ALEX Toys Explorer Magic Science for Wizards Only Kids Science Kit, For Children Who Love to Experiment, Allows Children to Use Imagination and Creativity, For Ages 6 and up

I figured this was going to be a lot of "add vinegar to baking soda and watch the magic happen!" And though, yes, baking soda and vinegar play major roles in this set, there is definitely other fun stuff happening in the kit, too.I've attached pictures of a few of the experiment directions, so you can see some of the things you can do. Even though most of the experiments call for basic household ingredients, packaging goes a long way here. The kit comes with everything you need, and all of it comes in cute little pouches or bottles. You also get four big test tubes with a stand, two mini scoopers, and a plastic wand. I know it sounds crazy, but the scoopers and tubes genuinely make these common cooking ingredients feel more like legit "experiment components." Seriously, the presentation of this kit is perfect.My kids are excited to do each experiment (we've only done about half of them so far). I think making the crystals for the inside of the plastic wand has been their favorite, even though it required A LOT of wait time. But the kids are genuinely excited to see what will happen when we add this to that or drop in this color tablet after the last color tablet. They are engaged and excited (and occupied). Honestly, this set pretty much blew my expectations out of the water. It's been a real hit.

I had been eyeing this magic set for my magic/magic school bus loving kids who is all into science experiments. I remember at one point I searched for science tricks and science experiments and somehow ended up with a bunch of low star rated experiments (that I didn't buy). So when this one popped up, and it had decent stars (and it was a great price), we purchased it. The set is pretty good. My favorite experiment would have to be the magic wand one where you make these colored jelly like things (be sure not to pour it down the drain though, as the instructions state, as they will clog your pipes). We've only done I think four experiments so far, and some are more impressive than others, but I also like how I don't need a whole bunch of other ingredients to have the experiments work. We own the entire line of magic school bus kits and my biggest complaint is that I need a whole bunch of supplies to do the experiments, and they involve so much reading that by the time I have all my materials and have read the instructions I want to go take a nap ! Not these - they're very short and straightforward, and my five year old is enjoying the set.

I did all the "experiments" in this kit with my friend's two boys, ages 6 and 7.5. They loved making things change color and seeing an acid and base react to produce a gas (and they learned that too!) They learned about primary and secondary colors (e.g. what color do you get when you mix red and blue?) All of the experiments repeat the same principles: 1) red cabbage powder as a pH indicator - put an acid in and a base and watch it change colors, and 2) react an acid and a base together. This is great because you can quiz the kids while you're going along and challenge their thinking skills even at ages 6 and 7! For instance, I would ask, "What is baking soda, an acid or a base?" and they would tell me it's a base. Then I'd ask, "So when I put it into this test tube (with the pH indicator), what color is it going to turn?" and then I would ask them things like: "OK the instructions say we have to mix these two tubes. This one has baking soda and this one has citric acid. What's going to happen when we mix them together?" And they would get really excited and shout, "It's gonna make a gas!!!" and visually show the "eruption" with their hands. This kit is simply a great learning tool - of course they aren't going to understand exactly what a pH indicator is or what pH is, but the exercise of asking them to predict results based on previous experiments is a great one. Plus they get all excited about doing it. I'm a scientist and I would use this kit with any kid I spend time with, ages 6 to probably 10-12 (depending on mental age; these two kids I did it with are very advanced for their age). Obviously, at the younger end, the kids need more help. Oh, and yes of course you need an adult's help to complete this kit (or a responsible older kid). It's best if you make it a learning lesson anyway! The whole kit took us about 4 hours with all the questions and answers mixed in. Some of the instructions do require a modicum of intelligence to understand and you should read through them before starting each experiment. Unfortunately, I do not recommend this kit be used by people who don't understand the basics that the kit relies upon (acid+base=CO2, pH indicators) because the instructions in one or two places left something out. Oh, and we couldn't get the last experiment to work (mixing zinc sulfide-containing acidic and basic solutions to get a frothy, glow-in-the-dark solution. The kids and I are bummed about that. So I knocked one star off because of that (and because I think the kit is over-priced for what it is). There are plenty of most materials (plus, this stuff is easy to come by in your kitchen!) so you don't need to buy a new kit each time. However, there is only one magic wand so you'd have to get a replacement wand (and another magic hat as well).

At first I thought this kit was lame. I mean, I have everything that is in the kit in my kitchen (mostly)! I can (and have) done most of these experiments with my children in the kitchen with recipes I found online.But my daughter got this kit for Christmas and LOVES IT! It is the perfect thing for her to do on her own. Since she is in first grade, she can easily read the directions. They are very clearly written. All of the materials that she needs are right there. The kit requires a few additional materials, but all of them are things that she can easily access (i.e. a butter knife). All of the experiments are very easy for her to do and clean up after. She loves pretending to be a wizard, and so far it has provided HOURS of self-directed entertainment and learning. It was a great choice and I would recommend it to anyone who has a 5-7 year old who can read and who is interested in doing experiments with limited adult interaction.Of course, I would also recommend that parents encourage children to form a "hypothesis" and help explain the "why" part of the experiment to help increase the learning potential of this kit. But it can also be used if you need your older child to be entertained while your younger two nap;)