“Step 1: Build the 555 Timer Circuit Plug the 555 timer into the breadboard all the way at the top so that you’ll have room for the other parts of the circuits farther down. Then, connect the capacitors and resistors to the IC according to this project’s circuit diagram. The capacitor I suggest in this project’s Shopping List is a nonpolarized capacitor, so it doesn’t matter which way you connect it. If you use a polarized capacitor instead, connect it according to the plus marking in the circuit diagram. Use wires to make connections as needed, as I show in this breadboard diagram. In this project, it’s best to use the supply column pairs on both sides to make connections easier and keep everything as tidy as possible. The breadboard that I recommend in this project’s Shopping List doesn’t have blue and red markings, but the positive and negative columns are the same as in breadboards with the stripes. The left and right sides of the breadboard each have a pair of supply columns. The positive supply column is the left column in each pair, and the negative supply column is the right column in each pair. Use a red wire to connect the positive column on one side to the positive column on the other side, and do the same using a black wire with the negative columns. As you follow my instructions, connect everything in the 555 timer circuit that should connect to VCC to one of the positive supply columns, and connect everything that should connect to GND to one of the negative supply columns.”