Best Electronics Kit For Six Year Old - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: JoeN
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 07:47:21 am
content: My brother has informed me that my six year old niece has been a member of a robotics club designed for very young kids for the last year (!). He also informs me she would love an electronics or robotics kit for Christmas. I have no idea what they are shown at this age or what kids that age can comprehend. I thought it was impossible for them to comprehend electronics at all. Any ideas what a good kit would be? She's quite smart for her age, but still she is six. Her dad would help her with it. He's very bright, but not really into electronics himself. Ideas?

author: Jolle
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 08:41:03 am
content: I don't know if it is too complex, but maybe LEGO mindstorm could be an option? It is not cheap, but will give you an array of different sensors/modules and the programming is done with blocks in a GUI, so it should be possible for "normal" people to grasp the concepts.

author: mtdoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 09:58:41 am
content: Snapcircuits

author: Brumby
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 10:05:59 am
content: I was 8 when my parents gave me the Philips EE20 kit. They had no understanding of what it could do and would not be able to offer any help whatsoever - but they thought I would be OK with it. I took to it like a duck to water - and that was in the 60's when technology was pretty much associated with people in white coats.That kit had you directly wrangling with the components, so the leads were at risk with repeated use - but something like this removes that problem:6 might be a bit young - but with the exposure to technology that kids have these days, I wouldn't back away from suggesting something like this.

author: Brumby
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 10:08:58 am
content: Not sure what's available these days - but they can be impressive:

author: Brumby
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 10:12:05 am
content: The Philips kit did have one advantage over these 'pre-mounted' systems ... you placed the components over a card which was a close equivalent to a circuit diagram...The Snap Circuits idea does this as well.For my Philips kit, component leads survived by a simple rule - once you bent a lead, never straighten it. Most of the time, you would use them again with the previous bend being exactly what you needed.

author: spudboy488
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 11:38:30 am
content: This is the one I started with in the mid-70's. I would look for a kits that allowed easy connections and captivated components.

author: Ice-Tea
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 12:31:29 pm
content: Get her a Boldport subscription

author: MK14
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 01:03:01 pm
content: Quote from: blueskull on September 30, 2016, 10:17:59 amThey sell those in the west, with English names/manuals. E.g. Snapcircuits. I vaguely remember there is at least another company which does them.There are various kit types, with different sizes.I can't remember or don't know the country which first brought them out (invented them), but I would guess it was England/UK, the USA or Japan.Also (as others have said) I agree the reusable components kit are a good idea. There use to be some very good ones in the 1960's/70's and 1980's.E.g. Denshi SR3A, marketed as or separately sold as Electroni kits (spelling is correct, 'n' left out was how they did it).http://www.petervis.com/electronics-lab/denshi-board-sr3a/denshi-board-sr3a-blocks.htmlTandy/Radio-shack use to sell lots of suitable kits. With lots of spring contacts and occasionally component push in type breadboards.

author: Gyro
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 01:05:17 pm
content: Oh, I'd forgotten the Philips one with the card overlays, that really takes me back! Denshi Board was a good (though later) one, plug-in component blocks, no nasty springs! I actually used to get things working with that one!http://www.petervis.com/electronics-lab/denshi-board-sr3a/denshi-board-sr3a.html@JoeN: What about a robot arm kit of some sort? something that moves but doesn't run away. There seem to be loads of different ones around these days...http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2047675.m570.l1311.R4.TR4.TRC2.A0.H0.Xrobot+arm.TRS0&_nkw=robot+arm+kit&_sacat=0

author: setq
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 01:21:30 pm
content: I was soldering when I was 8. Had a Tandy/Radio Shack 160 in 1 kit as my first step. It's never too early. You just need guidance. I'd worked out how to use inductive kickback from a relay oscillator to zap people within a month.Got a Denshi EX-150 from a jumble sale back in about 1989 as well for 20p. Absolute gem that was. Didn't come with any instructions but I managed to make an AM radio out of it that worked eventually.I'd hit the old spring board X in 1 kits as the first step. That and a cheap DMM will go a long way!

