Tinker Crate Subscription Box Review + Coupon– November 2016

Tinker Crate is a subscription for kids ages 9-14 from the makers of Kiwi Crate. Like Kiwi Crate, it comes with everything you need to complete projects based around a central theme. Unlike Kiwi Crate, however, these projects are less crafty and more based on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) learning and enrichment.

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.)

The Subscription Box: Tinker Crate

The Cost: $19.95 per month (free shipping)

COUPON: Save 30% off your first box with code MSA30!

The Products: STEM-based crafts and DIY projects for kids, with supplemental learning kits, booklets, and activities. Projects are designed to enhance children’s critical thinking and problem-solving skills through activities that are exciting and fun!

Ships to: Anywhere in the United States and Canada, including Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands and APO addresses. Free within the United States, $6.95 to Canada

Check out all of our Tinker Crate reviews and the Kids Subscription Box Directory!

Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your Wish List or Subscription List!

Every box comes with a copy of TinkerZine magazine, which includes articles about that month’s theme, as well as smaller projects and experiments. This month’s theme is all about feats of engineering! I do this box with my ten-year-old son.

Here’s a peek at the table of contents from this month’s TinkerZine. In addition to the large project that Tinker Crate sends, the magazine has several articles plus smaller projects you and your child can undertake to gain a deeper knowledge of the scientific principles of that month’s topic.

This month’s big project is an arcade catapult! Fun! My son and I are almost always thrilled with Tinker Crate’s project selections!

Here’s a peek inside the instructions this month. They may look a little intimidating, but they are always very clear, complete, and easy-to-follow. With Tinker Crate, sometimes you have to supply a few things, but they are always items you have at home, like scissors or water. This month they included everything we needed for the project! Sometimes Tinker Crate includes some supplies for the smaller projects in TinkerZine, too.

My husband actually worked this project with our ten-year-old this month (which is further proof that the instructions are easy to follow, haha). The first thing they did was build the base.

Then they added the backsplash. Note the many holes in the middle floor of the base. You will see how there is a system of movable tiles that go over the holes in a later picture.

Then they built the catapult itself.

This is their completed project! You can see the tiles here. Some are solid to completely cover holes, and some have different size holes with catches built in. The different sizes give you the ability to score differently for flinging the ball into that particular hole if that makes sense. The tiles are not attached, so you can move the holes around and change the game as often as you’d like! That’s such a cool and thoughtful feature!

And here it is in action! Amazing!

Verdict: We love Tinker Crate! This month’s project was so fun! I’ve mentioned before that my eight-year-old is usually the beneficiary of the finished product, and he loved playing this game with his brother. It’s very cool that this box is getting both boys inspired to explore engineering. Tinker Crate always picks out fun projects, sends quality materials, and provides loads of educational content. It’s a huge value for $20!

What do you think of Tinker Crate?