“Mommy, where does rain come from?” “How do rockets fly?” “Why did the water freeze?”
These are just a few of the questions my 5-year-old bombards me with every day. I am delighted that my little explorer wants to know so many things, however, the challenge that I am facing sometimes is explaining concepts in an appropriate way for his age so that he will understand. I want to avoid the sentence that I used to hear in my childhood “You’re too young to understand this”.
So, I started looking for “allies” to help me support and encourage my child’s curiosity in an attractive way and, very importantly, in a hands-on manner.
And I found it!
STEM Kits for the Curious Kid
I am talking about the wonderful STEM kits from MEL Science.
Ever since my child has started being able to manipulate objects and explore the world on his own, I have been interested in monthly subscription kits because they come with projects developed by some very skilled professionals, the materials are of high quality and they save me loads of time as I don’t have to scour the internet to find interesting activities.
The STEM kits from MEL Science quenches my son’s thirst for knowledge and teaches concepts (some of them are quite complex) in a friendly, approachable way.
Learning about Hydraulics with a 5-Year-Old
Before we even opened the kit there was a sense of intrigue and wonder as we were greeted by two funny characters in a jungle having an adventure. Inside the kit, we found a story booklet that introduced us to the characters, a map to a mystery planet, another booklet that contained the assembly instructions plus another story, and two packets with all the materials needed to make the project.
I absolutely loved that the instructions are an integral part of a story which makes the whole project a lot more attractive and it gives kids the sense that they are an active part of the adventure.
When it comes to building the project, the instructions are easy-to-follow, although I have to say that younger scientists will definitely need the help of an adult. All the materials are high quality and everything works exactly as expected.
In fact, every single thing about the kit, from the illustrations, the storyline, the choice of project, and the explanations, is done with the utmost care and professionalism.
Another thing that’s worth mentioning is the MEL Science App that marvelously complements the kit. Here, kids have the opportunity to further study a concept by immersing themselves in VR and AR lessons with the help of a smartphone.
The Verdict
As a parent, I measure whether a purchase is successful or not by my child’s reaction to it. In the case of the MEL Science STEM Kit, I was pleased to see that my son was fascinated by the hydraulics system and how it made the lift move and he was interested in the explanation.
Another cool thing is that they make each experiment and project relatable to real life. In our case, we discovered many other objects that use hydraulics, thus my son now recognizes that excavators and elevators, for example, use this system to work.
I can say that after completing our first project from the MEL Science STEM Kit, my kid not only has an understanding of how a jack lift works (which is an amazing thing to know at the age of 5) but he was excited and delighted by the project and can’t wait for the next one.
