T is for Tot is a monthly children's subscription box for ages 3-6. Each themed kit contains supplies and activities for play-based learning both project-based and open-ended. The box is curated by a mom and kindergarten teacher to prepare your little one for K with arts and crafts projects, simple STEM experiments, laminated learning materials, a quality children's book, and more.
The Cost: $38.95 per month + free US shipping with annual subscription; $42.95 per month + free US shipping monthly.
This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out the editorial guidelines to learn more about how we review boxes.)
Opening The Box
T is for Tot arrives in a white box with a sticker indicating the month's theme on the flap. Open it up and you'll find a checklist of items/activities under the lid, and an enticing pile of possibilities within the box. Right on top is a trifold information card that holds all the instructions you need.
Here's What's In the Little Scientist Kit
Info Card
One thing I love about T is for Tot is that it's completely catered to child-led exploration, experimentation, and play. While of course science experiments and some art projects require some adult guidance for following instructions so that the experiments are successful, most aspects of the box are open-ended—and if you have a child who doesn't care to use these tools how they're suggested, no harm done. Accordingly, rather than specific instructions or a pre-determined order to do the activities in, this tri-fold info card gives a bit of a tour of what the opportunities inside the box are.
Scientist Lab Coat
First up we have a lab coat with a pocket, elastic sleeve cuffs, and an official T is for Tot Scientist insignia. This makes the experiments that lie ahead feel very official, and will live in our dress-up box long-term. My five-year-old didn't want to put the lab coat on immediately, but you'll see it appear in photos throughout this review.
Science Lab
This setup goes to show how uncomplicated it can be to make things feel really exciting for our kids: it's a regular 8.5x11 sheet of paper printed with a wooden background and a special spot for each of the ingredients and beakers in the science kit. My kid loved taking her time to get everything put in its right place.
They don't have their own spot, but included are two droppers. The fact that there are two shows me that an expert is behind this subscription (indeed the founder is an early childhood educator)—this allows for a sibling or an adult helper to partake without the primary kiddo having to sacrifice their involvement.
Little Scientist Book + Dry Erase Marker
This laminated booklet has several ideas for simple, kid-friendly science experiments. You could do them with materials you likely have at home, but of course the box provides them. And to make it all the more enticing to explore, it comes with a dry erase marker that can be used over and over again on the pages.
Here are some snapshots of three experiments from the booklet: color mixing exploration, making a fizzy rainbow, and finding out what combination of powders cause a reaction. They were all versions of kitchen experiments my kid and I have done before, but having the lab coat, the beakers, and the organized science lab setup made it feel new to her.
Art + Craft Projects
Here are the materials provided for some art projects.
We used the air-dry modeling clay to create a "volcano." I love how soft and moldable air-dry clay is, and it took a few tries for my daughter to get her volcano in a shape she was happy with. She was anxious for it to dry so we could cause our volcanic eruption simulation, but alas, after frequent checking we decided to leave it be overnight. In fact, by the next day, we lost our momentum a bit and have not returned to the volcano yet. But it'll be thrilling to rediscover the next time we're ready to pull our materials out again.
Another simple project was to use the colors she had mixed and drop them on cotton pads to create a tie-dye effect. It's not a project you can keep, just process art that's soothing to enjoy in the moment.
Little Blue and Little Yellow Board Book by Leo Lionni — Retail Value $7.99
Little Blue and Little Yellow is a book our family is familiar with and returns to often. It's a story about two color blobs, a blue one and a yellow one, who play so merrily they end up combining into green. Their parents come looking for them and can't find them since they've become another color. Eventually Little Blue and Little Yellow cry tears of sadness that their families don't recognize them, and it's their blue and yellow tears that tip their parents off that it was them all along. The illustrations are abstract and an enjoyable change from the more representational drawings we often see in children's books.
Science Playdough Cutter + Homemade Playdough
Each T is for Tot box comes with a tub of homemade playdough, and it's such a treat. It's so soft, it smells nice in a natural kind of way, and its colors are custom to the box's theme. (Speaking of kitchen experiments, playdough is a great one to make for or with kids, and making your own colors is very novel.) It arrives alongside a 3D-printed cutter that you can press into your dough. With both T is for Tot boxes we've explored, we found that the playdough was so soft it got stuck in the mold, and spent some time doing the satisfying work of picking it out with a toothpick. But I am determined to get it to happen one of these months!
Make 5 Math Game
Another activity that the playdough can be used for is this math page in the laminated booklet. Your child starts by making small playdough balls to fill in each open circle. Then the count how many they made to determine what number is needed to get to 5. My kindergartener had not problems whatsoever with this activity and in the end was looking for more, similar pages with a greater challenge. I love this idea and will use it as a model to create our own for her!
Value - Was This Box Worth It?
The Cost: $38.95 per month + free US shipping with annual subscription; $42.95 per month + free US shipping monthly.
Value Breakdown: This month's box contained 7-9 activities, depending on how you break them up. It also included air-dry clay for a project and ingredients for safe experiments for an hour or more of enjoyment. In addition, it included plastic beakers, a booklet of experiments and a white board marker to write in it, a child-size lab coat, a board book that retails $7.99, and homemade playdough and a cutter that can all be used again. While there aren't retail values attached to most of the items in the box since they are homemade or proprietary, the curation, quality, and care put into this themed box make the value evident. I believe the cost is worthwhile.
Key Takeaways
My family welcomed these springtime reads with open arms. Cloudette has become a fast favorite, and First Notes of Spring is a cute story with a great moral. We also enjoyed the provided activities very much!
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? No*, your first kit will be the Human Body box (see review here) and will ship within 1-2 business days after ordering. Expect the following kits to ship by the 10th of each month.
*If you want to buy this Little Scientist kit as a gift or one-time purchase, it is currently available here in the T is for Tot shop for $48.
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