Atlas Crate is a monthly subscription from KiwiCo that specializes in geography and culture for children between ages 6 to 11 years old. This box is designed to spark kids’ sense of adventure and curiosity, inspiring them to see themselves as citizens of the world. Kids can see and connect with the rest of the world, helping them grow beyond their own experience as they explore the globe.
KiwiCo also offers Kiwi Crate, Koala Crate, Doodle Crate, Tinker Crate, Tadpole Crate, and Eureka Crate. Atlas Crate is a great addition to the KiwiCo family as geography and exploration is always a favorite activity!
DEAL: Save 30% on your first month with this link on any KiwiCo line, no coupon code required!
This month’s box is all about SWEDEN!
Upon opening, we are welcomed by the cards and pamphlets that are essential to the activities. This subscription emphasizes learning through creative play as they provide in this box everything the kids might need. It builds a sense of adventure, an appreciation of other cultures, builds a sense of global citizenship and opportunity for parents and grandparents to bond with children.
Everything in the crate!
Hallå!
The cute envelope uses a string closure.
Voila! Every flap of the envelope has information about the box. We are also given a beautiful surprise of trivia cards filled with fascinating facts and photos.
We are introduced to Anya the cricket and Milo the sandpiper.
There’s also a card that lists all six tasks we need to be accomplished in this crate.
You can explore more online after you get your box with additional activities and book suggestions! Atlas Crate recommends The Sinking of the Vasa by Russell Freedman and D’Aulaires’ Book of Norse Myths by Ingri and Edgar Parin d’Aulaire.
Atlas Crate Adventure Book
Missed our first review? You’ll get the rings in your first box, which will always start with the WORLD crate. Check out that review here!
The first item we got is a sticker that represents this month’s featured country, Sweden!
We placed the sticker on the front page of the Adventure Book.
We already got 5 countries down, and a lot more to go!
The table of contents is on the edge of the page for easy reading, just like how a travel book works.
It’s a cute illustration of the country map with fast facts and where they have images drawn of Sweden’s notable events, sports, places, or products from that particular location.
These pages feature the beginning of the adventures of Anya and Milo in Sweden.
They take us with them in their adventure through reading their journal as they explore the beautiful country and share with us their activities. Check out Thor, the thunder god of Norse Mythology!
They also visited one of the most popular places in Sweden, The Vasa Museum.
This page features Vasa, a warship built by the order of the king of Sweden, Gustav II Adolf. It tells everything about the ship, how it failed to be launched in 1628 and regained its status after 333 years.
As an Atlas Crate ritual, the kids located the beautiful country on our world map. There it is!
Atlas Crate Activities
The first activity that the crate we will be making is our own mini ice hotel. It’s so easy to make, especially with the detailed instruction provided.
Atlas Crate Recipe
For this crate’s recipe, the crate teaches us to make some delicious Äppelpaj – Swedish Apple Pie!
To make a Sweden apple pie, we need 4-5 medium apples (peeled, cored, and sliced), 1 1/4 cup of sugar, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, dash of cardamom, 3/4 cup butter, 1 cup flour, and 1 egg.
Put all the apple slices on the pie dish, then combine 1/4 cup of sugar together with the cinnamon and cardamom, and sprinkle it over the apples.
Put the butter in a medium-sized bowl and together with the grownup, melt it in the microwave.
Take the melted butter out of the microwave and add the remaining cup of sugar and flour, stir to mix well, then pour over the apples.
Bake it for around 45 minutes or until the outer layer turns to golden brown.
This apple pie is best served hot!
Atlas Crate Projects
We got 2 different Atlas crate projects this month.
Activity No. 1: Tomte. Our first project for this month is creating our own pair of magical Gnomes.
All the items for the project are readily included in the kit.
The project starts by making our own magical hat.
In Swedish folklore, the tomte is a handy little fellow to have around the house.
I love how detailed the instruction manual is. Aside from the step-by-step procedure, it also has pictures to provide a visual aid while working on the project.
Once done with the body, the next thing to do is to add some accessories to improve our Tomte.
There you go, our very first Tomte!
Look, our first Tomte holds a flag of Sweden!
The second Tomte looks so cute too!
The color combination used is quite fascinating, most especially the design on his hat, a bird with a crown and snowflakes. Awesome!
They’re so easy to make and my kids really enjoyed it.
The back of the booklet provides a little cultural trivia about Tomte.
Activity No. 2: Kubb. The second project is about making a mini version of Sweden’s favorite lawn game.
In this project, you’ll get the following: a cube, block, crown stickers, kubbs, batons, and a sticky foam square. You’ll also be needing a tape measure or yardstick and opaque tape from your home.
In this game, you get to toss batons and knock stuff down in order.
But first, we need to put the stickers on the cubes and place on top of the block to make the king.
The game starts with each player throwing a baton to the king. The baton landed nearest to the king without hitting it will do the first move.
The first player will start by throwing all four batons (one at a time) to knock down as many of player’s 2 kubbs as possible and vice versa. Whoever gets to put down the opponent’s kubb first will have the chance to knock the king out and will be declared the winner.
Just be careful, if any of the players accidentally knock the king off without being able to put down the opponent’s kubbs, then the opposite player will automatically be the winner. My kids LOVED this game and have played it over and over!!!
Did you know that the full-size kubb is so big that it needs to be played outdoors? Some fanatics also called this game Viking Chess! We are going to definitely test it outside someday, too!
Everything with all this month’s Atlas Crate projects!
Atlas Crate is a jampacked activity box for kids. This month, aside from fun projects and exciting activities, we even got a recipe to try and a few other activities that really provide an entire month of fun. We learned that Sweden really is a great place with a lot of wonderful landmarks, history, and delicious Swedish apple pie. My kids enjoyed everything in the box, and I’m just happy that they got to learn about the culture, traditions, and arts of Sweden to help them understand the country and its culture better. The attention to details plus country selections truly makes this subscription so fantastic! It’s worth mentioning that one of my kids won a Geography bee solely on the basis of reading all the material from a previous box – lots of learning in this subscription!
What do you think of KiwiCo’s Atlas Crate?
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