Gems for Kids: A Junior Scientist's Guide to Mineral Crystals and Other Natural Treasures

My 5 and almost 7 year old Grandsons loved these Jr. Science books, and wanted to know if I could get more for them. I pulled up Amazon and they picked two more. (6 in total bought) Sections were read and discussed at a time in each of the books. Depending on the interest of the child, I would say that the ages to buy for would be 5-12. However, the adults in our family enjoyed them too.

Bought this for my 8 year old son. He is absolutely inspired and now says gems and crystals are his favorite things. He even wrote a book recommendation for his class and stated some facts he remembered just from reading the start of the book the night prior.

granddaughters have so much fun exploring with this knowledgable and easy to understand guide to gems.highly recommended.

I love this book. I bought it for a friends kid and they totally dig it! It's a nice blend of charm and information without being too "childish". Will buy it again for other kids.

I don’t know why the cover is so dirty. The content is ok. My kid likes it.

A wonderful resource book for homeschooling!

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If your child is interested in science and in particular wants to learn about gemstones; this book is highly recommended. It has a good introduction with some basic background on what makes a gem a gem and when we talk about rocks, minerals and gems what is meant specifically. Also covering the geography of where gems are found and then covering a good number of gems, from Agate to Alexandrite and Tiger’s Eye. The gems included cover the expensive such as Ruby or Sapphire and ones that can be more likely found by amateur rockhounds such as agate or rock crystal. Also included are some more in depth write ups such as the experiment on how to grow your own crystals, which can be a fun experiment suitable for a science fair submission. Another more in depth chapter covers what faceting is. But the main part of the book is dedicated to specific gems and background information on them. Each gem is described in its own chapter, with a fact sheet that covers items such as color and hardness. Then additional information is provided such as whether the gem is used in cabochons or facetted as well as some more detailed information about the history of the gem, as far as available. Overall, a good introduction to gems for a child that is interested in this topic. Some parental help may be needed to pronounce the terms used and may be help with some of the explanation. But overall, the book is written appropriate for middle school children.I received a free copy of the book from the publisher.