Koala Crate is the toddler subscription box offering from KiwiCo, designed for hands-on learning and fun every month!
KiwiCo offers boxes for different age groups:
- Panda Crate for 0-24-month-olds,
- Koala Crate for 2-4-year-olds,
- Kiwi Crate for 5-8-year-olds,
- Atlas Crate for 6-11-year-olds,
- Doodle Crate and Tinker Crate for 9-16+-year-olds,
- Eureka Crate and Maker Crate for ages 14 and up. There really is something for every age with this company.
This review is 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 the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About Koala Crate from KiwiCo
The Subscription Box: KiwiCo Koala Crate
The Cost: $19.95 a month + free shipping. Save with longer subscriptions.
The Products: 2-3 fun DIY projects for you to do with your preschooler!
Ships to: The U.S. for free, Canada for $3.95 per month, worldwide from $4.95-$6.95.
KiwiCo Koala Crate "Wild West" Review
There is just something about receiving a package in the mail that can brighten any day, so receiving this bright yellow Koala Crate box is always welcome! While the recommended ages for this particular box are 2-4, my 7-year-old and now 5-year-old work adorably well together to create the projects on their own.
1 of 6
This month's theme is "Wild West" so we took it a step further and turned our entire day into a Wild West day, complete with a campfire and cowboy hats! Hank and Charlie couldn't wait to dig into this month's crafts because we previously only had one stick horse but now each kid will have one! We love how well curated this box is and how high-quality the supplies are! The directions are easy to follow and the boys are able to complete it almost all on their own.
1 of 4
Each month the Koala Crate "Imagine!" magazine is included. This colorful booklet contains information on the Wild West, a story, a DIY project, and suggested books to fit our Wild West theme. We didn't have any of the suggested books this month, but we did find a few of our own to add to our themed day!
1 of 3
The kids love flipping through the booklet, reading the stories, and completing the activities. We didn't get to the DIY cactus craft yet, but it is on our agenda for the coming week! Check out our completed projects below!
Bandana
1 of 5
We received quite a few supplies for our bandana this month, all in different packages. To complete this project we received a horseshoe stamp, plastic square, bandana, paint pen, plate, and sponge brush. How cute is that tiny paper plate?!
1 of 5
The kids thought this project was fun and easy. Hank peeled the backing off of the foam horseshoe stamp and placed it on the plastic square. We then added the paint to a plate (I saved that tiny plate because it was just too cute!) and used our included sponge brush to apply it to the stamp. The instructions showed to place the stamps throughout the entire bandana, but Hank and Charlie had their own idea and did their own design. The paint did take a while to dry, so we weren't able to add this to the cowboy costumes today, but it will definitely be a great addition to our costume box!
Pick-Up Snakes
1 of 4
This month we received a game to assemble! The supplies included were snake heads, snake tongues, a barrel, stick, pipe cleaners, beads, and wiggle eyes. I love that they sent different colored beads for different patterns - perfect for preschoolers!
1 of 10
This was a fun craft! It just so happened there were 3 snakes to assemble, so we each got to make one! The directions were easy to follow and the snakes turned out really cute. All we had to do was fold the pipe cleaner in half, stick on our head with tongue and eyeballs, and add our beads. We saved enough space at the end to create a loop for our tail. The barrel was very easy to assemble, as we just peeled the stickers off and stuck them together. Then the game was complete! To play the game, you place the snakes inside the barrel, tail-sides up. Then you try to remove all the snakes by grabbing them by the tail with a stick without knocking over the barrel! We have played multiple times and really enjoyed playing this game...it's harder than it looks!!
Hobby Horse
1 of 5
The big project this month was this cute little hobby horse! The included supplies were tubes, a zip tie, horse stuffy, fluff, stickers, big wiggle eyes, a bridle sticker, yarn, and sticky foam.
1 of 10
To complete the horse, Hank slid the tubes together, lined up the holes, placed the zip tie in, and tightened it. He then slid the horse head onto the tube and added the fluff. Once the fluff was inserted, the mane had to be tied. The instructions were very helpful, but Hank and Charlie needed a bit of help to do this step, so I went ahead and helped. Once the mane was tied, the kids added the stickers just like the illustration showed. Using the included yarn, Charlie strung it through the bridle holes and we tied it behind the horse's head. The last step was to roll up the bottom of the horse's neck and add the sticky foam tape to secure the neck fabric into place. Then it was time to test "Flash" out!
1 of 2
Our projects only took about 30 minutes to complete, but like I said above, we kept the "Wild West" theme going and read some cowboy books, roasted lunch over the campfire (with s'mores of course), and ate in our log cabin. After riding "Flash" around the yard, we went in and ended our day with the movie: "An American Tail: Fievel Goes West." Talk about a fun day!
Verdict: This Koala Crate was a blast! It was the basis of our entire themed day and the kids absolutely loved it. As I mentioned earlier, we were in need of another stick horse, and this customized stallion was the perfect addition! I love how easy these projects are to complete, yet how awesome they look, and my kids had so much fun doing them. Using this kit to create a themed day really was special and kept our minds off of the coronavirus, which is just what we need right now! We can't wait to see what theme we receive next month!
All of the included projects came with high-quality materials, were very well-curated, and were educational as well as fun. My kids learned about the Wild West all while having a great time. I feel this is extremely important and worth the $19.95!
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you 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
Check out all of our KiwiCo reviews and the best subscription boxes for toddlers and kids!
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
What do you think of Koala Crate?
Please do not enter your email address in the Name field or in the comment content. Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *. Remember to post with kindness and respect. Comments with offensive language, cruelness to others, etc will not be approved. See our full comment policy here.