little bits CODE KIT

Designing for systemic learning experiences through play

This 2-week project was an Industry Partnership collaboration between LittleBits and the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design (CIID) 2015 cohort.  Together with my team (Ciaran Duffy, Riccardo Cereser, and Dhruv Saxena) we conducted research and co-creation sessions with teachers, parents, kids between the ages of 9 and 11 years old, and gamers of all ages. My role included user research, rapid prototyping, video editing, and design production. Following the collaboration with my 2015 CIID cohort, littleBits incorporated the results of our 2 week research project and produced the littleBits Code Kit, winner of the 2017 ISTE Tech & Learning Best in Show award.

CHALLENGE

How might we design the littleBits system of modular electronic building blocks to engage users in creation and play of electronic games while teaching principles of game design and programming?

Explore 8-bit gaming and connect the older (parent/teacher) generations’ nostalgia with kid’s love of making and gaming.

PROCESS

RESEARCH

My team and I aimed to understand what play means to kids and their relationship to gaming. Additionally, we aimed to understand the relationship parents, teachers, and adult gamers have with gaming and learning through play. Research methods included ethnographic interviews, analogous inspiration exercises, and design games.

INSIGHTS

1  Challenge vs Reward

Mind the balance between challenge and reward.

2  Personal Investment

Make it personal.

3  Passive Learning Aid

Let the learning feel like the background beat.

IDEATION & COCREATION

FINAL CONCEPT & Video PRototypes

The outcome of this project was a fun, collaborative, and gamified learning experience that bridges the gap between tangible play and learning to code on screens. The littleBits Code Kit is an engaging learning platform, inspired by pastimes of 8-bit gaming, for kids learning to code, teachers, and parents.