Customer Reviews

Scientific Explorer's The Magic Science for Wizards Only

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Most of what our family experienced was as listed in the more favorible reviews. A bit messy, but easy to prepare for that and a great time was had by all. Most of the objects included are common household products, but this simply makes them conveniently at hand and easy to refill by not hiding the ingredients as generic magic powders.
A down side is the experiments seemed to be a bit repetitive, but the kids didn't mind as it was all so facinating to them.

The real downside? The smoking fingers trick was missing. Our first thought was a mischevious child made the card vanish using newfound magical abilities, but after searching online this seems to be a problem others have been having recently as well (ref: review at Barnes and Nobles web site) we're pretty certain that parts are being left out. While we find it incredible that this educational toy was able to make learning fun, it would be nice if we could perform ten magical activities as advertised instead of the nine actually available. I have to question the true value of any object's educational value when the company sending said product cannot count to ten.

A side note, the caps were not all that difficult to get on the ends of the wand. It just takes a little twisting and shifting, finesse rather than force.

My 7 year old received this as a Christmas gift, and it has been his favorite toy. The whole family gets involved with the magic experiments. The wand is difficult to make, but not impossible. The little black stoppers for the tube are ridiculously tight, and require an adult with upper body strength and/or patience, but it's worth it when blue slime doesn't leak out and spill on your carpet. Once it's done, you don't have to take them off again unless you want to, so it's one annoyance with a good result.
Once the wand is made, the little wizard can perform the other experiments that are incredibly cool to the 7-12 year old set, particularly the magic smoking fingers trick.

I have to agree with the other review regarding the magic wand. I have a very disappointed 5 year old as well because the ends on my kit also do not fit. The other disappoint was the magic smoking fingers. It is a very greasy substance that you put on your fingers, the problem is that is stinks and is very difficult to get off your fingers. Plus I followed directions and did not get any smoke. All in all, I would not recommend this kit.

This Magic Science Kit is FABULOUS!! My daughter just received this for her 5th birthday and truly feels like a Wizard!! She had help with Daddy (certainly needed at this age and way more fun!!) and LOVED every spell, potion, etc.! The test tubes are super and very sturdy...the holder is perfect as well. This kit can be used again and again (even with other ingredients if need be)...highly recommend, the pictures and moments are truly priceless. Love seeing my daughters face light up with "absolute belief" she made everything happen with her magic hat and very cool magic wand and a few magic words!!

My 11 year old has absolutely enjoyed this kit. The wand fit together fine...it's snug, but you don't want the liquid to leak do you? My daughter liked the jiggly jewels that formed in the wand as well, so it has been opened and closed many times...still no complaints. The instructions were simple and my daughter could do most of this without help. The experiments work well when done properly. My daughter especially enjoyed the magic concept as she is a Harry Potter fan; so it would likely make a nice gift for such a fan as well.

My daughter and I are writing this together - she insisted on rating this 5 stars because "it is awesome!" After doing the experiments in this box, she wants to turn her whole playroom into a science lab - actually that is why we're online right now, to get more science gear since she enjoyed this so very much. Anything that gets a 7 year old kid this excited about chemistry is - in her words - "awesome." She wants everyone reading this to know she just did a really cool experiment.

My 7 year old daughter got this for Christmas last year. We ended up playing with it all year. I guess I was lucky with the magic wand. She loved the test tubes and after a while she was able to follow the directions and do the experiments herself. I would highly recommend this as well as other products from this company.

On this rainy day my 7.5 year old and his 8 year old best friend have spent the day making magic potion after magic potion. I have been able to sit back and observe as they read the easy to understand directions and mix up the experiments themselves. In the process of making these concoctions they have been learning their fractions and how important it is to follow directions step by step.

I would recommend this to anyone with an 8 year old that loves science and chemistry. This is a safe and fun kit that the kids learn from while having tons of fun.

My daughter had fun performing the tricks, she couldn't do it on her own but I had a lot of fun helping her to learn, explore and be creative with this magic science kit. I noticed on some other post that people had mentioned the quality of this product. I noticed others had a bad experience with the magic wand in this product but my daughters came out great. Others have also mentioned the quality of the items given, I would have to say that for 20 bucks it is a bit pricy for what you get, but it always seems to be on sale anyway. It is definitely not meant for young adults and older so I wouldn't really expect high quality from it to begin with and overall my daughter had fun and that's all I care about.

This kit delivered more than I expected. My daughter and I have enjoyed hours of fun with it. My husband and I bought it for her 5th birthday but worried it might be a little advanced for her. Not so. She is really into it and patiently waits for subtle changes in the materials. I didn't have any of the problems mentioned in other reviews. If I could change one thing, I'd like the manufacturer to include equal quantities of items. Some of the items (like vegetable oil) I easily replenished. But I have no clue where to buy zinc sulfide. I have ample supplies of all the other items. Still, I love it enough that we'll be buying her another kit for Christmas.