Do you really want to make this Father’s Day awesome? Read on for what I hope are some fantastic suggestions.
This is a matter of some personal relevance, so I thought I would do a short series of posts on some things I would absolutely LOVE to receive, … and the answer, surprisingly, is not always wine.
My first suggestion is properly AWESOME, in fact it is called “Dad’s Book of Awesome Science Experiments” which is due for release just in time for Fathers’ Day 2014 on Amazon. I was sent a review copy having met the author, Mike Adamick, via Facebook and from the moment it arrived, my 9 year old daughter has had it in her room where it has even displaced Harry Potter as evening reading material on occasion.
Learning is not something that only happens at school, and it isn’t only for kids. The best learning is the stuff we can do together as a family, for fun, any time we feel like it. I’ve always been a fan of science and gadgets, but never really known how to get my daughter into it. We’ve invested in Chemistry sets and other activity books, but I’ve struggled with setting up complicated experiments at home, so they don’t get used.
Dad’s Book of Awesome Science Experiments lists 30 different activities, all fun, all easy and all with simple, well written and illustrated instructions. I feel I could do any of these with ease, and my kids think they all sound exciting. We’re not just talking about Cola Mentos Rockets (though it is included, with a great suggestion for how to build the ‘rocket’), but a plant biology experiment with food dies to explain capillary action, exploring magnetism, and even ways of getting to know your own body better. There’s a no-nonsense explanation of why the experiment works as well as suggestions for exploring further.
With Easter and Summer holidays looming, I can see my daughter setting up many of these experiments herself and inviting Daddy to be her assistant – my favourite role.
The book is written largely for a US audience, and some materials might need to be ‘translated’ for a UK household, but mostly these are minor and families everywhere will be able to enjoy this.
I’m thoroughly looking forward to the holidays to spend some time working through the book with the kids, and I highly recommend you add this to your Amazon wish list immediately. Don’t forget to wrap a bottle of wine to go with it though – Fathers everywhere will thank you for it.