How to build STEM toys @TechCrunch by @johnbiggs #STEM #STEAM
How to build STEM toys | TechCrunch. It’s hard to fix the world, but we should try –
Fast-forward to today’s fashion for STEM toys. These toys are supposed to do all the work that my father did with me on those cold Saturdays. A little robot that runs around on the floor is supposed to replace building and learning. A box of parts that fit together like Lego and animated with a few lines of code should be enough for any kid to get a body of knowledge so deep that we won’t be plunged into a dark pit of ignorance come 2040.
But the toys don’t work. I’ve been very critical of modern STEM toys because they are just toys. The only things I’ve found remotely educational are Scratch, with its BASIC-like mental syntax, and Adafruit products that require actual soldering.
….