NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC Glow-in-the-Dark Crystal Growing Lab - DIY Crystal Creation - Includes Real Fluorite Crystal Specimen

In the day and age of numbing our kids brains with apps and iPads - National Geographic offers excellent and outstanding kids activities, which are so well designed to stimulate and engage kids. As a parent of four elementary school aged kids, don't kid yourself on how damaging smart phones are, invest yourself and your wallet in your next generation, and spend some time with them exploring the world of science and discovery with tactical, hands on experiments and activities. National Geographic offers the best - high quality (equipment isn't cheap which means it lasts), real science - not just baking soda and vinegar - and excellent and interesting supporting materials which provide interesting and relevant context.

Great birthday gift for our granddaughter

My 8 year old son got this kit for Christmas. He loves all kinds of science and experiments so he was very excited to grow his own crystal. We had fun setting up the crystal and he enjoyed checking the glass every day to see how it was growing. But when it was time to get the crystal out, we ran into a problem. The thing was completely stuck to the glass we grew it in. I tried the suggested butter knife to loosen it but it did nothing. I tried hot water on the outside of the glass hoping to loosen it but that didn't work either. Finally I put some hot water inside, knowing it would dissolve the crystal and hoping a little would be enough to dislodge it. I was able to get a small chunk of it out but the rest broke apart (from the hot water I am sure). Luckily my son was happy to get even the small piece so it wasn't a total waste. Plus the kit comes with a sample piece and a nice little stand to he has that as well. Overall, a great idea it just would have been better if the crystal didn't adhere quite so well to the glass!

I’m always looking for a moment to teach my son something new but also spend some time together. I’ve tried out a few different National Geographic science kits and this is one of my son’s favorites. It takes awhile but it’s all hands off time I think like 10 days to grow. It grew to a decent size and glowed well after being “charged” with an led flashlight. Overall my son was thrilled and I think this is the perfect gift for any elementary school aged child or a parent looking to teach something new.

I love the concept of the National Geographic science kits. We got a kit that included several experiments, they all worked except the crystal did nothing! These kits are fun to do with children but an adult supervision is necessary. The crystal activity I followed the instructions I thought exactly using purified water, boiled in stainless steel, set the project in a glass heat-proof vessel. No crystal. We now have done this 3 times. Success only once, the very 1st try. So now I wonder if the "seed" is not good? I know this can work but it is unpredictable and disappointing for the child. If you get the one with the numerous crystals and the light stand, it is too difficult to scrape away the bottom of the crystal to have the light show through thus the crystal cracks and falls apart. Anyone want to add suggestions to have a successful crystal each and every time with these kits?

I read a bunch of reviews before deciding on this one because it was reasonably priced and seemed to work well. We were not disappointed. I got this for my son’s birthday and he was so excited to check on it every day as it grew. We even fumbled the directions a bit and I accidentally bumped it at one point but crystals still formed. I remember trying to grow crystals as a kid from directions in a science experiment book and was so disappointed when they didn’t grow so I wasn’t very hopeful. Great kit!

I got this last minute on a whim. It's the best Christmas present she got. She's obsessed with the "Crystal book" that came with the kit. That was a nice added bonus. My 3yo now wants to be a scientist when she grows up. I'll definitely be checking out more NatGeo products in the future. Kit takes less than 10 min to put together. Just enough time. I definitely recommend letting it sit the extra time as recommended. And with this color you cant watch it grow because the purple is so dark. Didn't bother us because it was an awesome surprise when we poured out the liquid. Word of advice-- use a wide mouth glass container. I had to bust the mason jar to get the crystal out because it was so big!

My kids (ages 5 and 7) and I had a lot of fun with this kit. The instructions are pretty easy and the steps are pretty kid friendly, as far as stirring and mixing goes. An adult does need to help, though, since there is hot water and powdery elements involved. Be mindful of the glass you use to grow the crystals in. Make sure the top of the glass or jar is as wide as the base. I used a tulip glass and found myself breaking the glass with a hammer in order to get the crystals out. The crystals themselves are pretty cool, too. I let them sit in the glass for about two weeks. And, yes, they do glow in the dark. The kit also includes a large flourite crystal and some education on crystals in general. The kids really enjoyed it and would check on the crystals' growth every day.

Worked very well

Great project to do on a rainy day or makes a great gift for those that like diy kits

Gift was received and enjoyed.

Impresionante - funciono de maravilla. Lo unico es que despues de hacer el cristal, hay que guardarlo en un sition donde no le de el sol para que mantenga su color. Pero de verdad era genial!

Abbiamo acquistato il cristallo di colore verde ma è arrivato quello incolore. Però in compenso il cristallo è cresciuto bene, a differenza di altri kit comprati.