National Geographic Ultimate Gemstone Dig Kit Review

Reviewed by Nia Lock

We received the National Geographic Ultimate Gemstone dig kit on an unexpectedly cold and rainy morning, and what a treat it turned out to be! The kit includes 20 real gemstones to discover yourself and plenty of information about them for when you do. My two mini scientists were instantly engaged by the photos on the box of all the different gemstones and the smaller child really couldn’t believe that they were going to get to hold these gemstones themselves!

The box contains a large block of ceramic feeling material, plaster maybe. It has a large metallic effect 3D picture of an amethyst across it, a magnifying glass, a double ended excavation tool (one end is similar to a chisel and the other is angled and serrated), a detailed set of instructions and learning guide, and a brush.

The excavation itself took a surprising amount of time, the children were entertained for hours, stopping for lunch during their ‘dig’ and happily discussing their exciting finds during the meal. They took turns excavating, swapping the digging tool and the brush between them, it meant they were both busy all the time and sharing wasn’t really a problem. Scraping the brick away takes a good long time, it crumbles satisfyingly when scratched and yet it does not yield its treasures too easily, you need to chisel all the way around the stone in order to free it. We managed not to break any. The instructions do say that you can soften it a little with some water if necessary but we didn’t need to do this.

As each stone was revealed the excitement mounted until it was finally freed from the substrate, it was then washed carefully and dried. The next stage involved identifying the stone from the learning guide and hearing all about its properties. They were all examined closely under the magnifying glass too. The learning guide contains an excellent summary of information for each gemstone, just the right amount for children to listen to and absorb. The facts included are varied and interesting as you’d expect from a toy from the National Geographic STEM series.

The excavation was quite messy and if the weather had been dry, I would’ve said this was an outdoor toy, but it did keep them occupied in one area of the house for a lot of hours and so a bit of cleaning was a small price to pay for all that entertainment.

It would be hard to choose a favourite of the many gemstones discovered, the labradorite has such a luscious colour and iridescence, the tiger’s eye is like nothing else and the quartz crystals really fired their imagination. Once the excavation was complete and all the gemstones washed the children divided up their treasures and packed them into their school bags for show and tell. The gemstones are big enough that I’ll be able to make their favourite ones into simple jewellery using some silver wire once they return, much to their delight!

This kit would make a super gift for children of all ages, younger ones will need help but they’ll enjoy the experience.

Rating: 5/5

RRP: £34.99

This product can be purchased from John Lewis here.