Vladimir Vassilevsky wrote:> > Can you suggest very basic EE tutorials, meccanos, project kits for > little children? Something that should allow building and trying the > simple circuits like amplifiers, oscillators, photosensors, logic gates, > microprocessors etc. without soldering the parts; with an accompanying > book explaining the operation. Also, it would be great to have an entry > level book on electronics for little kids. Can you recommend one? >Rat Shack still sells "101 in 1" kits around Christmas time. My older boy loved his, although you'll have to fill in the theory (no smiling electrons running around like when I was a kid). My younger boy is out to prove to the world that probabilistic wave functions aren't just for quantum mechanics -- he can't sit still for experimentation, yet somehow he still absorbs it all. Give the kid 1000 feet of #24 insulated wire and a hand full of batteries. Show him how to make an electromagnet with the above and a few nails. Stand back. -- Tim Wescott Wescott Design Services http://www.wescottdesign.com Do you need to implement control loops in software? "Applied Control Theory for Embedded Systems" gives you just what it says. See details at http://www.wescottdesign.com/actfes/actfes.html
OT: Good EE books and project kits for little kids
Started by ●October 25, 2008
Reply by ●October 25, 20082008-10-25
Reply by ●October 25, 20082008-10-25
Vladimir Vassilevsky wrote:> > > Jerry Avins wrote: > >> Vladimir Vassilevsky wrote: >> >>> >>> Can you suggest very basic EE tutorials, meccanos, project kits for >>> little children? Something that should allow building and trying the >>> simple circuits like amplifiers, oscillators, photosensors, logic >>> gates, microprocessors etc. without soldering the parts; with an >>> accompanying book explaining the operation. Also, it would be great >>> to have an entry level book on electronics for little kids. Can you >>> recommend one? >> >> >> Nothing comes to mind right off, but you shouldn't overlook a >> wonderful book on the physics of surface tension, "Soap Bubbles: Their >> Colours and the Forces Which Mould Them". > > Sounds more like a study on economics. > >> There is an inexpensive Dover reprint. See >> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._V._Boys and >> http://store.doverpublications.com/0486205428.html (cheap at $7.95). >> >> It's not what you had in mind, but it's a delightful side trip. > > What I would really like to avoid in this thread are the touching > stories about the old good times, what a brilliant kids we were and how > great our kids are. There seem to be are quite a few books and > electronic kits around; the question is if you can recommend a > particular book or kit that would be right for the 10 y.o.I'm _not_ talking about the good old days, however long ago they were. I _am_ talking about an old book with contemporary relevance to anyone with an inquiring mind, readily accessible to ten year olds. Jerry -- Engineering is the art of making what you want from things you can get. �����������������������������������������������������������������������
Reply by ●October 26, 20082008-10-26
Am Sat, 25 Oct 2008 14:38:57 -0500 schrieb Vladimir Vassilevsky:> Can you suggest very basic EE tutorials, meccanos, project kits for > little children? Something that should allow building and trying the > simple circuits like amplifiers, oscillators, photosensors, logic gates, > microprocessors etc. without soldering the parts; with an accompanying > book explaining the operation. Also, it would be great to have an entry > level book on electronics for little kids. Can you recommend one? > > > Vladimir Vassilevsky > DSP and Mixed Signal Design Consultant http://www.abvolt.com >You might want to look at http://www.quasarelectronics.com/epl500.htm or their similar offerings HTH Martin
Reply by ●October 26, 20082008-10-26
Perhaps these would be of assistance: http://www.cambridgebrainbox.com/ (Look under the link "Electronics kis") http://www.elenco.com/ (Elenco Electronics) Probably the best electronics book for younger readers is Forrest M. Mims III "Getting Started in Electronics." It used to be available from Radio Shack, but I think that you can still purchase it online: http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Started-Electronics-Forrest-Mims/dp/0945053282 Most people who have read this book at an early age are still working with electronics. Nicholas Vladimir Vassilevsky wrote:> > Can you suggest very basic EE tutorials, meccanos, project kits for > little children? Something that should allow building and trying the > simple circuits like amplifiers, oscillators, photosensors, logic gates, > microprocessors etc. without soldering the parts; with an accompanying > book explaining the operation. Also, it would be great to have an entry > level book on electronics for little kids. Can you recommend one? > > > Vladimir Vassilevsky > DSP and Mixed Signal Design Consultant > http://www.abvolt.com
