Customer Reviews

47 Easy-to-Do Classic Science Experiments (Dover Children's Science Books)

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This is one of my favorite books on science experiments. Easy to do with minimal requirements, but the concepts seem magical. I have been doing some with my daughter, and it's a delight to see the expression on her face when we do the experiments and the results seem counter-intuitive. For example, we did the funnel rolling upwards, and it totally surprised her.

(One caution: you may need to substitute other items. In the Funnel experiments, we started off buying the two funnels from Home Depot for 97c. But, the funnels didn't work. So, instead my daughter struck upon the idea of sticking together two stryofoam cups. And, the experiment worked wondrously.)

We got this book as part of Amazon's 4-for-3 promotion, which made its already low price more appealing. The experiments are generally the same ones you find in nearly every other book of this type, and the old-fashioned black-and-white illustrations lack the clarity and impact of many newer volumes. It looks pretty dull at first glance.

However, the experiments are carefully and accurately grouped according to the scientific principle each one demonstrates, and the text explains why or how the experiment works the way it does. The writing isn't that bad, considering how visually dull the book is. So, if this were the only book you had on this topic, you could indeed get some value from it.

Like most such books full of experiments, you would not want to turn a young child loose with the book and the instructions, regardless of their reading level! As for the amount of scientific understanding needed, I'd say that kids as early as second or third grade could enjoy at least some of the activities in here, because many of them are entertaining regardless of the science involved.

However, if you're shopping in this category I'd strongly advise moving up to something newer, with better illustrations and better layout, since there are many to choose from that don't cost a whole lot more than this one. If you already have such a book, I don't think this one has much to add.

I liked the experiments and the way they were illustrated. Good for people who want to spent some nice Saturday mornings with their kids.