For so many years, I've wanted to try out a KiwiCo Crate, and I finally did it! It was a hit with my 9-year-old daughter, and I am sorry that it took us SO LONG to delve into the world of these fun crate activities! We made probiotic buddy stuffies, homemade goo, and delicious kofta, and we learned a lot about how bacteria works plus played word games and more. Still on our to-do-list from our crate is the making of homemade yogurt and frozen yogurt, which we plan to do the first week of summer break.
Surely you've heard of KiwiCo crates, no? In short, they're monthly subscription boxes* filled with activities and ideas for hands-on, age-appropriate learning with you and your child. You can also shop individual crates directly from the KiwiCo Store, with no subscription required. With 9 crates from which to choose, you are sure to find one (or more!) that's perfect for your family's interests.
- Panda Crate (0-12 months)
- Koala Crate (2-4 years)
- Kiwi Crate (5-8 years)
- Atlas Crate (6-11 years)
- Yummy Crate (6-14 years) - I have older kids, so this is the one we chose!
- Doodle Crate (9-16 years)
- Tinker Crate (9-14 years)
- Maker Crate (14-100)
- Eureka Crate (12-100 years)
As you can tell by the recommended age range for the last two options listed above, your family will never grow out of KiwiCo crates! I recommend getting started right away and begin the thrill of working on memorable, hands-on projects throughout the year.
We chose the Yummy Crate because all my kids really enjoy working in the kitchen, and of course, we LOVE to eat.
I really wasn't sure what to expect because I didn't spend a lot of time researching the subscription ahead of time. Would we be getting a box of ingredients? I kinda sorta thought that we would, and I was mildly disappointed to get only a box of mostly well-packaged fun facts, hands-on recipes, and a few materials for a hands-on project. But oh... my disappointment was premature! Once I dug through the box and started going through everything, I was SO EXCITED. As it turns out, our KiwiCo crate was FULL of value, and we used it to learn a lot about the science of cooking and do fun projects, with more fun on the horizon, all out of just one single box. I totally recommend it. I love doing unit studies with my kids, and these crates are kind of like well-organized "unit studies" in a box.
Here's a quick look at what we got:
The first thing we noticed from our crate was an engaging letter written to the "grown up sous chef" (that was me!) that gave more info about what could be found in the crate along with some best practices and suggestions. This letter booklet also included a shopping list and some expectations, so it was easy to get going right away! You can also customize the grocery list for your family’s dietary needs and preferences.
The "probiotic pals" we sewed was an excellent fine motor skills / dexterity-building activity for my 9-year-old daughter. Really, it was "lacing," as we didn't use a needle. She laced the felt pieces, stuffed it, tied the knots, and added eyes and mouth to her "buddies." So cute! She even gave them names! The best part is that everything we needed for this activity was included in the box.
We got a chance to practice our kitchen skills by making homemade kofta. It was our first time making kofta, and we now have a recipe that's a winner! Since one of our main topics for the box was bacteria, the idea was to make kofta and then yogurt sauce that typically goes with it. We didn't make the sauce, but the kofta itself was delicious, and the easy-to-follow recipe was a fun activity and resulted in special mother-daughter quality time. The whole family enjoyed eating the kofta.
Our crate also included recipe booklets for homemade yogurt with variations and customization ideas, and a recipe for frozen yogurt with blueberries. The KiwiCo Crate colorful recipe cards are printed in booklet style on quality paper, so they're definitely something to file away into your recipe box.
Our crate also included a fun booklet about "beneficial bacteria" that my daughter and I enjoyed going through together. There was a cute story in graphic / comic-book style, scientific info with illustrations, fun facts, a word puzzle, and more! This booklet was one of the most useful parts of the crate for learning about science, and I even picked up some new tidbits of knowledge for myself. If you're a homeschooling family, this totally counts as a full week of science, in my opinion.
The fun was just getting started, because - SURPRISE - the KiwiCo crate included instructions on how to make yogurt stretch, mold, and tear apart. You guessed it... we made yogurt goo! It was my first time making goo / gack, so this was pretty exciting for both me and my daughter! With just a handful of ingredients we already had on hand, we made a slimy concoction, did some easy hands-on experimentation, and learned about non-Newtonian fluids. The booklet even warned us ahead of time that this had the potential to be a messy project (it was), but the clean-up was easy since we were prepared for it.
Our crate also included a cooking thermometer which was useful for several of the recipes in the box, and it's something great to have in the kitchen for future projects as well.
There is no question about it - KiwiCo Crates need to be a part of your summer fun this season! Your child can learn about the science of cooking, build robots, create plushies, and so much more! In addition to the 3, 6, and 12 month subscription length options (many are under $20 per month), KiwiCo also offers a monthly option. For longer term subscriptions, you can also decide to switch lines, pause, or cancel at any time. And of course, as I mentioned above, for one-off purchases and individual crates, the KiwiCo Store offers enriching projects that spark serious fun and learning, with no subscription needed.
