I'm not easy on kids. They are expected to be untrained humans. I am the trainer when they are around. Even dull kids get bright when material is presented in a matter of fact and interesting way.
Everyone leaves here having learned something. Some tidbit that they will never forget. Sometimes it's physics. Sometimes cooking. Sometimes safety.
With my grandkids, that's sort of normal operating procedure. With the twin teens... they go to public school and it's not something they get exposed to.
But they love it. They beg for more.
Kids want to learn. They aren't being taught.
/johnny
Your drill with the grandkids is similar to mine. We have dinner table conversations about current events. They have come to relish them...and they have come to expect answers to their questions. So, they ask questions.
When there is an opportunity for a demonstration -- e.g., the metamorphisis of a caterpillar into a butterfly -- they are invited to observe.
And I very much enjoy taking them on trips (or expotitions, as we call them, courtesy A.A. Milne). They provide the grist for geology, paleontology, geography, history and map-reading lessons.
They're anxious to learn...and I enjoy sharing what I know (and discovering new things myself).
Sounds like they'd enjoy visiting you, too.