Koala Crate is the toddler subscription box offering from KiwiCo, featuring 2-3 fun DIY projects designed for hands-on learning and fun every month! KiwiCo offers boxes for different age groups and this is a review of the $19.95 a month Koala Crate, for Pre-K kids ages 2-4.
This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out our editorial guidelines to learn more about how we review boxes.)
Opening The Box
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Koala Crate's yellow box arrived containing the usual: an instruction booklet for 3 projects with all the needed supplies included, and an Imagine! magazine.
Here's What's Inside
Instruction Booklet
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In every Koala Crate box is a tri-fold pamphlet that gives instructions for the three activities. They provide both images and text so that the child can follow along with their adult helper. They also give some bonus project ideas on the back, which you can do with your own supplies at home.
Activity Booklet
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Koala Crate also includes a booklet that starts with a short story about three familiar animal characters—including a koala, of course. The booklet gives additional age-appropriate craft ideas, has some games to play (like mazes and matching games), and offers some on-theme book suggestions to look for at the library.
Balancing Seesaw
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The first project was to use the lasercut wood pieces to build a seesaw. With it came four colored wooden beads and some stickers to make them into little critters. We followed the suggestions for the dog, cat, owl, and pig from the booklet, but there were enough felt shape stickers to play around with and make your own animals or monsters, or whatever you wish. The child is instructed to secure a peg to each side of the seesaw and play around with balancing, moving the beads from side to side and sliding the pegs along their slots.
This was a really fun, age-appropriate project for my four-year-old, but as I've noted with past Koala Crates, my one-year-old was also present and very determined to eat the tiny sticker shapes. For families with similar aged children, this is perhaps a better activity to do while the little one is sleeping!
Mini Basketball
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Next up is to construct a mini basketball hoop out of a cardboard back board, some pegs, and a flexible tube. They provided glue for securing the tube onto the pegs, but it had an hours-long drying time, and the tube seemed secure enough for our purposes, so we skipped that step. The hoop suctions to your window at any height you wish. The small, inflatable ball it came with was easy for my four-year-old to blow up on her own, but a little tricky (even for us adults) to close the mouthpiece without losing air. Still, it's a simple, fun ball toss game to revisit throughout the day.
Ball Toss
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For this last project, we were given pre-cut felt "baseball mitts," string, a white ball pit ball, and Velcro stickers. The lacing project took some endurance! My daughter enjoyed it for a solid five minutes, and then it became a little monotonous for her, so I finished the first mitt and completed the second one. She gladly added all the stickers to the ball herself. The game itself is like the Velcro toss and catch games that have been around since my childhood, but just with a little gentler of a Velcro situation. It was cute and fun!
Verdict
This Koala Crate had a little crafting, a little experimentation (getting the seesaw to balance), and a little action (the at-home versions of sports). It was a cute box and filled a morning with fun. After that first day, my daughter hasn't revisited these projects as much as she has with other Koala Crate boxes, but even still, we think fondly of this subscription and look forward to it every month.
Value - Was This Box Worth It?
The Cost: $19.95 a month + free US shipping. Save with longer subscriptions.
Value Breakdown: Koala Crate costs $19.95 per month, meaning each of the three projects and activities breaks down to $6.65. As always, this feels so worth it to me.
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
Other Things You Should Know
Can I still get this box if I sign up today? From KiwiCo:
Crates are assigned each month based on availability and your crate history – not all subscribers receive the same theme each month
What do you think of this month's Koala Crate?
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