author: Jeff_Birt
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 01:52:37 pm
content: When I was 6 I got an Erector set (Mechano). I can still remember the first time I tried to build a motorized car by myself (after projects my Dad and I put together). I had the chassis, wheels, axles, all bolted together OK. The motor was bolted to the chassis along with the battery pack and wired together. When I flipped the switch the motor whirred to life and the car just sat there. It was both exciting and disappointing, it sort of worked and yet it did not move. I don't know how long I stared at it before I realized there was nothing connecting the motor and wheels. In the 4th grade I got one of the Radio Shack project kits.I think there have been many good suggestions made. The electronics project kits teach kids about how components and circuits work. Lego, etc. are more about electo-mechanical things. If she is more interested in robots and stuff that move at this point then something like Lego might be better.I sent my 13 year old niece a Parallax BOE robot kit and a USB microscope this past week and my sister said she squealed with excitement. Getting hands on experience is invaluable to kids, most never get the chance these days.

author: noidea
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 05:03:08 pm
content: Quote from: mtdoc on September 30, 2016, 09:58:41 am+1 my son is five and he has fun with these but at the moment just really treats it more like a dot to dot match the picture in the book then press the button and see what it does than really understanding what is going on.He keeps saying he wants a robot for Christmas and I keep eyeing off the meccano one at the hobby shop but I don't think he's ready for it yet.

author: aandrew
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 06:34:39 pm
content: I actually have some experience here!Mindstorms are far too expensive for what they actually offer, IMO. None of the kids really got into it, although they *love* Lego. Personally, I was gluing bricks to motors and reaming out bricks to accept non-lego things, but would have loved a Mindstorm as a kid. The kids seem more interested in the creative/imaginative bits of Lego than using it for a robotics platform.My 4yo got some snap circuits for his birthday. He loves them, and the diagrams are actually pretty easy to follow (even at 4) and it's almost impossible to damage anything. Between his 7yo brother and him, they seem to get a lot of use out of it. I think it might be a little young for a 6-7 year old, who has a lot more fine motor skills. I think the spring-contact kits would be better for someone that age.My personal favourite is the spring-contact type kits, like others have linked here. I got the 30-in-one when I was about 7 or so and I remember building every single circuit, burning out transistors (dad replaced them, it's pretty easy) and building more. From there it was a short hop to those white breadboards and a fishing tackle box full of 74-series logic, LEDs, transistors and passives.I made a deal with my 7yo back when he was 5 or 6. I told him once he could read I would buy him a copy of my bible (Forrest M Mims' Getting Started in Electronics). I backed the Circuit Classics campaign on Crowd Supply, more for the autographed copy of GSIE, but when that arrives that's when he'll get his own (unsigned) copy and start his adventures. They've got a pile of electronic "crap" in the basement that they can use, and they're already pretty decent with hand tools. I'm very, very keen to see them delve into this hobby, along with rudimentary programming when they're a little older.We are so fortunate to live in a time with things like cheap Linux computers (RPi, BBB, etc.) and Arduinos and things like Tessels. Cheap sensor modules from Aliexpress and the entire world at their fingertips. I never would have dreamed of having these kinds of tools at my disposal so young.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 30, 2016, 06:40:41 pm
content: Quote from: Brumby on September 30, 2016, 10:12:05 amStill got mine.Got it for my 7th birthday, now 50 yrs ago.

author: SteveyG
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 08:10:53 am
content: I had this one from Tandy. This pretty much led me up to using breadboards etc.

author: JoeN
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 10:13:48 am
content: Thanks to everyone. This Snapcircuits kit looks really nice and a bargain for what you get. I will run it by my brother unless someone tells me I have selected the wrong kit. Everyone on Amazon thinks it's great.https://www.amazon.com/Snap-Circuits-SC-500-Electronics-Discovery/dp/B00CIXVIZI

author: blackbird
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 11:45:08 am
content: Somewhere in the early 80's I've got the Philips Electronics Experiment boxes, first the A kit, later the B upgrade-kit. I really liked these kits. I haven't used them for at least 25 years but still kept them. Maybe in a few years time these can give my son (now just 9 months old) his first hands-on experience with electronics. Most components, like the capacitors, will be crusty and need to be replaced with newer components.

author: Someone
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 12:21:39 pm
content: Quote from: aandrew on September 30, 2016, 06:34:39 pmReally? The descriptive language concepts of programming should be much more accessible than the abstract world of electronics.I certainly found programming much more gratifying with its simple step by step evolution, until I had enough maths under control to be able to use simultaneous equations to understand circuits.

author: timb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 12:50:45 pm
content: Quote from: Someone on October 01, 2016, 12:21:39 pmA Raspberry Pi hooked to a spare TV would have been *amazing* to me as a 6 year old. There's a graphical programming language called Scratch that's good for that age range. With adult supervision you could even turn the Pi into the brains of a robot!

