Dot and I have been doing a Magic School Bus Chemistry kit every now and then for the past several months. We are about halfway through the kit. She loves it. We got it because I got a different chemistry kit for Bug, and I thought correctly that she would enjoy doing experiments at the same time as her big brother.
A little background: I'm not a science mom. I am not fascinated by how the material world works, although I've tried to be. I do not love doing science demonstrations with children, but I wanted to love it. I try to follow instructions, and the experiments/demonstrations flop, or I can't find the materials, and it's all very frustrating.
I've had the most successes with Magic School Bus kits. Sometimes the materials are a bit cheap, and sometimes the experiments don't seem to work for me. Most of the time, however, the materials are adequate to very nice, and 99% of everything needed is inside the kits. And they are affordable.
The chemistry has been a lot of fun for Dot and I to do. She is too young to understand much about any concepts illustrated, but she definitely likes the idea of doing science experiments.
I would recommend this kit for mature 4-to-7-year-olds for a fun time with parents, with the understanding that the concepts illustrated by the experiment cards are going to be too abstract for them. Young children will need a lot of assistance with every experiment. Second or third graders may understand a little more of the science but may still need a lot of help. Fourth to Fifth graders can probably do these on their own.
For the elementary school mom who wants her kids to do some hands-on science with a minimum of frustration, the Magic School Bus chemistry is a solid choice.
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