electric motors for dummies

[johny the ripper]

Hi,

I want to learn how to control electric motors. I've been reading on the internet on the different types and how they work, but now I'm ready for some hands on. Can you recommend a step by step guide, or a set of components I could easily set up?

The aim to be able to turn it on/off, speed stepping and possibly program simple instructions like: click a button to engage the motor for x seconds and then reverse the direction.