The Ultimate Book of Kid Concoctions 2: More Than 65 New Wacky, Wild & Crazy Concoctions

Kid Concoctions is our children's favorite book series. The second book is even fresher and more original than the first. We hope Book #3 isn't too far ahead in the future. Keep those concoctions coming!

Its very rare to find a book series where the second in the series is better than the first. But thats not the case with the new Kid Concoctions book. "The Ultimate Book of Kid Concoctions #2" was a hit the first time my children and I opened the book. Almost all of the projects are made from 3-4 common household ingredients. The projects seem to be even more original and innovative than the projects in the first book! Hats off to the authors for making a book that lives up to its name and out shines the original. A must have book for any parent or grandparent.

Why does my kitchen look like Dexter's Laboratory? Because my 8 year old loves to cook up his own 'recipes', mixing and zapping all kinds of concoctions.When I saw this book, I decided to give it a try, and I'm glad I did! It helps to keep the experiments in-line. There are almost 70 easy, cheap, interesting recipes in this book.The author cautions that adult supervision is needed - definitely true since although the ingredients are pretty much common to the household, they include some that are messy to handle and sometimes a stove or glue guns are used.We leave our book on the kitchen table, and before running an experiment, my son checks to see if we have the ingredients. Food coloring, corn starch, white glue, funnels, rock salt, water are scattered throughout the book (the only addition I'd make to this book would be a checklist of common ingredients, to add to my grocery shopping list!)A favorite for the little kids (under 7) is the shaving soap/food coloring/egg carton/paint brush in the bathtub combination. Instant watercolors, with just 2 ingredients (water and food coloring) is also popular or instant finger paints, with liquid starch, powdered paint and freezer paper.For older kids, jewels and gems can be made of white glue, the ever-present food coloring, and rock salt and given as gifts. They can make their own stickers with water and gelatin, or use coffee grinds, flour and a few other very ordinary things and make Treasure Stones, to hide gems or secret messages in, and give to friends (or teachers, or family).Clean up and prep for most of these are easy enough a child could do it! (As I tell my son). The index in the back separate concoctions by type (Toys; Paints; Dough's; Edible Concoctions; Putty, Clay, Pastes; Other).This is a collection of shared recipes, so there will be some you already have. But there are 70! (So unless you're a homeschooler or a teacher, there have to be some new ones).All the recipes are in one place, and the directions are easy enough for a child (6 and up) to read.We aren't even halfway through, but we love this so much, we ordered Book Two. Recommended for entertainment, education, gift giving, too!

I think that this is an excellent book. If you loved the first one than you will love this one. It includes wonderful activities that both parents and children will enjoy. I was amazed by the creativity and variety of the activities. I did not think that the first book could be topped yet alone matched but it was. Children will enjoy not only playing with the concoctions once they are made but they can also have fun while making the concoctions. I strongly recommend this book and the activities in it for any age. The directions are simple and the material needed to complete the concoctions are few. These activities are perfect for rainy days or any day. Teachers can even adapt these activites to use in their lessons. It would be a great book for use in a day care or for a summer camp. I hope that everyone enjoys this book as much as I do and will continue to.

My son is only 4 years old, but there isn't anything in the book that we could not make together, AND what's more have fun playing with together. Our favorites so far are the funny putty, the gooey gunk, and the texture filled balloons. I would not go so far as to say that the items required by the recipes are everyday household items though. However, I did not mind sprucing up my pantry and craft closet to have a special stash just for these fun recipes. It would be interesting to have an explanation as to why some of these chemistry reactions occur, also any pertinant warnings to prevent accidental spills or carpet mishaps.