The Magic School Bus Science Club Membership

[MeganW]

Has anybody tried The Magic School Bus Science Club Membership? I was considering it for a gift. The FAQ say that if you have two kids, they can share, but they don't comment about more than that. Is 4 kids pushing it?

[mytwomonkeys]

i would be interested too. i just bough the complete series on dvd when amazon had it on sale. it will be part of my kids christmas gifts. i do have free activities and lessons bookmarked, but the go-along science kits look like fun too. i'd love feedback as to whether or not it's worth the $20 a month

[Punchie]

We did a one year membership for the MSB kits through HSBC. I wouldn't do it again as out of 12 kits, only 3-4 weren't complete busts. There definitely is not enough in each kit for 4 kids to share.

[ItoLina]

I have the subscription now, and honestly I don't feel it is all that worth it. There are usually only a couple of the experiments each month that seem worth it to me, so I end up looking for my own additional experiments related to the topic. I think you could just as easily take their topic list, read the corresponding MSB books and other books on the topic from your library, then google a couple of experiments. That said, There have been a couple of experiments with random supplies that I wouldn't have had at home were included in the kit. I just feel it hasn't been worth the cost.

 

I also agree that you would not be able to share between 4 kids unless they were all just watching you do the experiments.

[swellmomma]

MSB kits are seldom worth the money spent on them(though my kids did enjoy the germs one) If you want a monthly science kit mailed look at young scientists club. Much better imo

[Lily_Grace]

MSB kits are seldom worth the money spent on them(though my kids did enjoy the germs one) If you want a monthly science kit mailed look at young scientists club. Much better imo

 

 

 

YSC puts out the Magic Schoolbus kits. Neither are worth it when compared to kits from Wild Goose or Thames & Cosmos. We found the YSC to be okay if the kid wants to work alone and not discover anything, but miserable if you're looking for something that does more than demonstrate. All the directions had to be rewritten at our house.

 

We've ordered kits from Steve Spangler Science. All of them have been enjoyed, with the exception of polymers. That one took longer than expected and was drawn out. They sell YSC now but also quite a few of their own and other companies, plus they send a free experiment of the week to my email. :)

[swellmomma]

 

 

YSC puts out the Magic Schoolbus kits. Neither are worth it when compared to kits from Wild Goose or Thames & Cosmos. We found the YSC to be okay if the kid wants to work alone and not discover anything, but miserable if you're looking for something that does more than demonstrate. All the directions had to be rewritten at our house.

 

We've ordered kits from Steve Spangler Science. All of them have been enjoyed, with the exception of polymers. That one took longer than expected and was drawn out. They sell YSC now but also quite a few of their own and other companies, plus they send a free experiment of the week to my email. :)

 

I didn't know that YSC puts out the MSB kits. My kids like the YSC ones, we buy them at a teacher store in teh city, it is 3 kits per pack that I buy and the kids use them. It is definitely not enough for a curriculum. We view the same as nature study, science days we attend and any other small science kits we buy, they are for introduction to something. Usually it is using the kit to do an experiement that induces the "why" to make them want to learn more on a topic kwim.

 

I agree that Thames & Cosmos etc are better but if just looking for a kit to be mailed monthly to introduce something, or just for fun I still think YSC is better than MSB.