Reply by ●October 27, 20082008-10-27
On Oct 25, 3:38�pm, Vladimir Vassilevsky <antispam_bo...@hotmail.com> wrote:> Can you suggest very basic EE tutorials, meccanos, project kits for > little children? Something that should allow building and trying the > simple circuits like amplifiers, oscillators, photosensors, logic gates, > microprocessors etc. without soldering the parts; with an accompanying > book explaining the operation. �Also, it would be great to have an entry > level book on electronics for little kids. Can you recommend one? > > Vladimir Vassilevsky > DSP and Mixed Signal Design Consultanthttp://www.abvolt.comEdmunds scientific is the place to go, I was fortunate enough to live near the actual store, my dad would drop me off there and I spent all day at the store, like a kid in a candy store, they have all sort of fun kid kits concerning electronics, physics, optics, chemistry, geology, engines etc etc http://scientificsonline.com/category.asp?start=0&pc=421193&c=421281 http://scientificsonline.com/product.asp_Q_pn_E_3052874
Reply by ●October 28, 20082008-10-28
On Oct 25, 3:38�pm, Vladimir Vassilevsky <antispam_bo...@hotmail.com> wrote:> Can you suggest very basic EE tutorials, meccanos, project kits for > little children? Something that should allow building and trying the > simple circuits like amplifiers, oscillators, photosensors, logic gates, > microprocessors etc. without soldering the parts; with an accompanying > book explaining the operation. �Also, it would be great to have an entry > level book on electronics for little kids. Can you recommend one? > > Vladimir Vassilevsky > DSP and Mixed Signal Design Consultanthttp://www.abvolt.comSnapCircuits (http://www.snapcircuits.net) aren't too bad. I once played with some at a children's museum; there was a decent variety of components (R, C, L, BJTs, diodes, ...), but I think they're a little light on the theory. It's more of the "put this here, put that there, and watch the light blink" variety. Pretty easy to put together, though, even for a small child. For my money, though, I'd probably just use a simple breadboard: more connectivity and the freedom to use a lot more types of parts. Then you're just in need of some project ideas. Jason
Reply by ●October 28, 20082008-10-28
On Oct 25, 2:38�pm, Vladimir Vassilevsky <antispam_bo...@hotmail.com> wrote:> Can you suggest very basic EE tutorials, meccanos, project kits for > little children? Something that should allow building and trying the > simple circuits like amplifiers, oscillators, photosensors, logic gates, > microprocessors etc. without soldering the parts; with an accompanying > book explaining the operation. �Also, it would be great to have an entry > level book on electronics for little kids. Can you recommend one?My "kits" growing up were the old-fashioned kind: an amalgamation of whatever was lying around. I recall tramping through the neighborhood for stereo speakers. I would rip out the cones and slam them against the pavement to throw the magnets out. I probably did this 100+ times. Batteries could be obtained from spent Polaroid cartriges or from the store. Wire came from most anywhere, including cords from various household implements [to my aunt's chagrin - :D] as well as discarded radios. Other parts, especially pots and LED's, came from radios. Motors and lights from junkyard. Switches from throw-away bins at parts stores. Digital counters from old arcade machines. Heating elements by burning off paper on twist-ties of bread bags. Nails, water, salt, alumninum foil, toilet-paper cores, etc from the house. Various low-energy combustible materials from...ahem.. In the end, one could build an entire kit this way. From this, one can make: 1. fox-hole radio [hard] 2. audible feedback system with aluminum foil contact "frequency selector" [easy] 3. hydrogen generator from electrolysis 4. light-beam interruptor box counter using cadmium-sulfide photoresitor 5. surprise prank "shocker" 6. small, harmless electrically-controlled, timed detonators * many others In restrospect, not sure if this was an efficient way to learn electronics, but it was a lot of fun and it made creative thinking a necessity. -Le Chaud Lapin-
Reply by ●October 30, 20082008-10-30
On Sat, 25 Oct 2008 14:38:57 -0500, Vladimir Vassilevsky <antispam_bogus@hotmail.com> wrote:> >Can you suggest very basic EE tutorials, meccanos, project kits for >little children? Something that should allow building and trying the >simple circuits like amplifiers, oscillators, photosensors, logic gates, >microprocessors etc. without soldering the parts; with an accompanying >book explaining the operation. Also, it would be great to have an entry >level book on electronics for little kids. Can you recommend one? > > >Vladimir Vassilevsky >DSP and Mixed Signal Design Consultant >http://www.abvolt.comHi Vladimir, sorry but I can't offer you any advice. For all it's astounding progress over recent decades, the saddest story in the field of electronics is that you can't buy Heathkit kits any more. Those kits were the most wonderful way for a young kid to learn electronics. [-Rick-]
