[gkafkg8y8]

Explosions and threats of explosions bring many kids (middle/high school/freshmen) into it.

If you have money, this is nice for the younger ones: https://melscience.com/

Or one of the numerous chemistry sets available- preferably something with a lot of chemicals that are unsafe. I personally almost killed myself mixing things when I was an adolescent.

And in the 80s there was this: https://archive.org/details/Chem_Lab_1985-Simon_and_Schuster...

If kids aren't interested in chemistry, it's that the teacher/cirriculum/resources available to the students is just piss poor... and unfortunately that is the norm. It's so easy to keep kids engaged if you continue doing experiments that astound.

[Florin_Andrei]

> Explosions and threats of explosions bring many kids (middle/high school/freshmen) into it.

That was exactly why I was a chemistry nerd in high school and almost made a career out of it. Veered off in a different direction ultimately, but I still have what are to me fond memories (not so fond for everyone else around me subjected to "side effects" from the "experiments").

Still not clear how I avoided getting thrown in prison for all the crazy stuff. I'd be terrified if my kids attempted the same things.