I have wonderful in-laws who, for the past two years, have gifted my children with a 3 month subscription to Tinker Crates for Christmas. These are some of my kids’ favorite gifts, and I love that they last for 3 months! This year each child received a different subscription. In the above picture from left to right: Tinker Crate, Kiwi Crate, Doodle Crate, Koala Crate, and Eureka Crate. The crates are divided by age of the child and interest level and come with a STEM project.
The Koala Crate is for 3-4 year olds. It comes with 3 projects and focuses on 1 theme. This month’s theme was bugs. In this crate, you make a lady bug bag to hold a bug’s eye viewer, a bug matching game, and felt bug wings and antenna. It also comes with a booklet that tells all about bugs in a story format.
The Kiwi Crate also comes with 3 STEM projects. This month’s theme was mirrors and kaleidoscope puzzles. In this box, the child will make three different types of kaleidoscopes. The age for this crate is 5-8. My five year old required a little help, but not much. The instructions for each project tell the level of parent help that is required. It also comes with a story magazine that explains the science behind the projects.
For my artistic child, we ordered the Doodle Crate. It has one art themed project every month. This time it came with the materials to sew your own portfolio or satchel. It comes with excellent step by step instructions and the many pieces are divided nicely. Doodle Crate is for ages 9-16+, but we purchased it for our 7 year old. He LOVED it! He did require a little help, but not much. The kit also came with a sketch pad that he carries in the portfolio along with his colored pens. It goes with him everywhere. It seems to be quite durable and I think that it will last a long time.
The Tinker Crate is for ages 9-16+ and it comes with one STEM based project. This month’s theme was space and it came with everything needed to build a planetarium. The child had to punch holes where the stars are and then assemble the dome. It came with a base and light bulb to project the stars onto the ceiling. I love that these kits come with blue print type instructions and tons of information on the science behind the project. My son is nine and only required a little assistance assembling the dome.
The Eureka Crate is for ages 14-104. It is by far the most complex of the crates and focuses on engineering. This month’s crate came with a build your own electric pencil sharpener. It comes with specific, step by step instructions that walk the child through the assembly. It also comes with plenty of scientific explanations and facts. We bought this crate for my 12 year old, figuring that we might have to help him some. That didn’t prove to be the case. He had no trouble following the instructions and building his own sharpener that now sits on his desk. He has even gone back to using real pencils instead of the mechanical ones that I purchased this year.
These crates are priced from $20 to $30 per month. The longer the subscription, the more you save and many times you can find a coupon code if you search for it. Over Christmas, they ran a special which was 3 months for $40. We took advantage of that sale! As a home educator and the wife of a science educator, I LOVE these crates! I love that they are centered around education, but are so fun that kids can’t wait to complete them. I LOVE that each kit comes with everything that is needed for the projects. The only thing you may need to provide is a pair of scissors. My boys count down the days until the next crate box arrives and they are always sad when the subscription is over! The company is also great to work with. Last year, one of the kits had a piece that stopped working after a week. They sent out a duplicate crate, not just the damaged piece, but a whole crate free of charge. I have also been impressed that the crate contents are durable. My kids are all still playing with crate creations from last year.
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***Update****
KiwiCo found out about this blog post and wanted to offer my followers a special offer. You can get your first month free when you subscribe to any tinker crate line!!!! So if you haven’t already, follow my blog by clicking the follow button and entering your email. Then click on the link for the special offer!! Leave a comment and let me know what you think of your first tinker crate!!
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