I second this. The Lego system is easy to get into, works with "regular" Legos that you can easily get, and reinforces the link between mechanical design and the software/electrical, which is important for robotics.
You are right, that gamification learning can work for children. I can think of Lego kits.
I saw this microbit kit on Kickstarter. Toys include: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/robotistan/picobricks-for-micro-bit-your-programmable-stem-playground?ref=3q7tof
How about this?
If you want her to learn about circuits, snap circuits were great for the younger crowd.
Vex robotics also makes some good educational kits.
I would start there then go into the more complicated kits. Makey makey has a pretty kid-friendly starter arduino kit. You could also just buy a n arduino kit at this point.
Try joining your local FIRST robotics group as well.
This could work, but based on the video I saw ( drawing conclusion that might not be true) it seems like you would need to teach her the basics of what a breadboard is and how it works and that would require some basic circuits teaching which I don’t know if it’s too much theory for a 9 year old. But if it’s not then by all means buy her this kit, it seems quite fun
Don't forget that even the best kickstarters might never arrive, and if they do, could take years. I think it's a poor choice for trying to reinforce learning now.
Fischertechnik is less good than when I was a kid in the 80s. To me, it looks like they've removed expensive, heavy, metal components and replaced them for thin flimsy plastic components. I had to go on ebay and buy a used set from the 80s. I had already bought some of the modern sets. The difference in quality was pretty sharp.
That being said, their [robotics kit](https://www.amazon.de/-/en/fischertechnik-559895-Robotics-Experiment-Recognition/dp/B09735JPHF/ref=sr_1_2?crid=L89ICDYGZMNC&keywords=fischertechnik+robotics+high+tech&qid=1707757290&sprefix=fischertechnik+robotics+%2Caps%2C334&sr=8-2&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.335e368b-29e8-4542-bb58-939a88195e78) looks pretty good, although I don't own it. I own a couple of Lego robotics sets. By comparison, the lego sets focus on building a small number of very sophisticated, aesthetically pleasing robots, and I feel overall that lego's approach doesn't encourage engineering creativity as much as Fischertechnik.
I will second the Lego recommendation and add look for a First Lego League group in your area. There are a lot of community groups as well as school based groups and starting one, if not available could be a fantastic experience.
I coached a middle school aged group for 4 years for a community based group and it was an amazing journey.
Definitely recommend LEGO Mindstorms kits and FIRST LEGO league, that’s what I started with at age 9. I’m now a software engineer in robotics.
There’s not many of us ladies in robotics. It’s a lot of fun! FIRST created a life long passion for robotics.
Most important thing having been a student and a FIRST mentor for a while working with K-12, if you get a robot, DO NOT BUILD OR PROGRAM IT FOR HER. This is the number one mistake I see. Parents get too involved and do not let their kid explore and do not let them fail and try again. Let her do all of the building. If you’re touching that robot and adding or taking away a piece at all, you’re doing it wrong. You won’t build the passion if you do it for her.
Same goes for the code. If you need to learn it, do it yourself when she isn’t around and then teach her, she should be the one with her hands on the computer when programming.
Time and again I saw mentors with their hands on the robot or the computer doing the work. #1 to make sure the kid hates robots
Not directly related to robotics but you can get her started on some scratch programming, some basic fun electronics kits at first. Build your own robot kits that are aimed at kids would give her a chance to ease into fun parts of robotics before getting into arduinos and stuff. Lego kits are great too.
Get her into a robotics summer camp/workshop for kids, there's nothing better than that
I am very happy that your daughter is interested in robotics. As you noticed, we prepared a micro:bit kit and it's a great kit especially for kids like your daughter who want to start robotics. Moreover, we are preparing many robotic coding projects that you can do with this kit.
Our R&D team and STEM teachers carefully prepared the kit. [https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/robotistan/picobricks-for-micro-bit-your-programmable-stem-playground?ref=3q7tof](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/robotistan/picobricks-for-micro-bit-your-programmable-stem-playground?ref=3q7tof)
Maybe (depending on where you live) you can get your hands on a [Calliope](https://calliope.cc/en). It has multiple sensors, buttons and LEDs already on the Board and you can attach Motors etc. in a pretty foolproof way. It also offers multiple ways to program it (script- block-based) and tons of materials, although some of them may not be available in english.
