Acceleration makes the world go around--literally!  It's the force that causes movement like a car accelerating away from a stop light or an object falling to the ground from gravity when dropped.  Accelerometers are small sensors that can detect the force of acceleration and are great for detecting motion and orientation.  The LIS3DH triple-axis accelerometer in particular is an inexpensive and easy to use accelerometer with features like X, Y, Z axis acceleration and click detection.  This guide will show you how to wire the LIS3DH to a board like the ESP8266 or SAMD21/M0 and start reading acceleration values from it in CircuitPython!

Before you get started you'll want to be familiar with CircuitPython, MicroPython, and the LIS3DH by reading these guides:

• MicroPython Basics: What is MicroPython?
• MicroPython Basics: How to Load MicroPython on a Board
• MicroPython Basics: Load Files & Run Code
• Adafruit LIS3DH Triple-Axis Accelerometer Breakout

Continue on to learn about the hardware needed to follow this guide.