A great way to learn electronics is by exploring the concept of "soft circuits". Although a breadboard is, from a certain point of view, a soft circuit, the term usually extends to unconventional surfaces, such as fabric, rubber, or paper. With that in mind, we came across Shirt Circuit, a project on the Instructables portal that teaches us to turn a T-shirt into a breadboard, whose connections and bridges are made with buttons.
I admit it: the first time I got my hands on a breadboard, I had to search for an online tutorial to understand how to use it. A piece of plastic with many holes is not very intuitive, but once you grasp the basic concept, the difficulties disappear. Now, how do we repeat that same effect among the little ones? More than once, electronics becomes too formal, and we discover that it is not a great "communicator". Programming goes through similar difficulties, and one of its most effective shortcuts is learning to "program by playing" There is no doubt that electronics can take that same shortcut, and robotics is an extraordinary ally, however, there are more options. One of them is soft circuits, with projects like Shirt Circuit.
As its name indicates, Shirt Circuit is a complete tutorial to create a test circuit on a T-shirt. Obviously, the T-shirt is just one medium among many, and nothing prevents doing something similar on jeans or other fabrics. The contact points are not holes, but those classic snap buttons that usually last a couple of weeks on shirt cuffs (at most!). The buttons must be able to conduct electricity, and as for wiring, they recommend silicone sheaths for greater flexibility. A pair of CR2032 batteries serve as the power source, and although I imagine it would be possible to use higher voltages, it is not recommended for safety reasons. The idea is to teach electronics, not to set T-shirts on fire.
All the relevant details about the construction and the list of materials are available on Instructables (link below), but I insist: There is plenty of room to maneuver. It could be a pair of pants, a tie, a blanket, a lab coat… the list goes on.
Instructables
