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by fusiongyro
2797 days ago
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I would suggest checking out the Micro:bit: https://www.microbit.org/ Not exactly the same as what you're looking for, but the idea here is to introduce kids to programming with a small, self-contained environment, and there is both a graphical coding environment and you can move to Python or Javascript. |
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Comes with a 5x5 LED array, an accelerometer, two physical push-buttons, three capacitive sensors, and a bluetooth antenna, already on-board. It means you can start programming without having to plug in to a breadboard and wire up your inputs. You can also hang external sensors and actuators off of it, but the point is you don't need to in order to move beyond toy demonstrations.
It was designed specifically for education, so there are lots of beginner-oriented tutorials available, as well as educator-oriented lesson plans.
As fusiongyro points out, you can program it using three high-level languages. The graphical language lets you toggle to the Javascript version, so there's a clear learning path built-in. These provide high-level commands, such as "get the orientation", or "get the number of button presses since the last query", which makes programming it very straightforward.
It removes a lot of toolchain fussiness. Just run an online editor, or a desktop editor (Mu). These produce binaries that you drag onto the Micro:bit, which mounts to your desktop like an external drive. You can also program it from a smart phone or iPad.