This Toy Caterpillar Teaches Toddlers How to Code

Ben Silverman
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My 2-year-old son has officially entered the “I can do it myself” phase, which would be fine if he actually could do half of the things he thinks he can. My kitchen is perpetually covered in yogurt.

But while his fine motor skills could use some fine-tuning, his brain is itching to exert control over his tiny world, and a new gadget from toymaker Fisher-Price is right up his little egomaniacal alley.

Making its debut at this week’s CES show in Las Vegas, the Think & Learn Code-a-Pillar is just what the name implies: a robotic caterpillar that gently introduces wee ones to the basics of coding.

And by basics, I mean, like, really basic. The Code-a-Pillar comes with a motorized head unit and connectable segments, each of which contains a simple, color-coded instruction telling the toy to move forward, right, left, pause, and light up. Kids easily snap the segments together, then send the adorable plastic insect on its merry way.

Fisher-Price points out that snapping the blocks together is akin to sequencing, and creating a sequence that leads the toy to a specific destination is, technically speaking, programming (just without all that schooling and textbooks and lonely nights in front of a laptop). Fisher-Price is also working on a companion app that will challenge kids to program the Code-a-Pillar to accomplish certain tasks.

Launching in June for $49.99, the Code-a-Pillar will come with 8 segments but supports up to 15 at once; additional segment packs will be available for $15 apiece. Here’s hoping one of the additional segments tells the Code-a-Pillar to grab a paper towel and clean up yogurt. It’s everywhere.

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When Ben Silverman isn’t cleaning up after his messy kid, he’s relaxing on Twitter at @ben_silverman.