Green Kid Crafts is a subscription box for children ages 2 to 10+ that delivers kits that include materials and instructions to complete six or more STEAM based projects each month for $19.95 (plus $4.95 shipping). You can choose between the Junior Discovery Box (ages 2-4) or the Discovery Box (ages 5-10+). They also offer two deluxe options for $29.95 (plus shipping): the Literary Discovery Box (ages 2-10+) which includes a book related to the theme or the Sibling Discovery Box (ages 2-10+) which provides two sets of each project.
This is a review of the $35.90 ($29.95 + $5.95 shipping)/month Junior Literary Discovery Box Subscription for ages 2-10+.
Not only does Green Kid Crafts focus on STEAM learning, but they also strive to encourage the growth of the "whole child" which includes fostering a sense of care for our environment:
We think a green company is one that not only strives for sustainability but takes a step beyond to try and create positive change. As a company founded by an environmental scientist, it makes sense that Green Kid Crafts is committed to ensuring that all of our activities, from process to product, have as little an impact on the environment as possible. Further, we view our work as a way to foster the next generation of environmental stewards by engaging kids with nature in positive, creative ways.
This box was sent to us at no cost for review purposes. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).
About Green Kid Crafts
The Subscription Box: Green Kid Crafts
The Cost: $29.95 per month + shipping (save with longer subscriptions)
The Products: materials and instructions to complete 6 or more STEAM projects
Ships to: the U.S. for $5.95/month ($7.95 for deluxe subscriptions), Canada for an additional $15.00/month
Good to know: Shipping has recently increased by $1 (from $4.95 to $5.95)
Green Kid Crafts "Outer Space" January 2019 Review
Smart Kids: Space: For Kids Who Really Love Space by Roger Priddy - Retail Value $9.99 (found here for $9.37)
This month we received the Literary Box which includes a themed book to enhance our lessons. You can add a book to recurring and non-recurring subscriptions for an additional $9.95 per month. I thought this was definitely worth the cost this month because we discovered this awesome Space book! The layout of this book is great and it includes so many facts and different aspects of space that are presented in a kid-friendly format that is incredibly appealing! There are bright colors and huge colored photos of planets and everything is labeled.
They even include a timeline and helpful glossary in the back. This is such a great addition to any library and my daughter and I have been enjoying learning about space together. It definitely enhanced the experience from our box and it is so fun to see her make the connection between the activities and what she learns in the book!
This is the included booklet that we received which tells us our theme of Outer Space. The first page included a table of contents as well as an introduction to the topic and some fun space facts.
Inside the booklet were several fun pages including a maze, a space story fill in, and this planet matching activity.
It also included a recipe for a moon snack, a fun way to reuse your box, information about space-related careers and their social media information on the back.
The next item is a chart for us to collect our Green Kid Crafts badges. This month we received the Astronomy Expert badge. We can also color in our chart to personalize it and continue to add badges to it.
A fun addition to our box this month was this great moon phase chart. This is a long term activity that we can do together by observing the moon and recording what we see for 28 days straight. This is a great lesson on observation, moon phases, and just a great excuse to spend some quality time together before bed each night!
Kit 1: Planetarium
Our first kit contained some items to create our own planetarium. They provided everything we would need for this project other than a thumbtack which we grabbed from home.
We even received this fun pen light which clicks open and provided just enough light for our activity.
The first step was to use the set of four constellation stickers they provided and stick them into the center of each of the four different colored paper squares. Then I used to the pen to write the names of each of them in the corner.
Next, we wrapped a paper over the top of the cardboard roll and secured it with the rubber band. Then we used our thumbtack to poke holes everywhere there was a dot to recreate the constellation. We repeated this process for each of the four pieces of paper.
Then it was time to view our mini-planetarium. We could hold it up to the light to see the light shine through our holes or for an even more exciting experience, we turned off the lights and used our flashlight pen to project our constellations onto the ceiling. This was so incredibly simple and easy to do, but it had a big impact on the learning experience. I definitely think we will do this on a larger scale by doing this with our box as they suggested in our little booklet.
They also gave some more information to think about on the back.
Kit 2: Space Sand Experiments
My daughter was very excited to learn about space sand in this next kit. My son, however, was just obsessed with this little toy alien they gave us! We did have to get a few things from home such as water, cooking oil, and some dish soap.
They provided a list of mini-experiments that were all very simple to complete. First, we took some time to explore the properties of the sand. We poured it in some water, stirred it a bit using the stick they gave us and then drained the water out. It was fun to see that our sand was dry, which is why this stuff is so unique.
Next, we tried mixing the colors together.
Then we tried adding some oil to some water and seeing what happened. Our sand clumped together and sunk to the bottom almost immediately.
Then we used our little alien to see what would happen in a cup of just sand and water versus the cup with oil too. Our alien came out nice and clean from the plain sand and water since the sand was dry, but it was difficult to get him clean after putting him in the oil sand mix.
Next, we tried the dish soap which made the sand sink to the bottom.
We even tested out what would happen if we put some sand in water and froze it. It was pretty cool to see the dry sand sitting on top of the frozen block of water when we took it out!
Then she just mixed up the rest of the sand and had some fun stirring it, playing around and making a small mess!
The back of our instructions provided several more fun facts about space sand which I found very informative!
Kit 3: Comets and Shooting Stars
This last kit contained two really fun activities that we have been able to get a lot of use out of!
Project 1: Comet Catcher
First up was to make a comet catcher using the materials they supplied. We just needed a pair of scissors!
We laid out our piece of felt and then topped it with the piece of foil. Then we cut our ribbon in half.
I laid out the ribbon and ball like the photo and then crumpled up the foil around it to hold it together.
Then, I realized there was a second piece of ribbon so I redid it to include that as well.
Then I wrapped the felt around it and secured it with a rubber band and our comet was ready to fly.
The pictures are incredibly blurry, but I'm pretty sure you can get a sense of how much fun she was having as we tossed the comet back and forth! Also, she was not dressed up for anything special, this is just her everyday wear.
Project 2: Shooting Star Launcher
Our last project was to make a shooting star launcher using a balloon, mini marshmallows, and a cardboard tube. We just used the same one that we received for our planetarium!
First, I tied a knot at the end of the balloon and then cut off the tip of the top.
Then I wrapped the open end around the mouth of the balloon and secured it with the rubber band from our planetarium. The directions said to secure it with tape, but this worked just fine, too! Then we put a mini marshmallow inside and pulled back on the knot to launch it.
This launcher actually worked pretty well. Her first attempt didn't quite pan out, but she caught on quickly.
This time she was able to launch it pretty far. It was fun to see just how far we could get our mini marshmallows to fly!
Verdict: We really enjoyed exploring space through our Green Kid Crafts box this month! This box contained a good mix of physical activities and fun experiments that provided light explorations of the different subject matter, all of which were very educational. I like that these boxes include everything we need and are so well organized. I also appreciate their mission of bringing STEAM projects to children with a goal towards sustainability through the materials and packaging that they use. This month our experience was definitely enhanced through the great Space book that came with it. It was such a great way to make connections to our hands-on learning and I think it was worth the upgrade price of $9.95 which brought the total cost of the box to $34.90 ($29.95 + $5.95 shipping). While we had a great experience and learned a lot, I think that just one more activity would have really made this box feel complete!
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? Yes, it is possible that you will receive this box at some point in your subscription.
Coupon - Use code SUBADDICT50 to save 50% off your first box!
Check out all of our Green Kid Crafts reviews and more kids activity boxes in the Kids Subscription Box List!
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