I know of a few companies that sell crystal growing kits eg Otherland
Toys http://www.otherlandtoys.co.uk/crystal-growing-kit-p-1167.html
although I don't know how suitable they'd be for 3-5 years- most give 8+
or 10+ as recommended age ranges as some of the chemicals can be
irritants and aren't really the nicest things to eat. Great Gizmos
(google them) sell crystal and quartz "mining" kits for age 3+ which
take away the chemistry but involve some patience and manual dexterity
work to extract sparkly crystals from a hard sandy matrix.
What about growing salt crystals from a salt solution (sea-water? how
brave are you?) or (as we discovered recently by accident) some bottled
mineral waters produce fantastic but very tiny crystals if you leave a
small amount in the bottom of a cup in a hot room to evaporate over a
couple of weeks. Neither of these processes happen terribly quickly but
are effective and safe.
Hope you find what you're after. Please let me know if you find
something for U-5's!
nets
Anita Pryor wrote:
>
> Dear All
>
>
>
> I am trying to source crystal making kits that 3 – 5 yr olds can use
> in their classrooms as part of an outreach session. Any ideas?
>
>
>
> Best wishes
>
> Anita
>
>
>
> Anita Pryor
>
> Museum Learning & Outreach Development Officer
>
> Royal Institution of Cornwall
>
> River Street, Truro
>
> Cornwall, TR1 2SJ
>
>
--
Annette Shelford
Education Officer
Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences
Downing Street
Cambridge CB2 3EQ
Tel: 01223 766079
Fax: 01223 333450
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