This new robot will teach your kids how to code (and the meaning of friendship)
KEYi Tech’s launching a new adorable robot via Kickstarter it claims will help teach kids core coding skills.
Clicbot is a new customisable robot that teaches kids to code. It can be built into a huge variety of different forms and offers an intersection between the creativity of traditional building toys, like Lego, and the educational appeal of building kids’ digital skills.
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At a glance, the robot can be built into a remote control car, a walking robotic pet, a fairground claw machine and many more forms. Each of these builds can then be given new behaviours coded by the user.
What might intrigue parents more than that though, is the educational possibilities the robot presents. Out of the box, Clicbot has two predefined personalities, for those who don’t want to code. For those who do, there are several options. The basic drag and drop coding interface is based on Blockly by Google and, if you want to challenge your kids, then Clicbot is also combatible with Python.
Learning to code is a hugely useful skill and Clicbot is an attempt to package coding lessons into a form that will intrigue and entertain children. He’s pitched as a sort of robotic pet and the robot’s creators claim: “ClicBot’s personality adjusts depending on how you build him.”
Take a look at the video below to get an idea of how the Clicbot works, how kids can put it together and the variety of builds they can achieve.
Clicbot is capable of activities including racing, climbing, drawing, dancing and can “even serve your morning coffee” according to its creators at KEYi Tech.
At first glance this looks like a digital toy that could entertain parents just as much as kids. We’ll hold back on any verdicts for the time-being though as we haven’t got hands-on with the Clicbot.
On Kickstarter you can currently pledge $299, (the equivalent of about £232,) and get an Early Bird Starter Kit. This is the same basic set up that will retail for $449 when the robot goes to full release. Pledge more for bigger kits and different attachments.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
