Slashdot Mirror
Ask Slashdot: Best Computer For a 7-Year Old?
First time accepted submitter Boldizar writes "My son turns seven next month and I'd like to buy him a cheap computer. I'm looking for the Slashdot hivemind opinion on what would be the best computer for a child. I'm looking for a computer that will teach him basic computer literacy, and hopefully one wherein the guts are a bit exposed so that he can learn how a computer works rather than just treating it like a magic object (i.e., iPad) – but that would still keep him interested and without leaving him behind in school. For the same reason, I prefer a real keyboard so he can learn to type. I don't know enough about computers to frame the question intelligently. Perhaps something in the $300 range that would be the computer equivalent of an old mechanical car engine? Another way to think about it: I'm looking for the computer equivalent of teaching my son how to survive in the forest should the zombie apocalypse ever come."
Why not build it together, with your child. The experience of putting something together and making it work will far exceed any other expectations you may have.
Is buy parts for a PC off of some website, get a case with a clear side. Build it with him, teach him the importance of discharging static etc. Let him put the pieces together, tell him what each piece does.
You should be able to get parts for a standard PC relatively inexpensively.
Load the operating system with him, and explain what it does.
This is essentially how I got my start, I was about 9 years old I believe, it was an awesome experience! My Dad bought the parts from a magazine, we waiting the grueling week for it to come in. He watched over my shoulder as I assembled it, making sure I didn't do anything wrong. My Dad is awesome for many reasons and this is one of them.
I applaud your effort to get your son involved at an early age, and with the right mindset!
This article should be inspirational:
http://changelog.complete.org/archives/7562-i-introduced-my-5-year-old-and-2-year-old-to-startx-and-xmonad-theyre-delighted
The thing is kids can get stuff pretty quick if you don't put the fear of knowledge in them.
"Enjoy what you're doing! If it becomes drudgery, you're doing it wrong!" - Jim Butterfield
Get him a programmable robot. The act of learning how a computer "thinks" is the best takeaway from an early computer experience, and even involves some programming, even if not in a language he'd ever use again. Plus, you get the reward of seeing it actually do something. Otherwise, get him a WoW account and treat the PC as a gaming console for all he'll learn from a computer.
So many here have the nostalgia of their first PC. Mine required that I program just about anything I wanted to do with them. I'd buy the magazines with fold-out programs in them, and spend hours typing and saving it to an audio tape. Then load it up later and play. Choplifter was the only game that I had to play that wasn't programmed by me.
Playing with the computer should require learning about the computer. The closest I've seen are the programmmable assembly-required robot kits where you can build what you want, then program it how you want. For the home PC, they made it so easy now, it's like learning about microwave communications by heating coffee in a microwave oven.
Learn to love Alaska
At 7, get him a set of throw away clothes and tell him to go out side and explore and don't get angry when he comes home filthy.
Wash, rinse and repeat...
Plenty of time for computers later.
Undetectable Steganography? Yep, there's an app fo
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Raspberry Pi pretty much what you're looking for?
Two weeks ago I'd have said "no", but last week I got one of my own and I'm not so sure. They have far more potential than I would have imagined from the raw specs.
Today I'm going to say "yes", for three reasons:
a) You get a very visual, direct contact with the machine, you can even see/touch the PCB! (after grounding yourself...) Very good for zombie apocalypse.
b) You're also not going to be treated as a pure consumer of apps. Hands-on is essential (be prepared to help with the apt-get side of things).
c) If it doesn't work out like you imagined you only lost $35, it's no big deal. The keyboard/monitor will be useful for other things or you can cobble together a PC from old parts and he'll have a Pi and a PC to play with.
No sig today...
They don't need their own computer yet. Probably at 12 years old, but no sooner. They need to learn the fundamentals of what they are doing before they abstract it away with a computer.
I myself was slapped in front of a computer at the age of 5. I'm now sitting here on a sunday night, posting on Slashdot rather than doing something useful. Do you want that to be your kids?
Seriously, a 7-year-old has too much to learn about almost everything.
This. I predict 99% of the people who are going to reply below this line will have no idea what a 7-year-old is like.
Expose him to computers, sure, but don't try to make them a central focus in his life.
Give him his own PC, and he's likely to still want to use the same one as dad or mom.
This as well...
Wow. I have to totally disagree with you. At least in the case of my daughter. She's had her own computer since she was 2 years old. She's now 9 and is on her second.
I work from home. She was curious about what I was doing at my desk one day so I installed a "edutainment" game that I picked up on sale several months earlier on clearance. I figured math and the alphabet wouldn't change much by the time she was ready for it. She thought it was great and wanted to be on my computer constantly. So I pulled an old computer out and set it up for her. By the time she entered kindergarten she could read, add, subtract and do some simple multiplication. Not that this was totally due to the computer. My wife and I read to her and always explained things when she would ask. At one point she asked for a game that I misread to be for 6-7 year olds that was actually for 6 to 7th graders. She was playing games that taught her about dominant and recessive genes. A while back she wanted some programs that needed a little more power than her computer had. That was the only time she wanted to use my computer since getting her own. So I got her a better system.
When she was 6 the only thing she wanted for Christmas was for me to put her computer on the internet. After some worry I finally did. But I don't allow her to get on chat rooms and Facebook etc.
I agree, it should not be a central focus. But it's an important tool to understand how to use. Frankly writing is started to be dropped in favor of typing in some schools. So I'm not sure way a keyboard an mouse shouldn't be of similar importance to crayons these days.