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.
Watercolor Banner
On each project's page in the instruction booklet, there is a scale that rates how messy the project is. Two of three were rated very messy, and this project was one of them. We were granted the perfect rainy afternoon to dig in—we had no other plans and weren't in a rush to get outside so we welcomed the mess.
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My four-year-old daughter has experience with wax resist projects from preschool, so she totally understood this project. The 7 pennant flags provided are made out of watercolor paper, which I thought was a nice, quality touch. Rather than using the KiwiCo-provided crayons, we customized our color scheme from our own supply. We worked on our drawn designs together, then she painted night skies and rainbows and abstract designs over our illustrations. There is often a weaving component in Koala Crate projects, and this time it was stringing the cord through the pre-cut holes in each flag. My daughter was quite happy with how her flags turned out, and we have them proudly on display on our wall!
Colorful Luminary
The colorful luminary project is really cute. It's a simple concept, and a low-mess project. But, if you're like us and have a little sibling in the household who likes to put small things in their mouth, this is one to do during the little one's naptime.
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The project involves lots of fine motor skill work. You start by sticking foam stickers to the bottom of the foam ring (my daughter commented that the "yellow boxes" always involve foam stickers!), then push thin rods through the pre-cut holes. Your child places the beads on the rods in whatever pattern they choose—and some suggestions are provided—and then push foam stoppers on the top. The battery-operated candle creates such a nice, colorful glow. We'll be permanently keeping this one out of reach of our 18-month-old, so it's on display on our mantle.
Color Mixing
This color-mixing project is the final one in the box, and it's another high-mess-level one. I like that this project doesn't have an end result, it's more of a process project. This is, I think, the first time I've encountered this in this box. It's a nice change of pace.
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You start by adding primary color dye tablets into compartments of the ice cube tray, then playing with combinations to make other colors. This is another activity my daughter has done at preschool before, but again, having already done it wasn't a deterrent—if anything, she was excited to know what to do and to show me what she does at school. I like the cellophane color cards that come with it—your child is encouraged to make color combinations with the cards and then try to replicate them with the dye. My daughter liked looking through them and seeing how the objects in the room changed colors. We had a few accidental "mixing all the colors together right away" moments, but Koala Crate cleverly provided extra dye tablets so we could start fresh.
Verdict
We thoroughly enjoyed playing with colors in different ways with this Koala Crate box. We encountered 2 projects that my daughter had already done versions of in preschool, which was a happy accident, but also reinforces how nicely this box would supplement homeschooling or preparing a young child for entering preschool in the coming years.
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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