Little Passports is a subscription box that helps kids explore the world through fun and educational activities. They offer Early Explorers (recommended ages 3-5), World Edition (recommended ages 6-10), USA Edition (recommended ages 7-12), Science Junior (recommended ages 5-8) and, Science Expeditions (recommended ages 8+). Along with monthly subscription options, Little Passports also offers "Individual Activity Kits" that can be ordered along with any subscription at the time of purchase.
Little Passports is one of the best subscription boxes for kids as voted by MSA readers.
This review is of the Little Passports: Science Expeditions Roller Coaster Physics for $27.95.
This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About Little Passports: Science Expeditions
The Subscription Box: Little Passports: Science Expeditions
The Cost: $27.95 per month + free shipping (save with longer subscriptions)
The Products: Science experiments, plus a comic book related to the monthly theme, designed for children ages 8+
Ships to: the U.S. for free, Canada for $1.50 per month, and Australia, New Zealand, and the U.K. for $2.50 per month.
Little Passports: Science Expedition Roller Coaster Physics
This past weekend I found myself at our local County Fair, and while I used to be a huge fan of rides, I quickly discovered I can no longer take the twirling and spinning that I once loved. While I didn't get sick, I decided I am much happier watching my kids ride the rides while enjoying a Uff-da Taco under the tent shade! Though our fair didn't have any large roller coasters, the boys were very interested in this month's "Roller Coaster Physics" theme, and couldn't wait to dig in. See what they thought below.
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Little Passports: Roller Coaster Physics Comic and Activity Book
Each month, Little Passports creates and distributes a wonderfully colored comic and activity book that pertains to the monthly theme. Because this month's theme was Roller Coaster Physics, we learned about the science behind roller coasters and how they work. It was very insightful and gave us knowledge about simple machines such as the lever, wheel and axle, pulley, inclined plane, wedge, and screw. We also learned a bit of roller coaster trivia - did you know one of the fastest roller coasters in the world is the Formula Rossa in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates? It goes from 0-62 in two seconds, climbs 171 feet into the air, and reaches speeds of up to 150 miles per hour. Blah!!!
Hank enjoys reading the comics and especially liked the amusement park graphics featured in this one. We love how they use the comic book style to teach a scientific method- fun and educational!
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Roller Coaster Physics Instruction Guide
Once Hank gained a background in simple machines and physics, he opened up his instruction guide and got to work on this month's project. Last month, we received five different experiments to work through, while this month we received one. It included a kit that needed to be built and was a little time-consuming, but the instructions were well written, and the pictures were easy to follow. Hank is 8, and he was able to complete this almost completely by himself.
Project: Rollin' Marble Run
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The kit we received this month was a "Rollin' Marble Run." Unlike past months, we were given all of the supplies needed to complete this project, along with the easy-to-follow instructions. In our kit came 42 precut, labeled wooden pieces, glue, four metal marbles, sandpaper, and a wax stick.
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Hank is all about Legos and can build pretty intricate sets all by himself, so I challenged him to build this month's Little Passport kit all on his own. He was a little nervous as there is quite a bit of reading and lots of numbers, but accepted the challenge. Only assisting when called, I re-read a few directions to him and he was able to complete the steps without me physically adding parts. We do suggest reading the notes before starting as they give some time-saving tips. From start to finish this project took Hank about 35 minutes. He did have to problem solve as he didn't have one of the slots in the right place causing the marble to stop, but he figured it out. While little brother Charlie didn't help build, he sent those marbles through the run about 1,000 times which definitely made it worthwhile!
Badge
After we completed our activities we were then awarded the "Roller Coaster Physics" Badge, as a tribute to our hard work and play!
Verdict: I have to say, we really enjoyed this month's "Roller Coaster Physics" box. While it didn't have as many experiments as last month's "Bubble Science" box, the kids had a blast building and playing with their very own marble maze. Between reading through the comic book and actually building the project, we spent about two hours on this box and had a genuinely good time. We have built wooden kits like this in the past, and some have been less than good quality. This particular kit was well made, popped out nicely with little sanding to be done. At $27.95, this subscription is a little pricey, and I would have loved to see at least one more project or experiment, but we did enjoy the education aspect and curation this month. What do you think next month's theme will be?
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? You'll start with the Forensic Science box in the first month, followed by a different themed box each month thereafter.
Check out all of our Little Passports reviews and other best subscription boxes for kids!
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