Thames & Kosmos Electronics: Learning Circuits

The holiday guy dropped this off for the 7 year old in our house. On first use the connections were too hard for him to push together (I thought we got the magnetic one - but this is the push in one). After a few uses the joints because easier for him to use. The book is pretty good - it explains the theories in terms of water flow - so it can be understood by a little guy. Being an electrical engineer for 20 years, I found it hard to present stuff at the appropriate age level (Kids don't care about flux theory), the instruction book helped in doing that. There is 1 switch in the kit, used in all the projects (so far), but the battery pack is always 'live' Personally would have liked a switch built into the battery pack so you can avoid direct shorts as you experiment. The speaker in our kit broke after its 3rd use. The connectors caused too much pressure on the plastic bottom, when pushing it into the new connector pieces. Some supper glue fixed the issue, but is kind of disappointing to glue something that was only used a few times. Our integrated circuit module also failed after about a dozen uses. I think it may have been our fault, because my experimenter was trying things and after that it never worked again.It only gets 3 stars. I think the connectors would be better either as magnets, snaps or the old cone spring designs. I think the failure of the plastic pieces due the the connectors being too tight is a design issue as well. I would also ding it a bit because a kit should allow little minds to try reasonable things without causing issues.I would not buy this product again, and would have decided on a different kit if I know these issues before hand.

This was a great starter kit, with enough pieces to create some fun circuits. Wish the box wasn’t quite so big though, the parts are tiny compared to the space in the box and it takes up way too much shelf space.

9 year old granddaughter enjoyed. We did together but she also created in her own. Some connections harder than others to properly secure but all in all it was good. Her parents did not enjoy the sounds.

I got this for an 8 year old and he loves it. He is into math, legos/construction sets, and science. The set comes with a manual that outlines a lot of different circuits to construct. Things such as sirens of differing tones, photosensor alarms, and even a water alarm that is similar to what you would place under a sink. Basic concepts are introduced such as resistors, power supple, and gates. One thing that took a while for him to understand was how electric flows, but once he grasped that he was curious to see what circuits he could make without reading the manual. I think this is a great way to introduce engineering at an early age.

Grandchild was quite excited when this item came into view under the Christmas wrapping. The reason I gave this a four star instead of a five is that I feel there should have been more items in the kit to make more projects. I do understand this is just to wet the appetite and that if there is a spark of interest, things will start to escalate from that point on.

I think it is one of the best teaching aids I have found on electricity and electronics. Me and my Grandchildren had a blast with it. It was a matter of minutes and they were putting it together. I showed them that pure water will not conduct electricity, it is the impurities in water that conduct electricity. Next thing I know they were testing their tap water and finding it would conduct. I wish I could find a bigger and more indept kit. Thank You

Great for kids!

This would be a fantastic set to introduce children to electronics - great projects and instructions -, but the built quality is just horrible. One connector had a contact bent on arrival, another one split into three parts within two minutes of opening the set (the first circuit we were building). This is the first T&K kit we bought online. All other sets we got at the local store were made in Germany. This one - which we could not find locally - is made in China.

My 6, nearly 7 year old grandson made this announcement a short time ago. With that in mind I ordered this Electronics kit.It arrived in very good time for an early birthday gift, during a visit to the UK.The kit is nicely presented, the instructions clear, and the background scientific information extremely useful.The parts are straight-forward to put together and I think they will be assembled and re-assembled many times and in different ways.We had great fun putting a few projects together, but leaving plenty more for later. Albie was really enjoying the process.The kit is certainly within my grandson's capabilities. I'll certainly consider buying another kit from the range (not chemistry!) in order to help the budding inventor. (P.S. I also bought him a lab coat.)

This seems to be a great circuits starter set. I home ed my 7 and 5 year olds and we have learned lots about basic circuits. I think for more advanced use I'll be buying components and doing squiggly circuits or a click circuit set. But great for starters.

Looks like a big set, but there are not many pieces inside - was hard to sell at our Garage sale after the kids tried it and were not impressed...

A great gift.

Excelente producto para aprender y enseñar los rudimentos de la electrónica. No tiene límite de edad. Fundamental la utilización del manual