One of my friend’s kids will be six in October. He has a snap circuits kit, but is very interested in my arduino and all the sensors and wires and all of that that go with it. He wants to get some “real” electronics, but I’m a little concerned that jumping straight into arduino might be a little too much and could discourage him, particularly with the programming that’s needed.
I don’t have any experience working with kids and electronics, and would love your input on what would be a great next step for this kid.
If you’re looking for a well-guided introduction to Arduino, the SparkFun Inventor’s Kit [https://www.sparkfun.com/products/12001] is a great place to start. It comes with all the pieces, lots of directions, lots of pictures, and the code is ready to upload. The most time-consuming and challenging part is making sure the Arduino software and example code is installed correctly. If you can set up the computer beforehand, that takes a lot of the headache away for kids. For someone so young, adult supervision is highly recommended. Going through the experiments together is a great way to learn and have fun.
If soldering a kit would be fun for him, try our WeevilEye Beginner Soldering Kit [https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10723]. I have taught children his age how to solder. With supervision (and the great directions that come with the kit) it’s not out of a 6-year-old’s range. For a slightly more involved soldering kit (more pins!) you can try the Simon Says [https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10547]. And you get a Simon game out of it!
the makey-makey https://www.sparkfun.com/products/11437 is lots of fun. when there ready it can also function as an arduino. another one is little bits just came out with an arduino bit that looks easy for kids.