author: MK14
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 12:52:14 pm
content: Quote from: JoeN on October 01, 2016, 10:13:48 amIf you are looking for options, then here is another (spring version):https://www.amazon.com/Elenco-Electronic-Playground-Learning-Center/dp/B0035XSZDI/ref=sr_1_4?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1475326044&sr=1-4&keywords=electronics+kit

author: MK14
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 12:54:31 pm
content: Quote from: wilfred on October 01, 2016, 12:49:30 pmThe kit I just posted says from ages 12 upwards, so I'm ten times worseIt is difficult to choose such things without knowing the people involved.I'm convinced when I was 6, I would have loved the twelve year old's set. But I probably did well with older (aged) stuff, that is maybe just me.EDIT:On the advert page (Amazon, answered questions section), some of the customers discuss relevant ages. They seem to be saying the age especially applies when using it unsupervised, but if supervised (and hence shown what/how to do it), younger ages can use it.But I suppose 6 to 12 is too much of a stretch, sorry!EDIT2:Kits such as the following one, seem to be designed for younger aged kids. But I can't find/see any specific mention of age requirements for it.https://www.amazon.com/Physics-Science-Kits-Electronic-Discovery/dp/B01KCW91H8

author: amyk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 02:14:42 pm
content: I think that's an excellent age to start learning about logic gates. Nothing too complex, but simple circuits with lightbulbs (or LEDs), switches, and batteries should be enough to get the concepts across of things like AND and OR. From there she could go either analogue or digital, although I think the digital route is somewhat easier and naturally leads into computers and programming. Too many "programmers" or "coders" these days don't even know how to count in binary! If she continues on that path she should be well ahead of them. On the other hand, she might be a bit too young for a bunch of 7400s and a breadboard...

author: aandrew
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 02:21:33 pm
content: Quote from: JoeN on October 01, 2016, 10:13:48 amThis is the exact kit our 4yo got. I'm positive he'll love it.

author: aandrew
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 02:30:46 pm
content: Quote from: Someone on October 01, 2016, 12:21:39 pmI find the opposite; electronics is very "physical" -- you pick up a component, you manipulate it with your hands, you can smell a component overheating, see how the glow of an LED changes with your hand on the components or the battery giving out. IMO the kids are much more attuned to their physical surroundings and this is why they love physical objects they can manipulate.Software allows you to do some really cool things, but trying to get them to think like they're programming a very stupid robot can be challenging. They all love the idea of commanding a robot but they think far too high level. "Go to the fridge and get me some juice" rather than "forward 9 steps, left 90 degrees, forward 1 step, right 90 degrees..." etc. That comes with time and mental development.Once they get those kinds of concepts down (and LOGO is a great help here, I'm dying to find a good iOS LOGO app with a real, physical BLE robot... my connections at a certain toy company say they're coming out with something soon though) then they're ready to make LED blinkers or servo controllers with Arduino type kits. Maybe start picking up some Python and such, but I feel those are things for the older, more developed mind.QuoteIt's interesting how differently people approach things. I'm 40 years old and design complex electronics for a living; Unless I'm doing a high speed layout and calculating SI parameters or doing analog/RF design, it is exceedingly rare that I have to worry about this kind of analysis. I tend to design and think by "rules of thumb"; V=IR and basic algebra gets me very, very far.

author: Halcyon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 03:58:40 pm
content: Quote from: aandrew on October 01, 2016, 02:30:46 pmIf we're talking about the sameLogo, you just gave me flashbacks of when I was a kid. My first ever computer was theSharp MZ-800which was based on the Z80 processor. I remember using Logo to create things then printing them out on a 4-colour plotter printer. Ended up selling that computer along with original monitor, 'Quick Disk' floppy drive, plotter printer and a bunch of tapes and disks for $50 in the 1990's. I wish I'd have kept it.

author: JoeN
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 07:19:54 pm
content: Quote from: wilfred on October 01, 2016, 12:49:30 pmShe's really sharp, this is what she is asking for, and she has been doing something like this for the last year. I am running it by my brother, just sent the email. But it is more or less what he said she wanted, he just wasn't aware of the advances and was thinking more like the spring kits from Tandy when we were kids.

author: JoeN
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 07:25:59 pm
content: Quote from: amyk on October 01, 2016, 02:14:42 pmI just want her to get started on this stuff. I can make my own advanced kit for her in a few years I have so many extra breadboards, passives, transistors, 7400ICs, etc. My solderless breadboard kit will be far better than anything on the market given what I have in my lab to include (DIP ADCs, DACs, V/F ICs, timers, etc.)

