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LEGO Mindstorms is a really good line imo. Maybe higher level on the software side, but is great for what you're describing- getting beginners interested in cod

by nwsm 6y ago

LEGO Mindstorms is a really good line imo. Maybe higher level on the software side, but is great for what you're describing- getting beginners interested in coding through robotics.

formercoder 6y ago
Back on the original yellow brick you could hack it and write something like C++ for it IIRC. Not sure about the current generation.
- 9wzYQbTYsAIc 6y ago
  NXC you could use c++ or Java with a little work. Probably the same or easier with the newest generation
  - neuronexmachina 6y ago
    The EV3 actually supports MicroPython: https://education.lego.com/en-us/support/mindstorms-ev3/python-for-ev3 https://education.lego.com/en-us/support/mindstorms-ev3/pyth...
- NoZZz 6y ago
  It had NQC (Not Quite C) available for it.
miskin 6y ago
For smaller kids, Lego Boost is quite nice, too.
valbaca 6y ago
I got started on LEGO Mindstorms in high school (circa 2005). At the time the fun thing to do was to have them navigate a maze. First an incredibly small and simple one; one that could be done by manually programming LEFT-RIGHT-FORWARD-etc. Then a more complicated one with walls (using the bump sensor) to show the left-hand algorithm, then one where the "walls" were tape on the ground (using the optical sensor). All in all it shows that yes, you can program to do a specific task OR with some abstraction and algorithms you can solve every instance of a problem. All while teaching the basics of if-else-then, loops, etc.
hansvm 6y ago
That was easily some of the best bang-for-their-buck my parents ever got. LEGO Mindstorms would keep me quiet and out of trouble for days at a time. I'm not certain how much that influenced my interest in software engineering though, or even if it made learning traditional programming easier. I later had a few c++ courses in high school, and as I recall most of my struggles were with syntax errors (not discounting those in the slightest because I made a _ton_ of them) and whatnot rather than some kind of broken control flow, and I remember that not being the case for all but two of my classmates, so it does seem plausible that some of the Mindstorm lessons stuck around or shaped how I think about such things.
matthberg 6y ago
I would also highly recommend looking into local FIRST Lego League [0] teams, which are part of the FIRST robotics competition series yet targeted for younger kids. I got into FLL in late elementary school, though the age range accepts kids from pre-K through middle school [1]. FLL uses LEGO Mindstorms robots, while later FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC)and FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) use metal/plastic parts. In FRC we used milling machines and CAD, big steps up from playing with LEGOs. The FIRST programs are amazingly educational and fun engineering/programming experiences. I cannot recommend them enough. Going through FLL and FRC was life changing for me, getting me into programming and building teamworking and countless other skills. [0]: https://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/fll https://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/fll [1]: https://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/fll/what-is-first-lego-league https://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/fll/what-is-first-leg...

by nwsm 6y ago

LEGO Mindstorms is a really good line imo. Maybe higher level on the software side, but is great for what you're describing- getting beginners interested in coding through robotics.

formercoder 6y ago

Back on the original yellow brick you could hack it and write something like C++ for it IIRC. Not sure about the current generation.

9wzYQbTYsAIc 6y ago
NXC you could use c++ or Java with a little work. Probably the same or easier with the newest generation
- neuronexmachina 6y ago
  The EV3 actually supports MicroPython: https://education.lego.com/en-us/support/mindstorms-ev3/python-for-ev3 https://education.lego.com/en-us/support/mindstorms-ev3/pyth...
NoZZz 6y ago
It had NQC (Not Quite C) available for it.

miskin 6y ago

For smaller kids, Lego Boost is quite nice, too.

valbaca 6y ago

I got started on LEGO Mindstorms in high school (circa 2005). At the time the fun thing to do was to have them navigate a maze. First an incredibly small and simple one; one that could be done by manually programming LEFT-RIGHT-FORWARD-etc. Then a more complicated one with walls (using the bump sensor) to show the left-hand algorithm, then one where the "walls" were tape on the ground (using the optical sensor). All in all it shows that yes, you can program to do a specific task OR with some abstraction and algorithms you can solve every instance of a problem. All while teaching the basics of if-else-then, loops, etc.

hansvm 6y ago

That was easily some of the best bang-for-their-buck my parents ever got. LEGO Mindstorms would keep me quiet and out of trouble for days at a time. I'm not certain how much that influenced my interest in software engineering though, or even if it made learning traditional programming easier. I later had a few c++ courses in high school, and as I recall most of my struggles were with syntax errors (not discounting those in the slightest because I made a _ton_ of them) and whatnot rather than some kind of broken control flow, and I remember that not being the case for all but two of my classmates, so it does seem plausible that some of the Mindstorm lessons stuck around or shaped how I think about such things.

matthberg 6y ago

I would also highly recommend looking into local FIRST Lego League [0] teams, which are part of the FIRST robotics competition series yet targeted for younger kids. I got into FLL in late elementary school, though the age range accepts kids from pre-K through middle school [1]. FLL uses LEGO Mindstorms robots, while later FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC)and FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) use metal/plastic parts. In FRC we used milling machines and CAD, big steps up from playing with LEGOs. The FIRST programs are amazingly educational and fun engineering/programming experiences. I cannot recommend them enough. Going through FLL and FRC was life changing for me, getting me into programming and building teamworking and countless other skills. [0]: https://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/fll https://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/fll [1]: https://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/fll/what-is-first-lego-league https://www.firstinspires.org/robotics/fll/what-is-first-leg...