You can now make robots out of straws. Yes, straws.
This Toy Will Hone Your Kid’s Hacking Skills
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When you think “learning to code,” you probably envision something like a kit, app, book or game. But did you ever imagine that table straws could help you build up your hacker skills? Neither did we, until we saw this amazing project on Kickstarter called Quirkbot.
Quirkbot is a “microcontroller toy” that makes it possible for anyone to learn to program. It’s essentially a robot that’s made with materials like drinking straws, LEDs and motors, allowing for a ton of creativity and a bunch of totally unique toys at your disposal.
What exactly does this all mean? Well, you can program Quirkbot via USB by downloading and organizing components from the company’s website. You connect each component, upload it to the USB, then transfer the data to your little robot creation. Then the toys can move around and interact with their environment with sound, lights and motion. All you need is imagination.
Quirkbot also features some tutorials and templates for you to get familiar with how the program and the technology works. So if you’ve got a budding hacker in the family, this might be the perfect gift to help them start to learn and grow.
Quirkbot has already been successfully funded on Kickstarter. Expect to see it go live in August.
What do you think of Quirkbot? Would you use it to teach your kids to hack? Tell us in the comments below!
