Do you want to buy a robot? We’ve built and programmed a few at our house! If your child is young, consider Coji, designed for kids 4+. Most kids up to age eight or so like Coji. You download the app to your cell phone or tablet. The child codes with emojis. The process is intuitive. Here is the instruction model so you can take a better look. I paid $32 when I bought one a few years ago. Walmart has a deal.
I bought a simple kit and made a DNA model for my class.
Yes, it’s upside down on the stand. Don’t spend loads of money on a fancy model. Below are similar sets for under $10. BTW I have had good luck with TEMU. But Walmart and Amazon have similar sets under $10. Once you build the DNA molecule, put it away so it’s not destroyed.
Okay, let’s say your kid spends about ten minutes experimenting with a lab and you don’t want to invest $20 on household chemicals. Five Below has some great kits! Compare prices with American Science and Surplus. You can order items from Five Below online, if you don’t have a store nearby. (Magic Rocks have sodium silicate solution and metallic salts.). Take a look!
I keep a packet of sodium alginate and calcium lactate with my polymers. I use them for Chemistry, Biology, and Science Camp. But, the two-pack is about $20. Let me share some labs, such as Which Bead is Best? make the most of these pricey ingredients. BTW once you make the two solutions, you can use a plastic pipette to form the beads. A pipette works as well as a plastic syringe. Note in the photo below, you can set up a syringe delivery system with a ring stand.
1. Catalase Activity in Yeast Spheres is an enzyme lab demonstrating the action of the catalase enzyme (in yeast) to break down hydrogen peroxide.
2. Edible Water Pods is similar. Instead of making beads, you submerge a spoon of sodium alginate into the calcium lactate solution.
3. Science and Gummy Worms uses Koolaid for flavor. Kids just squirt the sodium alginate solutions into the calcium lactate. Here are some experiments to perform on the worms from Educational Innovations.
4. Sodium Alginate Respiration tests yeast spheres with sugar and bromothymol blue to measure the changing pH. It takes a bit of practice to make uniform spheres. Spend a little time dropping the sodium alginate into the calcium lactate.
5. If you can collect some algae, make Algae Beads in Using Algae Beads as a Model for Photosynthesis. We have a pond nearby. I want to try this lab instead of Spinach Leaf Photosynthesis Lab.
I thought of a few more gift kits. But, I am running out of ideas. How about a UV theme? Buy UV beads, a black light or even the Glo-Germ kit. (Here is the hand-washing lesson.) Use the black light to see which items glow under the UV lamp. (Stains on an old shirt glow well.) Try this lab together with the child. Add pipe cleaners for the UV beads to make bracelets. The beads will glow under the black light or just run outside. Fun every single time!
Along with the Crystal Garden charcoal and liquid bluing), add alum to the kit and make Eggshell Geodes. Add geodes the kids can break open themselves.
Put together spheres, alligators, dinosaurs, spikes, and crystals which expand in water. Here is a basic guide for experimentation. Compare results in distilled water, tap water, and salt water.
The Biology Co-op class met today to squeeze in an extra class. We did the Macromolecules or Biomolecules Card Sort using this worksheet—card sort. The kids all built DNA models; most need to complete their questions after Thanksgiving. We’ll make Edible DNA models after the kids finish the questions. Yeah!!! The kids are using the Labaids worksheet, Macromolecule lab sheets, and the card sort as study guides for the Biomolecules test. At the bottom of the page is a close-up of the answer key for the card sort. Take a look.
Okay, let me share just a few more ideas. First, what about a bird box kit? Here are free bird box plans, if you have scrap wood. The Lowe’s bird box kits are priced fairly, too. Add a used copy of Backyard Birds. Just like that you have a kit! BTW, birds don’t care which paint or decorations the kids choose. (Yes, I give used books as presents all the time. I just look for nicer copies.)
How about a LEGO stem kit? Good Will online sells LEGOs by the pound. (Be sure to check the shipping before you bid.) Add a LEGO invention book. Stand by for the compliments.
What about a fidget gadget kit? Here are 20 Easy Fidget toys. Yes, this is STEM! They are doing trial and error. Fill a box with color cardstock, paper, balloons, pennies, Orbeez, etc. Send the parent the link. You may want to print the template in the Red Ted Spinner and make a spinner for the kit as an example. (You can also win as best aunt and show the child how to make one.)
What about PVC Pipe Toys? The easiest PVC toys are marshmallow shooter or the bubble wand. Buy all the parts, copy the link for mom, and add a bag of marshmallows and a bottle of DIY Super Bubble solution. You could just add a small bottle of Dawn and a bottle of corn syrup, too. Bubble Science has loads of fun ideas; you may want to add a box of colorful straws and pipe cleaners to your gift box. See, you don’t need to break the bank to give a fabulous gift!
The key to a great home-made kit is to have lots of supplies. Let’s assemble a catapult kit! Collect popsicle sticks, rubber bands, plastic spoons, and ping pong balls. Optional items are binder clips, pom poms, jumbo craft sticks, and plastic bottle caps. Buy colorful rubber bands and popsicle sticks to make the kit more fun. Here is a link with three basic designs. (Challenge yourself and buy all the materials for under $5.)
Another fun science kit is a potions or Kiddo Chemistry kit. This one is pricier. Save plastic containers with tight fitting lids. I like coffee containers because they will hold all of the materials. Add safety glasses, plastic pipettes, dropper bottles, funnels, craft sticks or coffee stirrers (to mix), tiny, plastic cups (3 oz), plastic spoons, and coffee filters. Let’s start with simple potions or kid-friendly mixtures: Kitchen Science, Magic Potion (baking soda, vinegar, food coloring, and glitter), Alginate Worms (requires sodium alginate and calcium lactate), Orange Soda, Red Cabbage, and Butterfly Tea. Buy a set of small travel bottles, add lemon juice, baking soda, citric acid, vinegar, and mark with labels. You may want to slip in a pack of pH paper. Kids love to test liquids: apple juice, lemonade, or antacid tablets in water. When the kiddos make fizzy drinks or alginate worms, they add a bit of red cabbage powder for color and a bit of sugar for taste. Trust me, kids can mix up colorful potions for 45 minutes uninterrupted. You may want to package the kit in a bin to help contain the mess. Go over the top and add a used copy of Jane Van Cleve’s Chemistry for Every Kid.
(If the child is ten to twelve years old, try the experiments in ACS’s Middle School Chapter 6: Chemical Change. Detailed lessons are here with all the materials required, such as tea candles, Epsom salts, baking soda, etc. This set would be a tremendous Chemistry Kit.) You don’t need to break the bank buying supplies for these kits. Below are loads of pix with prices. Your family is going to have the best Christmas!
