Blast Lab Bright Ideas

Blast Lab Bright Ideas
Published at DK Canada

About the book

This title features fantastic experiments, thrilling things to make and do and reusable stickers from Richard Hammond's TV series "Blast Lab". Introduce your child to "Blast Lab Bright Ideas" and they'll discover all sorts of things to do with light and electricity! This title includes exciting experiments from how to make an electromagnetic crane, to building a torch to see how light travels through jelly. Just like Richard Hammond's, "Blast Lab", there are lots of fun experiments to try out using everyday objects from around the house, but LEDs and copper wires are included to get you started. It's a fun-filled blast from first page to last.

Our Thoughts

As part of the What Did You Make on March Break promotion, I was given the opportunity to explore new products from the books highlighted in the March Break Survival Boutique of DK Canada.  So for my first post on this promotion, I will highlight the book Blast Lab Bright Ideas which includes experiments with light and electricity!

As soon as I received the book my oldest son cracked it open and immediately selected the project he wanted to do – the Alien metal detectors which have for mission to find metal.   To do this little experiment you will need aluminum foil, a led, scissors, adhesive tape, three pieces of wire, some modeling clay and a 3V battery (please note that this is very important…).

Each experiment in this book has a step by step process that is easy to follow.   I have to admit that we didn’t have a 3 Volts battery at home.   My husband suggested that we use an AA or AAA one instead.    So while doing this little experiment we also discovered something else that I will mention at the end of this post.

Alexandre and I followed the instructions to set up the wires and the battery together.    Cutting the wires with scissors is almost impossible.   Fortunately we had a special tool to cut electrical wires at home and I used it in combination with grips to access the metallic wire. We tried regular adhesive tape but let me suggest that you use either electrical tape or duck tape.   We ended up using duck tape for it as I found the adhesive tape not quite as sticky.    So our first attempt we had an AA battery in our hands.  Should work right?    Not so.    After completing our “ALIEN”, we realized that something wasn’t working.   Alexandre had found another small battery so we tried it as well.  It was the kind that could be use in watches.   This one wasn’t working either.   Now I was a bit fed up and decided right then and there to take the car, drive to the Shoppers Drug Mart and go get a real 3 Volt battery.   While Alexandre was preparing lunch I jumped in the car and took a small trip to get the battery.

When I came back the table was set and lunch was almost ready.   I remove the small watch battery and used the new 3 volts battery instead.   Fabulous!   It was working.   Now to put the “alien” back together and see it look for metallic items.

 

Here’s Alexandre with his Alien before he starts looking for metallic items around the house.   Notice the alien has is own iPod with headsets.  

On this picture, we crossed the alien’s arm so that the two hands will touch and the nose lights up.   

This fun experiment would have probably taken not as much time if we would have had a 3 volts battery at home.  But we learned that not all batteries have the same voltage.   Remember that small watch battery I used, it was a 1.5 volt one.  I think that more than likely if I would have put 2 of these together the experiment would have worked as well…  Just didn’t though of using two while doing it.  

Blast Lab Bright Ideas is packed with about 19 experiments that will teach your kids about light and electricity.  The book comes with a blue LED, 1 red LED, 1 green LED, 1 yellow LED and 2 plastic-coated wires.  I am now looking forward to do another one with the kids – the Light-Speed Marshmallows which will allow you to measure the speed of light using a microwave and marshmallows.   Sound fun isn’t it?  This book is definitively interesting to complete science lessons on the subject of light and electricity!

Blast Lab Bright Ideas is available at your favorite bookstore, even amazon.ca.

Disclaimer: Thanks to DK Canada for sending me the above mentioned product for review purposes. I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.