Crystal Growing Kit for Kids - Science Experiments for Boys and Girls Ages 6-12 Year Old Girl Gifts - Boy Toys STEM Crafts Activities, DIY Projects - Gift for Kids Age 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

I got this for my kids so they could have something fun and educational. I've done other STEM kits with them like "underwater volcano" that are fun but have no lasting value - you can't really repeat it without buying refills and when it's done there's nothing to show for it.The crystals are interesting because you make them and then...you've got some crystals you can hold or look at, and they're pretty colors on top of the lighted stand. It's hard for small kids to help because you have to boil the heck out of the solution and the instructions make it very clear that the powder is toxic (don't inhale it) and the solution is toxic (don't touch it, don't drink it) until it dries. They can at least watch you do it and you can talk about what's going on, and they can help put in the starter if they're careful.My favorite part was the couple of weeks the crystals were growing. Every day my kids would want to look at them and see if it was bigger. Eventually the crystals are done, you pour off the liquid, and you can see them while they're drying. Then you pull them out and put them on the stand. My kids really enjoyed holding the crystals to see what they feel like and looking at the colors and how you can see through them. All three crystals on the stand actually makes a nice decoration for a shelf and you can say you made it yourself.Not a lot of downsides - you can only do it once but you can space it out by making the crystals one at a time and you do at least have pretty crystals at the end. The crystals are not sharp but they are pretty fragile so you can let kids handle them but it's likely some of the ends will break off sooner or later and I imagine you could crack or shatter one if you dropped it on a hard floor. The lighted stand has a capacitive touch power button and ours is sometimes possessed. If you leave it plugged in it will sometimes turn itself on or switch from solid to blinking mode, which is minor but not great.Overall this is a fun STEM activity where you make something cool and the older your kids are, the more involved they can be in the process and the better they'll understand what's going on, but even small kids will enjoy making pretty crystals at home.

I originally bought and sent this to my 6-year-old nephew, for an activity for him and I to do together when I went to visit him.We followed the directions exactly as in manual. Also, I had read elsewhere to make sure NOT to boil water in a metal pot or it will react with mixture-so avoided that-which the manual DOES NOT STATE. After that, you pretty much dump each crystal powder in the boiling water and stir for 10 minutes. Let it sit to cool, then put in the seed rock. I agree with someone else’s review that a pair of rubber tongs would have been easier to place the seed rock than those included. But I was able to gently slide it into place in center. And that is it!What I loved about this kit and WHY I choose it after viewing MANY others, was it’s inclusion of 3 growing cups (so all crystals could be grown at same time), and that yield time was 5-7 days as opposed to 7-14 of other kits.Within the first day we already had crystals forming. Every day after, BOTH MY NEPHEWS, even the 3-year old were super excited to wake up each day and run to the china cabinet (where we decided these were safest behind glass doors with cats in house) and check the growth progress. I must admit, I was pretty excited as well!We left our crystals to grow for 7 days. I think they could have grown longer but my nephew really wanted them out! He loves them SO much he has his stand in his window so he can ALWAYS see it from his bed and loves how the crystals reflect the light. The only negative thing I can say is the colored crystals are much lighter than they are pictured.This kit was SUCH A HIT, he specifically REQUESTED I get ANOTHER crystal kit to do more when I visit again!

This kit made awesome crystals! Good size, and pretty colors. Directions were easy to follow and we were successful in creating three complete crystals. The light source is an led light that must be plugged in to a USB port.The only thing I don’t care for is that the crystals just sit on top of the light and are not secure. They are quite breakable, so I’m not sure how long it will last. The short cord keeps us from putting the light too far from an outlet.We used this kit as an activity to go along with our homeschool study on geology. The kids found it exciting to check the crystal growth each day. It was an enjoyable activity for both the kids and myself.

Was ok to do. great science experiment

I haven't had the opportunity to help make all the crystals but I tried one out to make sure it would work. It hasn't even been twenty four hours and the crystals after forming perfectly! My son is excited and later today the other two are going to be started. Just make sure you boil that water :)My kiddo got a random, different brand, for Christmas and that one didn't work as planned and he was bummed. Honestly I will say I think it was my fault since I didn't boil the water long enough bit it looked my like fluffy crystals. Anyways with the mini explorer version I made sure the water was boiling extremely well.Update: I meant to update sooner but all three turned out perfectly. I made a small mistake on the first Crystal. Make sure that when you see the crystal start showing above the water to drain it. It does state that in the directions but I had misplaced them at the time. These were awesome and my son loved watching them grow and then if course enjoys then on display.