓

Take an umbrella

IF blocks help programs make smart choices.

Repeat a Specific Number of Times

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: Repeat Times]

Sometimes you know exactly how many times something should happen.

Example

Repeat 10 Times

↓

Blink LED

Concept

Repeat

↓

Count

↓

Stop

Tip

Use Repeat Times when you already know the number of repetitions.

Repeat While

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: Repeat While]

This loop keeps running while a condition remains true.

Example

While Button Not Pressed

↓

Keep Flashing LED

Concept

Condition TRUE?

↓

Keep Repeating

Real-Life Example

While the game is running

↓

Keep updating the score

Repeat While means "Keep going until something changes."

Counting Through Numbers

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: For Each Range]

This block automatically counts through a range of numbers.

Example

0 → 5

Produces:

Concept

Start

↓

Count

↓

End

Beginner Uses

Counting scores

LED animations

Number displays

Timers

Working Through a List

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: For Each Item]

This block processes items one at a time.

Example

List:

Apple

Banana

Orange

The loop processes:

Apple

↓

Banana

↓

Orange

Concept

Item

↓

Next Item

↓

Next Item

Stopping a Loop Early

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: Break]

Sometimes you don't want to finish the entire loop.

The Break block immediately stops it.

Example

Repeat Forever

↓

Button Pressed

↓

Break

Concept

Loop Running

↓

Condition Met

↓

STOP LOOP

Break = Exit the loop now.

Pass

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: Pass]

Pass does nothing.

Really!

It simply allows the program to continue.

Example

IF condition

↓

Pass

↓

Continue Program

Tip

Pass means "Nothing happens here yet."

How Long Has My Program Been Running?

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: System Running Time]

This block tells you how long the program has been running.

Example

Program Starts

↓

5 Seconds Pass

↓

Running Time = 5000 ms

Useful for:

Timers

Stopwatches

Games

Countdown systems

Measuring Time Differences

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: Time Difference]

Sometimes you want to know how much time has passed.

Example

Save Start Time

↓

Do Something

↓

Calculate Difference

↓

Elapsed Time

Useful for:

Timing races

Measuring events

Performance testing

Creating Timed Actions

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: Timer Setup]

Timers help schedule actions automatically.

Example

Wait 5 Seconds

↓

Play Buzzer

Concept

Timer

↓

Wait

↓

Action

Beginner Uses

Alarm systems

Countdown timers

Automated lighting

Schedules

Resetting the Program

[INSERT BLOCK IMAGE HERE: Reset]

Sometimes a project needs to start over.

The Reset block restarts the board or program.

Concept

Program Running

↓

Reset

↓

Start Again

Control + Logic

Control and Logic work together.

Logic asks the question.

Control decides what to do.

Example

Distance < 10?

↓

TRUE

↓

Stop Motors

Concept

Question

↓

TRUE/FALSE

↓

Action

Control + Sensors

Control becomes powerful when combined with sensor data.

Obstacle Detector

Distance < 10

↓

Stop Robot

Temperature Alarm

Temperature > 30

↓

Turn Buzzer ON

Motion Detector

Motion Detected

↓

Flash LED

Traffic Light Simulator

Green LED

↓

Wait 3 Seconds

↓

Yellow LED

↓

Wait 1 Second

↓

Red LED

Skills:

Delay

Timing

Sequences

LED Flasher

Repeat 10 Times

↓

LED ON

↓

LED OFF

Skills:

Repeat

Delay

Loops

Obstacle Stop Robot

Distance Sensor

↓

IF Distance < 10

↓

Stop Motors

Skills:

Sensors

Logic

IF Statements

Countdown Timer

↓

Play Sound

Skills:

Counting Loops

Timing

Displays

Quick Guide for Students

Need the program to wait?

Use:

Delay

Need to make a decision?

Use:

Need something to repeat?

Use:

Repeat Times

Need to repeat until something changes?

Use:

Repeat While

Need to count numbers?

Use:

For Each Range

Need to stop a loop?

Use:

Break

Need a timer?

Use:

Running Time

Timer

Quick Reference

Family	Main Idea
Delay	Wait
IF	Make decisions
Repeat Times	Fixed repetitions
Repeat While	Repeat until condition changes
For Each Range	Count through numbers
For Each Item	Work through lists
Break	Stop loops
Pass	Do nothing
Running Time	Measure time
Timer	Timed actions
Reset	Start again

Summary

In this lesson, you learned how Control blocks organize the flow of a program.

You explored:

Delays

IF statements

Repeat loops

While loops

Counting loops

Lists

Break

Timers

Program Reset

Control blocks help programs decide when, how often, and for how long actions should happen.

Key Takeaway

Control blocks are the traffic lights of your program. They help decide when actions happen, how often they repeat, how long they wait, and when they stop. Without Control blocks, programs would be fast, messy, and impossible to organize!