Before Victor Frankenstein created a monster, we bet he made a heck of a mess. But, hey, that's what science is all about, isn't it? After all, Sir Isaac Newton's mom probably wasn't crazy about her son messing around with her apple tree, and Mr. Edison couldn't have been pleased when young Tom, trying to create a human balloon, tricked a friend into quaffing a huge baking-soda cocktail. But kids will be kids...and budding scientists will be budding scientists. And the two seem to go hand in hand. What child hasn't been caught pouring his sister's grape juice into his orange juice, just to see what happens? Kids have a natural desire to understand how the world works, long before anyone tells them that's science.

Now, we know that when some parents hear science they see goofy high school teachers, Bunsen burners and a poor pickled frog on a dissection tray. But science is much more than that. As the following experiments show, it's full of pops and sparks and amazing reactions: clay monsters that attract lightning, colored fluids that don't mix, lemons that power clocks. Even those of us who understand how these things work can't help feeling there's a little magic involved. So, grab your best lab coat and walk this way to the laboratory. We guarantee you'll get a reaction.

Jodi Picoult is a frequent contributor to FAMILYFUN.