The microscope comes with a unique slide holder, 24 printed slides, and one blank slide so kids can explore nature close up.

Each printed slide features one object at three magnification levels, so kids can relate a recognizable object, like a feather or bee, with two different magnified images of the object. The 72 slide images give kids a lot of things to investigate.

• ages 4

Thames & Kosmos was founded in 2001 by a science museum director and her son, who saw the great need and demand for better science education materials — resources for parents and their children that are more engaging, more effective, more relevant, and more fun.