John Adams 577 10873 EA Secret Science, Various

When this arrived my daughter couldn’t wait to open it - one lock down lessons that we could do with actually getting our hands on science instead of a zoom lesson.John Adams has got a wide range of products on the market but I would definitely say they need to look into the packaging as the box was a decent size but was quite empty.For a retail price of £12.99 I would say my daughter would of preferred something different to this.Comes with 8 activities, follows the national curriculum which is great for these lock downs but you needed so many extra items so we couldn’t get on with the activities right away.I would say you definitely need a shopping list to begin the fun.My son was a little bit disappointed as there was a lot of pink and he felt it was based more around a girl rather then being unisex.

My children love activity sets, be they arty or sciencey. This STEM based set is full of little experiments that teach a bit about science under the umbrella of spy craft. Some of the experiments will work out of the box, but several require added bits and bobs - most of which you will have around the house already. The tests can be a little tricky for younger children and eight sounds about right as a starting point. A good thing is that most are tidy to undertake, so a nice alternative to messy crafts, although the fizzing ball can make a mess.The box is aimed at girls and is a little full on. Spy items come in the form of rings or powder cases, hearts and pink are featured. I am all for encouraging STEM skills across all kids, but some of these items are a little on the nose. My children liked them, but some will be put off by the style, which is a shame as most of the experiments are fun and educational.

Whilst I do laud the idea of encouraging girls into science, it seems a little ironic that this company has chosen to do that by dressing science up in the seemingly the most pandering cliches possible about what women like.Here, you are doing scientific tasks through the prism of a pink heart shaped locket, a pink make up mirror, and some bracelets, also pink. It's a mixed message, undoubtedly.On the other hand, the science and maths activities here are engaging and interesting - coding, a motion sensor, invisible ink, and a mirror box.However, apart from the motion sensor, the contents of the box are just assemblages of cheap plastic and paper, and could have been packaged in a box a sixth of the size. You're also expected to add a lot of other stuff from the kitchen to make the experiments work.So one star off for poor value for money, and another off for the well-meaning sexism.

Fun little science kit for kids.Packaged well. Arrived in a nicely designed cardboard box.This science kit has 8 fun activities to do. You can create, demonstrate, learn and have fun! There are a few additional items you will need but not every activity needs something that isn't supplied.Additional items needed -• 2AA batteries• Sticky tape• Kitchen foil• Small torch bulb• Lemon juice• Baking powder• Purple grape juice• Tonic water• Iron• Paintbrush or cotton budThe activities are -• Optical illusions• Reversing arrows• Locket room guard• Electrical circuit• Coding bracelets• Mirror messaging• Create mirror alphabet• Creating invisible inks• Water fizzer messagesEach activity has instructions, then there is a detail about each one, how it does what it does and why etc. An experiment for each activity and some have additional experiments.This is a fab little kit. The decoding bracelets are lots of fun to decipher. Invisible inks, water fizzers, the door guard is fantastic, you can record a message with this. Create a magic money box too! It is slightly more than I thought it would be but I would recommend it.

I can definitely see a fair few of these things being great for kids, especially those with an interest in science, and all things 'gadgety'. The magic money box is always a neat trick; it's built pretty solidly and fits a good number of coins before you can't fit anymore. The invisible ink and UV pen is great for those 'covert operations', and sending secret messages, which kids love. The heart-shaped 'locket' that acts as a kind of alarm is probably the most 'advanced' thing in the kit, and works great! The sound quality on it is pretty strong, and the battery lasts a while. The sensor on the alarm isn't the best, but works alright most of the time - so kids should always know when someone's nearby! The water fizzer/bath bomb, really, is a nice touch, and hide a cool little secret note, which can be deciphered with the code rings - the message is quite long so that in itself should pre-occupy the kids for a while. The code rings feel the cheapest part of the set, but still quite handy if nothing else for an afternoon or so. The set is a bit pricey for the quality of what you get - but you do get a number of things which would pre-occupy anyone, of any age.