Right in time for National Chemistry Week October 17–23, 2021, we have Chemical Reactions!: With 25 Science Projects for Kids by Dr. Susan Berk Koch (website) and illustrated by Micah Rauch.
You can find tons of so-called chemistry experiments on the internet. The problem is it takes time to find the legitimate ones (in among the ads), and weed out the ones that are not age-appropriate or don’t work. Dr. Koch has done all that for readers ages 7-10, plus added the background and educational materials needed for successful learning.
The book starts with a historical timeline and a periodical table of the elements. The introduction lets young readers know why they should study chemistry, as well as introduces vocabulary words in convenient sidebars.
The following chapters are activities grouped based on chemical principles. Chapter 1 is about mixtures and how to separate them. Chapter 2 is about chemical reactions such as photosynthesis and making crystals. Chapter 3 covers water and the concepts of acids and bases. Chapter 4 plunges into gases and Chapter 5 explores manmade compounds, for example, the metal mixes in coins. Scattered throughout are QR codes that take you to extras like relevant YouTube videos.
The back matter has an extensive glossary, an explanation of metric conversions
, places you can find out more, a list of the essential questions asked in each chapter, plus a full index.
The book is illustrated with diagrams, photographs and some fun cartoons, like the one you see on the cover.
Chemical Reactions! is perfect for budding chemists and students who love their learning hands on. It would also be a wonderful resource for a unit on chemistry or to develop experiments for an elementary-level science fair. Check out a copy and see what develops.
Related activity suggestions:
It is hardly necessary to supplement such a wonderful selection of activities, but here are a few.
- Activity suggestions for a chemistry day event (previous post)
- Our popular post about the chemistry of rust
- The educational resources organized by age at the National Chemistry Week website
- For more children’s books about chemistry, see our growing list at Science Books for Kids.
Reading age †: ‎ 7 – 10 years
Publisher †: ‎ Nomad Press (October 15, 2021)
ISBN-10 †: ‎ 1619309416
ISBN-13 †: ‎ 978-1619309418
Disclosure: An e-ARC of this book was provided by the publisher. Also, I am an affiliate with Amazon so I can provide you with cover images and links to more information about books and products. As you probably are aware, if you click through the highlighted title link and purchase a product, I will receive a very small commission, at no extra cost to you. Any proceeds help defray the costs of hosting and maintaining this website.
Sounds like a great resource!
Actually, all Nomad Press publications are wonderful for hands-on learners. Lots of great activity collections.
Wonderful Lerner blog post, by the way. I’m adding links to the review.