“Nothing is better for learning or designing electronics than building real circuits. The breadboard is a popular option but it often results in an incomprehensible spaghetti that has no resemblance to the original schematic and is hard to debug.
I took inspiration from another instructable to make a set of magnetic blocks that can be combined into electronic circuits. The result is awesome: basic circuits are set up in seconds and they look just like the schematic! The connections between the blocks are very reliable since the copper strips of two different blocks are pushed against each other by the magnets under the tape.
The blocks are made from recycled cardboard with small magnets on the borders. Copper tape cover the magnets and connect to the components. By putting two small magnets on each border, the blocks always attract. No specialized tools are needed, and the cost is circa 10 cents per block.
Materials:
100, 200 or 300 cylindrical neodymium magnets of, 5mm diameter, 1mm thick (5x1mm). These are readily available online for ~1.5 cents a piece (e.g. here)
10mm wide copper tape, a 10m roll will be more than sufficient (e.g. here)
Strong cardboard: the 6mm 3-layer version is good. 50x50cm is more than enough
Components for prototyping: a 4xAAA battery holder, LEDs, resistors, capacitors, transistors, a speaker, an LDR, buttons, a potentiometer etc. In the next step is a detailed list for a minimal set.
Tools: a box cutter and a soldering iron. Red and blue permanent markers. Tweezers are handy for bending pins.”