All three of my children seem to have some sort of interest in science and experiments. My older two have a fair few science kits and Izebella seems fascinated by what they make with them.
Discover with Dr Cool also loves science and sells a very good range of science kits and experiments in many categories of science to suit most ages. The company is American based but many of their products can be purchased on Amazon UK. Just type in “discover with dr cool” to bring up the products.
All three of my children have a new kit and they all love them. Ryan has a rock tumbler, however rock tumbling takes time so he can’t give his full opinion for another 2/3 weeks yet. So today is about the girls kits which are both very different.
Jordanna (age 9) received this gem stone dig kit.
The kit contained a hard stone plaque which appeared to have a large purple crystal inside it, however this is quite deceptive as it’s just a painted image. To get the real gems, Jordanna had to dig.
And dig she did! A small scraper tool comes included but we found a plastic knife also comes in useful. The digging is quite tough at first but got easier as we went on (yes I had to help her). We found a little water helped too and once the stone started to be chipped away it was more like sand or clay.
Inside the plaque were 15 gems/precious stones that Jordanna discovered by digging. There is a booklet with the set to tell us what each one is. We did find one or two of the stones were not listed tho.
The stones needed a good wash and a little brush comes included to brush away dust. The magnifying glass gives us a better look at each stone. The stones are unpolished but as a certain someone now has a rock tumbler, this can easily be changed.
This kit falls under the geology and excavation (digging) categories of science. I myself love collecting rocks and gems such as the ones Jordanna found.
National Geographic Mega Gemstone kit can be purchased from Amazon for £29.99. The digging project does not take long to complete but the gems and stones can be kept forever. For ages 6 and over.
And now for Izebella (age 4). Being so young, I would not of thought that there would be many science type kits about for Izebella. Obviously she cannot use chemicals of any sort, nor use anything mechanical or sharp. Gems and stones are also a little risky as she sometimes puts things in her mouth.
Well it seems Dr Cool got it bang on with their Ultimate Dino sand kit.
This one is suitable for kids age 3 and over so even young ones can get a taste of science and even a little bit of history.
The kit contains a bag of sand, dinosaur figures/mouldy and a play tray. Now the idea of sand and a young child playing with it in the home will probably fill most parents with dread , the thought of bits of sand all over the carpet!However fear not because this is the special sort of kids sand that does not dry out. It sort of clumps together and we can even lift chunks of it together. Mess is minimal and it’s not sticky either, it feels a little like play dough.
There are many ways that Izebella can play with her kit. There are six dinosaur figures, all different species which come accompanied with the booklet describing them all with a few facts.
She can learn a little about dinosaurs by me reading bits to her. We also play a game of hide the dinosaurs, where I hide the dinosaurs in the sand and she digs with her hands to find them. She loves it!
Then there are the moulds, again six of them which act a little like the sand castles and shapes we use on the beach. Fill with sand, smooth off and tap them out to get sand dinosaur figures.
The kit also contains a rather surprising and very real item – It’s dinosaur poop and it’s apparently over 50 million years old.
Luckily it’s totally fossilised, feels just like a regular stone and does not stink. It is a very interesting and extremely old piece of Earths history. This can also be buried in the sand or kept in its packet, maybe it will be around in another 50 million years!
So what does little Izebella think of the sand dinosaurs and poop?
Yes it smiles all around and very minimal mess for me! Once finished playing the sand can be kept and stored in a sealed container along with the dinosaur parts, ready to play with another time. This one is also on Amazon for £13.99.
Well my girls loved their kits and Ryan also loves his new gadget, his review will be here in the next few weeks.