melissa caddell » our one-room schoolhouse

Gifts for bright kids #2: solar science meets kid building fun

melissa caddell — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 17:04:35 +0000

Leave a comment to be entered into a drawing for a FREE box of stuff from Steve Spangler Science ($75 value-woot!)! Drawing to be held on Dec. 11th^th. Enter on both posts on Gifts for Bright Kids!

The girls get busy creating and building

I took a look at the box when we got this and thought, ‘Yikes—that looks complicated’ Cool, mind you, but complicated. My kids (and my husband) kept asking when we were going to get to play with the Physics Solar Workshop and I just avoided eye contact.

Finally, I let them at it. What transpired was an entire afternoon of all-absorbing play.

This is a perfect toy for any kid who likes to build cool stuff. My two older girls (10 and 7) don’t often decide to build things out of Legos or blocks all on their own, but are happy to do it if I get them started. So, I was pretty surprised when they dug right into the box and got busy.

After talking about some of the principals of solar physics (the manual is a great resource for this), my 10 year-old got right to work building a model from the workbook. My 7 year-old got a basic concept of how to build a vehicle and then just had fun building her own design. The recommended age for this is 8+. If you want your child to work fairly independently, I’d shoot for closer to 10. If your 8 year-old has lots of experience with this sort of building or is more tenacious then the average kid, then they may be ready for it.

This is a well-designed set; good-sized pieces and sturdy construction. A ton of learning potential and hours (literally) of fun. My girls played with it for over 2 hours the first day. The directions are well-done and a nice balance of completeness and a little room for critical thinking. The pictures are really clear and a good size to see how the parts go together.

Real world application for solar power--snacks delivery!

I was AMAZED at how my 10 year-old happily stuck to it and problem-solved her way to build a vehicle. She was so proud of herself! She made the vehicle bring me a snack and even though the photo was slightly staged (no mom gets to sit and read a book in the middle of the day!), I loved her real-life application.

Why this toy is fun

Solar is just cool. It’s kinda like magic to kids, so the little solar panels were a huge hit. Then, to build something that actually works was pretty awesome. My daughter laughed in delight when her model rolled across the floor in a patch of sunlight.

Things to know

I’d shoot slightly higher then the recommended age range. This is a great toy for a kid to gain confidence in their ability to create and problem solve, but younger then about 10 will require more coaching by a parent and less independent thinking.

Solar Physics Workshop–I stand corrected.

A $10 gift for bright kids

melissa caddell — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 23:15:57 +0000

I am a big fan of toys for kids that make them figure stuff out. Or have a wow factor. Or both. It seems like every toy seems to go ‘blinky blinky blinky’ and requires very little actual PLAY by children.

: There are about 15 Jelly Marbles in this little cup–totally transparent!

So imagine my absolute delight when I was asked by fun folks at Steve Spangler Science to check out some science stuff! I had a chance to meet Steve a few months back and was thrilled with how he seemed to get kids and how kids naturally interact with science. And their website has a ton of free and cheap ideas that explain the science behind the activity.

When the box from Spangler Science was delivered, it felt like Christmas had arrived. I assembled my team of scientists and the first thing we played with was the Jelly Marble Kit ($9.95). This link shows just how cool the Jelly Marbles are.

Before I called the kids over, I let some of the Jelly Marbles sit in a clear cup for about 4 hours. Then, I had my scientists (ages 10,7, and 3) stick their fingers in the cup. Since the Jelly Marbles expand and become absolutely transparent, imagine their surprise!

The 3 yo and 7 yo mixing colors for the Jelly Marbles to absorb. Fun!

(Note: the kidlets say that the Jelly Marbles feel like eyeballs. I asked them how they knew what a bowl of eyeballs felt like…..but they’re right. :) We did several of the activities in the guide, but I think lots of fun was had just by handling the Jelly Marbles, squishing them, and wondering why the heck they disappear in water. Everytime someone went by the bowl, they’d say, “That is so cool.”

From an educational viewpoint, there are lots of things to talk about; refraction, movement of water and dye (when you use the included coloring tablets), and then watched amazed as the marbles returned to their original size after drying out over several days.

Why this toy is so fun Not much catches kids by surprise these days, but the grownups and kids alike loved this and repeatedly came back to the bowl with the marbles in it. It makes them ask lots of questions (which Steve answers most of in the handy instruction guide).

Things to know The waiting time in-between steps takes several hours, so this is a fun activity for over several days (snow days, winter break, vacation). Make sure you take the marbles out and look at them when they are expanding—so cool to see how the shapes it takes on! My fav was the raspberry shape.

The official recommendation is for ages 6 and up with adult supervision (adults, don’t hog the Jelly Marbles). Littler kids will love it, too (3 and up), but you gotta keep an eye on them and not leave them where curious little hands will grab them.

Best for: families who like to hang out and see cool stuff together. Invite some neighbor kids over and dare them to reach into the bowl of Jelly Marble water! ‘Cause spreading joy is what this season is all about. Hee… :)

Homeschool–when you don’t go ‘back-to-school’

melissa caddell — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 23:56:00 +0000

We decided to homeschool this year (’cause, according to one snarky comment from a reader, I am a bored stay-at-home-mom, hahahahahha!). I am writing about our journey this first year over at Examiner.com.

Come see this peek into our family’s transition from attending a great public school to the amazing (though sometimes odd) journey to homeschooling. No denim jumpers required.