I think it's appropriate, but you have to start small. Get him or her a set of Lego Mindstorm. That's a bit over the kids head, but I'm sure you won't mind havi

I think it's appropriate, but you have to start small. Get him or her a set of Lego Mindstorm. That's a bit over the kids head, but I'm sure you won't mind having to spend time playing with Legos to help the kid understand. Robotics is great for teaching programming. Alternatively, get the kid a copy of the board game "Robo Rally."