Reply by ●November 28, 20082008-11-28
On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 05:40:38 -0700, Rick Lyons <R.Lyons@_BOGUS_ieee.org> wrote:>On Sat, 25 Oct 2008 14:38:57 -0500, Vladimir Vassilevsky ><antispam_bogus@hotmail.com> wrote: > >> >>Can you suggest very basic EE tutorials, meccanos, project kits for >>little children? Something that should allow building and trying the >>simple circuits like amplifiers, oscillators, photosensors, logic gates, >>microprocessors etc. without soldering the parts; with an accompanying >>book explaining the operation. Also, it would be great to have an entry >>level book on electronics for little kids. Can you recommend one? >> >> >>Vladimir Vassilevsky >>DSP and Mixed Signal Design Consultant >>http://www.abvolt.com > >Hi Vladimir, > sorry but I can't offer you any advice. > >For all it's astounding progress over recent >decades, the saddest story in the field of >electronics is that you can't buy Heathkit kits >any more.Yes, it's a shame, and it's all because of progress. Back when kit companies started, it was a selling feature that you could save money by buying kits and assembling them yourself versus buying a factory-made unit at the store. Long story short, assembly automation and other efficiencies of mass production were developed, and factories were moved to third-world countries where labor costs are much lower, so one of the biggest selling points for kits disappeared.>Those kits were the most wonderful >way for a young kid to learn electronics.Perhaps the most valuable part of Heathkits for teaching electronics was an "ancilliary" part of the manual that you never had to read to make or operate the kit, called the "Circuit Description." These were well-written and went through the schematic (also included in the manual, of course) section by section, often telling why specific components were there and describing their exact functions. I built my first Heathkit at age 8 and didn't understand much of the description, but sometime between there and the teenage years I read through just about every Heathkit manual my father had. Also, the first 100 or so pages of the ARRL Handbook was (and I think still is in more current editions) a highly condensed electronics course. I was about to suggest robot kits such as Vex and Lego Mindstorms. They're undoubtedly fun and to an extent educational, but they have too many "black boxes" (microcontrollers and prebuilt I/O and motor driver circuits) to really teach much about electronics. I remember Knight-Kits and perhaps some other kit makers too (I recall Eico made much of their equiment available as kits, but my father always bought them used or assembled new), but if any of those manuals described the circuits, it was surely not nearly as in depth as in the Heathkit manuals. Unbuilt Heathkits are collectible and valuable nowadays (check them out on eBay). I've wondered (for a very short moment, then I came to my senses) if there's enough money in it make some "repro" Heathkit kits. A lot of stuff would need to be worked out, such as getting permission to reproduce the manuals (yes, there's still a vestige of Heath left, as Heath Educational Systems, electronics and computer courses aimed at adults).> >[-Rick-]
Reply by ●November 28, 20082008-11-28
Ben Bradley wrote: ...> Perhaps the most valuable part of Heathkits for teaching > electronics was an "ancilliary" part of the manual that you never had > to read to make or operate the kit, called the "Circuit Description." > These were well-written and went through the schematic (also included > in the manual, of course) section by section, often telling why > specific components were there and describing their exact functions. I > built my first Heathkit at age 8 and didn't understand much of the > description, but sometime between there and the teenage years I read > through just about every Heathkit manual my father had. Also, the > first 100 or so pages of the ARRL Handbook was (and I think still is > in more current editions) a highly condensed electronics course.I couldn't afford Heathkits early on. I learned electronics from the ARRL Handbook and the back section of the RCA Receiving Tube Manual. There was another kit maker -- the name escapes me for now -- and I earned a good bit of spending money by assembling their audio amplifiers for a Hi-Fi dealer whose shop was in the basement floor of the Thalia Theater in Manhattan. Jerry -- Engineering is the art of making what you want from things you can get. �����������������������������������������������������������������������
