08 January 2012

Crystal Mining





Buby received this crystal mining kit from his aunt and uncle for Christmas. {Very similar to the Smithsonian rock and gem dig that Ella gifted him in the Fall.} It's the first thing he wanted to rip open when we returned home from vacation.


I highly recommend both kits. Crystal mining requires ample patience and perseverance, but Buby stuck with it for several days straight.
After each discovery he screeched with joy! Finally on Wednesday night I had to clean up my table for a proper meal, so I put the last little chunk in a baggy for later. So far he's collected 12 crystals: 2 rose quartz, 1 dolomite, 3 amethyst, 2 agate, and 4 clear quartz/rock crystal. He was psyched to bring them to school the next day to share with his geology-loving classmates.


Tip 1: Take it outdoors. The mining block produced a lot of hard-to-clean dust, and I started wondering if he should be breathing it all in.


Tip 2: Stock up on finger-paint trays from Michael's. They are 17.5" x 12.5" with 1.25" sides. My kids use them constantly for their paint/craft/glitter projects.


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