Chemical Crayons

Sometimes a crayon should just be a crayon.

Not so for blogger and crafter, Que Interesante, whose slogan “where geek meets art” helps her sell products that combine science with craft items.

For a few bucks, you can buy her stick-on labels that match a crayon color with an element from the Periodic Table.

Well, far be it from me to stand in the way of anyone being entrepreneurial while also creating something that amps up science education.

That said, I won’t be buying them for my grandkids. They have time to learn about elements and the periodic table. I’d be happier if they could name a color beyond the basic ROYGBIV. For example, look at synonyms for red: scarlet and crimson, ruby and chili, maroon and cinnabar, fire engine and cardinal, vermillion and cherry. And so on. I’d love to hear children use these in their vocabulary to describe something they see in nature, or in writing fairy tales and poetry, or in coloring.

Maybe it comes down to the whole left brain/right brain debate. I fall into the right brain—visual, creative versus left: mathematical and logical. The theory, however, has been debunked as the sides of the brain don’t work independently of each other.

Maybe that’s what QueInteresante is doing by mixing geek with art.

So congrats QueInteresante on your line of products and your commitment to raising our kids’ scientific knowledge. Thanks to blog friend, ksbeth,  for posting about these labels.

Sometimes a crayon should just be a crayon. What do you think?