author: ez24
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 09:39:55 pm
content: Quote from: JoeN on September 30, 2016, 07:47:21 amrobotics :https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KAS5GC4/ref=pd_sbs_21_5?ie=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00KAS5GC4&pd_rd_r=S4ADWEBGVJ93BVA89NDG&pd_rd_w=SKhbF&pd_rd_wg=8qLae&psc=1&refRID=S4ADWEBGVJ93BVA89NDGfor cheaper and youngerhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B011M0XXXM

author: Someone
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 01, 2016, 09:57:21 pm
content: Quote from: aandrew on October 01, 2016, 02:30:46 pmI would suggest programming with nothing physical involved, let young children build on their story telling, make believe, and game playing with making an interactive story or simple game (guess the number). You'll see them quickly add complexity so they can "win" knowing a little trick etc, or just not care about it which is ok too. That could be within an existing framework or with some example code and a forgiving environment that had verbose error reporting.Perhaps we should clearly separate electronics from electrical toys here, adding lights and motors with a battery and switch is within the grasp of most 5-7 year olds, again in support of their primary activities of story telling and make believe. Adding them as props or decoration to other craft projects. But electronics with abstract capacitances and transistors are going to remain magical things that you have to follow instructions to make work, which I'll argue is the worst kind of "education", they should understand and then explore what else can be done not just blindly follow recipes. Try getting a child under 10 to fully grasp AC vs DC, a few might, but its a tough gig.Quote from: aandrew on October 01, 2016, 02:30:46 pmBuilding a transistor amplifier to a recipe compared to calculating all the components by hand, one teaches while the other is rote training to ask for the answer. Kids love to impress adults they care about and just being involved will cause them excitement and pride, but what are the left with after the activity is done?

author: Brumby
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 02, 2016, 12:36:53 am
content: Quote from: wilfred on October 01, 2016, 12:49:30 pmThose age ranges are only a guide. The 'average' 6 year old may struggle, but if you have a 'with it' 6 year old, they may find it just the sort of thing they can really get into.Only those who know the child will be able to make that call - but, from the sounds of it, I wouldn't shy away from it. They may take to it straight away - or they may need a little help getting the first one or two projects up and running, but I get the sense that once they get the hang of it, they will take off on their own!

author: aandrew
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 02, 2016, 04:07:20 pm
content: Quote from: wilfred on October 01, 2016, 12:49:30 pmMy 4yo is very happy playing with snap circuits. I've never given much credence to the age recommendations on toys. My 7yo was playing with 12+ Lego kits since 6 as well. It's all about the kid and what they get from it.Now I'll be the first to admit that my 4yo isn't learning quite the same as what an 8yo would from Snap Circuits, but he understands basic circuit flow, knows how to determine if he's shorted out the batteries by following the blue wire blocks, and understands that the motor spins faster when there aren't other blocks (lights or resistors) on the same path as the motor. Of course he doesn't understand the more complicated circuits or how the IC blocks contain miniature circuits like what he's building, but I see absolutely no reason why someone younger than 8 would not really enjoy the toy.QuoteThat's awesome; I too had one of those spring circuits (I dreamed of getting the 150 in one, but all I could get was the 30 in one). I really do enjoy these kits. They are incredible value and make experimenting with electronics easy.QuoteI am guilty of this, but I'm getting better at listening to my kids. Hell, they even got me into some model rocketry, which I've had a minor interest in but never played with. :-)

author: aandrew
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 02, 2016, 04:10:52 pm
content: Quote from: Halcyon on October 01, 2016, 03:58:40 pmYep, same thing. I was fortunate enough to get into an "enrichment" program in public school, and they introduced us to LOGO with a real, physical robot turtle connected on a LONG ribbon cable to (I think memory is fuzzy here) a Commodore PET.I had a serious obsession with the C64 for many years; I finally sold them all about 10 years ago when I moved. I miss the thing, but also recognize that nostalgia ain't what it used to be. :-)

