Arduino microcontrollers have added Python to the range of compatible programming languages. Others can be used, and not just Arduino's own IDE app.

University of Cambridge theoretical physicist Damien George has built a tiny microcontroller that is more powerful than Arduino and far simpler than the Raspberry Pi. Just funded on Kickstarter ...

However, it was a challenge trying to teach my 10-year-old Arduino programming. That said, I observed he could zip through the Python tutorials on code academy pretty easily.