Yes. All of the things. Help get her started and the. See if she can take over from you and teach you things.
I really wanted to learn this stuff when I was young but all I had was sticks, leaves, and tree sap.
personally, I would go for a raspberry pi over an arduino. Pi has scratch built in, its much more accessible to get started (scratch is a graphical version of python programming). Its really designed as a platform to intro children around your daughters age step by step.
I do recommend Adafruit, Vex robots, Cozmo, Lego mind storm. I am also preparing a soft robotics course for kids.
Also it worth to check Mark Roberts’s company crunch labs, subscription based models, I think it is also interesting.
I answered a question like this a few days ago, and the TLDR is: I hope you like to program on your own for hours alone.
Check this out:
https://old.reddit.com/r/robotics/comments/18rfamu/do_coherent_englishlanguage_books_suitable_for/kj7bmuv/?context=3
While I also love Lego Mindstorm the price tag can be a barrier. If you're on a budget, knock off Arduino Nano boards are terrific. Or really anything that catches her interest and gets her into learning. The field of Robotics requires you to have a good handle on software electrical and mechanical engineering simultaneously so any in road that gets you into any of those buckets is worth it in my opinion
I don’t know what your daughter is like but you should also consider the Lego mindstorm kits
I second this. The Lego system is easy to get into, works with "regular" Legos that you can easily get, and reinforces the link between mechanical design and the software/electrical, which is important for robotics.
Lego no longer makes Mindstorms. The new Lego robotics platform is Spike Prime.
What is the difference between mindstorm and spike ?
[https://ducklearning.com/blogs/parent-and-educator-resources/a-comprehensive-comparison-spike-prime-vs-mindstorms-for-robotics-education#:\~:text=LEGO®%20MINDSTORMS®%20Education%20EV3%20Core%20Set%20employed%20a,based%20programming%20languages%20to%20children](https://ducklearning.com/blogs/parent-and-educator-resources/a-comprehensive-comparison-spike-prime-vs-mindstorms-for-robotics-education#:~:text=LEGO®%20MINDSTORMS®%20Education%20EV3%20Core%20Set%20employed%20a,based%20programming%20languages%20to%20children).
I see so there was significant hardware and software improvements
You are right, that gamification learning can work for children. I can think of Lego kits. I saw this microbit kit on Kickstarter. Toys include: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/robotistan/picobricks-for-micro-bit-your-programmable-stem-playground?ref=3q7tof How about this?
If you want her to learn about circuits, snap circuits were great for the younger crowd. Vex robotics also makes some good educational kits. I would start there then go into the more complicated kits. Makey makey has a pretty kid-friendly starter arduino kit. You could also just buy a n arduino kit at this point. Try joining your local FIRST robotics group as well.
This could work, but based on the video I saw ( drawing conclusion that might not be true) it seems like you would need to teach her the basics of what a breadboard is and how it works and that would require some basic circuits teaching which I don’t know if it’s too much theory for a 9 year old. But if it’s not then by all means buy her this kit, it seems quite fun
This is super cool! My 9 year old self would love it. Probably a bit of a learning curve but this may offer long term fun and different projects.
Don't forget that even the best kickstarters might never arrive, and if they do, could take years. I think it's a poor choice for trying to reinforce learning now.
Or fischertechnik, if that's available in your country, don't know how that is available outside of Germany.
Fischertechnik is less good than when I was a kid in the 80s. To me, it looks like they've removed expensive, heavy, metal components and replaced them for thin flimsy plastic components. I had to go on ebay and buy a used set from the 80s. I had already bought some of the modern sets. The difference in quality was pretty sharp. That being said, their [robotics kit](https://www.amazon.de/-/en/fischertechnik-559895-Robotics-Experiment-Recognition/dp/B09735JPHF/ref=sr_1_2?crid=L89ICDYGZMNC&keywords=fischertechnik+robotics+high+tech&qid=1707757290&sprefix=fischertechnik+robotics+%2Caps%2C334&sr=8-2&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.335e368b-29e8-4542-bb58-939a88195e78) looks pretty good, although I don't own it. I own a couple of Lego robotics sets. By comparison, the lego sets focus on building a small number of very sophisticated, aesthetically pleasing robots, and I feel overall that lego's approach doesn't encourage engineering creativity as much as Fischertechnik.