author: timb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 03, 2016, 10:00:49 pm
content: It's so funny how many of us cut our teeth on the same things as kids.One of my first memories is Christmas when I was 5 years old, getting a huge set of LEGOs.I had *just* turned 7 when I got one of those "150-in-1" spring terminal kits. I very distinctly remember when I got it, too; I was away for the weekend with my uncle and my parents gave it to me when I got home! They had found it at a thrift store; it was essentially brand new, all the wires, the huge manual, the original box and everything. Years later, my mom told me that she was hesitant to buy it, because she thought it was way too advanced for a 7 year old, but my dad insisted. I had a habit of taking the appliances apart to see how they worked, so he felt that the kit might curtail that. It did!Did anyone else here play with Capsela as a kid? I got a set when I was 8 and *holy shit* it blew my mind. Too me, they were even better than LEGOs! They were these clear plastic capsules that connected together via these short hexagonal tubes. There were various types of capsules: Motors, worm gears, differential drives, and sets of various gear ratios. There were also floats, wheels, treads, propellers, impellers, switches (plus wires), a battery pack, pumps, tubing and tons of other stuff!So you could make little motorized platforms that rolled around, or with the floats and impellers/propellers you could make water based things! I learned so much about mechanics with that and it really helped give me a good foundation for locomotion when I started to build robots as a teenager.They also came out with this motorized base; it could move in any direction and had several internal motors that you could use to mount other capsules on. It came with this big IR remote control that you could voice control! It could only learn 8 or so commands (this was the mid-90's, remember) but it still amazed me.Good times, good times...

author: rrinker
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 04, 2016, 12:34:00 pm
content: Oh wow, almost forgot about that - I had some Capsela stuff. I was getting a little old for that by the time they came out, but I still had a lot of fun making various rolling contraptions and also propeller driven ones I ran in the pool.Building and creating toys were always my favorites. When I was very young, my Dad used to joke about going broke buying me batteries, one of my favorite 'toys' was a box full of 6V marker lights, wires, switches (both commercial and homemade ones - strip of brass, 2 nails in a block of wood) and 6V lantern batteries. I took that everywhere - my blanket forts had electric lights, and I would light up our camper (tent on wheels sort, no sink, lights, or stove). And Legos, I had a HUGE box full of them, no idea how many sets all told I had combined into that big box. In those days, about the only thing not square were quarter round 2x blocks, and the wheels. Still I managed to make a somewhat presentable Millennium Falcon after the first Star Wars movie came out. I also had a rather large Erector set, mine had 2 motors plus a 2 drum hoist. And the Radio Shack electronic kits - my first was the 20 in one which had each component on an individual plastic block (the code key in the 150 in one was a leftover from that) with 4 spring terminals, two connected to the component leads (3 if a transistor) and the other two were usually a pass through. You clipped the blocks together with plastic clips and then used L shaped metal clips in the spring terminals to wire the circuit. Then I moved on to the 100 in 1 and later the 150 in 1. I also had the computer kit the made, you wired the thing with a patch panel and then various key combinations would light up different lights. No actual logic circuit. All of this stuff I had pretty much before I was 10, most of it around 6-7. I was 11 when the TRS-80 Model 1 came out and captured my attention - couldn't afford one, but the manuals were sold separately for $5 each so I had them. Enrichment class in 7th grade, the teacher had a Model 1, in this plywood carrying case he built. He usually gave a choice, work on the computer or do some sort of chemistry experiment with him - I usually had the computer to myself.Those were the days.

author: sycho123321
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 04, 2016, 04:26:07 pm
content: +1 on the snap circuits! I got mine when I was around her age. I think i still have it around. My parents also got it so I would stop taking stuff apart

author: boffin
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 04, 2016, 07:58:26 pm
content: Here's a bit of a left-field opinion. Buy them an electric train set. I learned all my basic wiring from hooking up points , double tracking, signals etc off a fairly significant train set. Graduated to having it trigger things when I went over certain pieces of track etc etc.Stuff like this:From there, graduating into the concept of relays, and then logic circuits.

author: rrinker
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 05, 2016, 02:38:44 pm
content: +1 can always use more model railroaders. This too was part of my early electrical education. I have home movie (8mm silent) evidence that I was running model trains at age 2. We didn't have room in our house for a permanent setup so we had one up from about Thanksgiving to New Year when I was a kid. I was 5 or 6, woke up on a Saturday and saw my Dad had finished the main line, so I tried to run a train. It got halfway around and stopped. I did some investigating and figured out where I needed to hook up additional wires, did so, and was able to run a train all the way around. When my Dad got home from work, I don't think he was too terribly surprised that I had figured this out myself.Still my main hobby, planning a basement size layout now that I have a basement to work in. Seems to sometimes skip a generation, neither of my boys is much interested - they both liked Thomas when they were little, and going on train rides, but never got into the hobby at all.

author: sainter
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2016, 05:56:35 am
content: +1 snap circuits, best part about them, you can start from a smaller kit and upgrade it as you go along.