The one advantage is that the pis are likely cheap enough that the kid can take them with them. I assume most of them have a TV at home, and a mouse and keyboar

The one advantage is that the pis are likely cheap enough that the kid can take them with them. I assume most of them have a TV at home, and a mouse and keyboard can be found free or under ten bucks. That said Chromebooks would likely be the better answer then Raspi or Macbooks.