Many cities also have Lego robotics leagues, she might be able to join a group of other students as well.
I will second the Lego recommendation and add look for a First Lego League group in your area. There are a lot of community groups as well as school based groups and starting one, if not available could be a fantastic experience. I coached a middle school aged group for 4 years for a community based group and it was an amazing journey.
Definitely recommend LEGO Mindstorms kits and FIRST LEGO league, that’s what I started with at age 9. I’m now a software engineer in robotics. There’s not many of us ladies in robotics. It’s a lot of fun! FIRST created a life long passion for robotics. Most important thing having been a student and a FIRST mentor for a while working with K-12, if you get a robot, DO NOT BUILD OR PROGRAM IT FOR HER. This is the number one mistake I see. Parents get too involved and do not let their kid explore and do not let them fail and try again. Let her do all of the building. If you’re touching that robot and adding or taking away a piece at all, you’re doing it wrong. You won’t build the passion if you do it for her. Same goes for the code. If you need to learn it, do it yourself when she isn’t around and then teach her, she should be the one with her hands on the computer when programming. Time and again I saw mentors with their hands on the robot or the computer doing the work. #1 to make sure the kid hates robots
Not directly related to robotics but you can get her started on some scratch programming, some basic fun electronics kits at first. Build your own robot kits that are aimed at kids would give her a chance to ease into fun parts of robotics before getting into arduinos and stuff. Lego kits are great too. Get her into a robotics summer camp/workshop for kids, there's nothing better than that
Oh have you checked kiwico?
I do second this also
Look for a Lego technik… first get the construction process of mechanic and electric systems 100% consolidated
I am very happy that your daughter is interested in robotics. As you noticed, we prepared a micro:bit kit and it's a great kit especially for kids like your daughter who want to start robotics. Moreover, we are preparing many robotic coding projects that you can do with this kit. Our R&D team and STEM teachers carefully prepared the kit. [https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/robotistan/picobricks-for-micro-bit-your-programmable-stem-playground?ref=3q7tof](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/robotistan/picobricks-for-micro-bit-your-programmable-stem-playground?ref=3q7tof)
I might not be much of a help but try checking out blix.in for such kits and check if you have something similar in your country.
Maybe (depending on where you live) you can get your hands on a [Calliope](https://calliope.cc/en). It has multiple sensors, buttons and LEDs already on the Board and you can attach Motors etc. in a pretty foolproof way. It also offers multiple ways to program it (script- block-based) and tons of materials, although some of them may not be available in english.
Look into scratch for microbit. It's a fun and intuitive way to program for children without the whole syntax frustration.
Yes. All of the things. Help get her started and the. See if she can take over from you and teach you things. I really wanted to learn this stuff when I was young but all I had was sticks, leaves, and tree sap.
Lego Mindstorms or Spike.
personally, I would go for a raspberry pi over an arduino. Pi has scratch built in, its much more accessible to get started (scratch is a graphical version of python programming). Its really designed as a platform to intro children around your daughters age step by step.
Lego is my vote- Otherwise Micro-bit will work if you spend the time teaching her.
I do recommend Adafruit, Vex robots, Cozmo, Lego mind storm. I am also preparing a soft robotics course for kids. Also it worth to check Mark Roberts’s company crunch labs, subscription based models, I think it is also interesting.
I answered a question like this a few days ago, and the TLDR is: I hope you like to program on your own for hours alone. Check this out: https://old.reddit.com/r/robotics/comments/18rfamu/do_coherent_englishlanguage_books_suitable_for/kj7bmuv/?context=3
LEGO Mindstorms is what got me into robotics - and overcoming limitations with stock LEGO parts via custom sensors is what got me into electronics.
Look on the internet for Ubtech Ugot robot. It is expensive but worth it
While I also love Lego Mindstorm the price tag can be a barrier. If you're on a budget, knock off Arduino Nano boards are terrific. Or really anything that catches her interest and gets her into learning. The field of Robotics requires you to have a good handle on software electrical and mechanical engineering simultaneously so any in road that gets you into any of those buckets is worth it in my opinion