Building an IoT programming environment with and for preschool children

• Benedito Silva Neto UFSCar
• Vânia Neris UFSCar
• Carla Rodriguez UFABC

Abstract

Children are exposed to a set of Internet of Things (IoT) devices such as IoToys. Some of these devices are not only for use, but offer possibilities of customization through programming by children. Despite the existence of products and projects aimed at children, the initiatives presented to children of preschool age are generally educational or focused on entertainment and do not consider the possibility that children will control their functioning, programming the behavior of these products. This research aimed at investigating how children from 4 to 6 years old perceive the programming of IoT devices and, from the practice with them, build a prototype of a programming environment for them. To this end, 3 Participatory Design techniques were adapted and applied with 30 children. A final prototype was built and the usability was assessed by an analytical and an empirical method with the participation of 6 children. Lessons learned for the design of these solutions are discussed.

Keywords: End-user programming, IoT, Children, Participatory design