Grandparents, this could be a great gift idea for a grandchild!

KIBO is a playful robot that offers young children a fun way to learn coding and building along with storytelling and imaginative play. Designed for kids ages 4–7, KIBO is entirely unplugged and screen-free: no smartphone, tablet, PC, or network connection is needed. Children build onto the robot with art and craft materials, then use wooden blocks to program their creation.

Designed for open-ended play, KIBO lets kids make almost anything they can think of: a character from a story, a carousel, a dancer, a car, a helicopter. After the child creates a sequence of instructions using the wooden programming blocks, they scan the blocks with KIBO’s built-in bar code scanner to tell the robot what to do. Then they simply press the button and the robot comes alive.

With KIBO, kids can tell stories, invent games, and explore their interests through creative projects that integrate coding with arts and crafts. KIBO is fun for all ages, so kids can share the fun with siblings, friends, parents, and grandparents. When children build, code, and decorate their own robot, they’re not just having fun, they’re learning invaluable science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics (STEAM) skills that will help them in school and, eventually, their future careers. STEAM and makerspaces are all the rage in today’s schools, and KIBO helps kids play their way into impressive coding skills and hands-on knowledge of the engineering design process (Ask, Imagine, Plan, Create, Test & Improve, and Share).

KIBO is a safe and robust product that will last years. Based on 20 years of research by leading early childhood development researcher Professor Marina Bers from Tufts University, KIBO has been tested and approved in 59 countries and by thousands of children and their caregivers.

And for homeschool educators…

KinderLab Robotics also offers a three-month KIBO Home Robotics Course that provides a step-by-step curriculum to easily teach coding, robotics, and STEAM concepts. This unique rental program includes use of a KIBO 18 Robot Kit to support a curriculum that makes creative, cross-curricular STEAM learning affordable and easy to implement.

With the KIBO Home Robotics Course, home educators have full support from KinderLab Robotics as they integrate coding and robotics into their homeschool curriculum. In addition to the complete, research-backed Creating with KIBO curriculum, the program includes fun Activity Cards, helpful workbooks, and a clear lesson sequence. Course participants also receive weekly emails with specific advice, examples, and suggestions keyed to their progress through the course.

The program fee of $169 includes the three-month KIBO rental, complete curriculum, and two-way shipping anywhere in the continental United States.