Koala Crate is a monthly subscription box from KiwiCo for preschoolers ages 3 to 5. It is educational and always hands-on. The activities are designed to be developmentally appropriate and enriching while also keeping it engaging, fun, and universally appealing.
DEAL: Use this link to save 30% on your first month of Koala Crate! (or any of the KiwiCo family subscriptions – use this page to find the best box for your little one!).
This month’s Koala Crate theme is MUSIC! As always, the box comes with all the supplies needed to create a trio of fun, age-appropriate crafts — plus it has a magazine with extra games and activities!
There are two books that will come in your Koala Crate. imagine! magazine is “a play and learn magazine” made for you and your preschooler to explore together. My son loves it! I like that the instruction booklet is separate from the magazine, so you can preview the activity while your child works on the activities in the booklet.
Imagine! Magazine
Imagine! magazine contains information relevant to the theme so your child learns a bit about the topic while having fun with the craft and play activities. The information is provided in an age-appropriate format and always feels like a game, not schoolwork.
A fun story introduces your child to the theme of the box. The same group of friendly characters is featured each month, and the familiar faces encourage engagement.
The illustrations are animated and engaging. They relate their games to the theme and makes it exciting for the kids.
The good mix of drawings and information will surely catch the kids attention and get them interested in learning more about music.
Everything this month’s box!
Koala Crate Crafts
The instruction booklet is intended for the adult helper and gives detailed instructions for the activity.
There are 3 activities in the box. We are going to make a homemade xylophone, tambourine and dancing streamer. This page has images of all the materials you need and provided in the box.
The spreadsheet is parted into three sections to see elaborate and detailed instructions. It also has different suggestions for play.
They arranged the xylophone bars from largest to smallest.
They marked each bar with a different colored stamp representing the different sound each bar will make.
He inserted the bars in between the crisscrossed rubber bands and arranged them by size. The kids also made sure that the rubber does not touch the box to make the most effective sounds!
They are playing some music now!
It is encouraged in the instruction spreadsheet to make your own music so you can fully enjoy the xylophone. You can compose music by marking the circles with colored stamps.
You can mark them in an arranged way or let your instinct shine and find out how beautiful the song is when you try to play it. It makes this experience more exciting as you get a different composition every time!
This is our second activity. From the shape alone it looked cute already! We also have 4 bells and an elastic fitted perfectly with the tambourine.
We used the elastic provided to insert the bells. We have to weave it like making stitches. Insert the tip first in an upward motion and then insert a bell to the elastic. Insert the elastic to the nearest designated hole and then repeat the process until you completed the 4 bells. Be sure to put the other end of the elastic tip flat against the surface to hold everything in place. Great fine motor skills development!
Now we are going to make a dancing streamer!
They used all the stamps and spread some love on those blank ribbon to have a beautiful dancing streamer.
We inserted the mallet stick on the designated hole at the end of the streamer and inserted the yellow foam on the mallet stick to lock the streamer in place and danced like crazy!
Koala Crate Extension Activities
The instructions explained the step by step with flying colors! Now we are going to decorate some bangin’ drums. Be sure to cover the sharp edges first before giving the can to the kids.
There are also suggestions for further reading on the subject. This month’s recommended books are Music Class Today, Never Play Music Right Next to the Zoo, and Clap Your Hands.
After covering the can, my younger son prepares it as the older one is busy with stamping the rest of the colored paper.
We glued it in the around the can to make a cool drum design and now they are enjoying the tap-tap sound it produces as they strike it with the drumsticks.
They can now start their own little band!
Here are the musical instruments the kids learned how to make. Can you spot the pan flute made out of straws?
The box explored a lot of learning curves for the kids. They opened their curiosity to different kinds of sounds and they learned resourcefulness as we can make music out of things we see at home. They explored new creative things such as weaving (tambourine), rubber band tricks (xylophone), matching of clothes (from the booklet) and did some fun artwork with the stamps. It’s a simple tool to make art but they had fun and it’s easy for them to play around with colors. They became creative in composing some music too. Even though the box had a simple concept, they made the children learn new things beyond the music theme. The items they provided are simple items but the smiles of the kids and how they enjoyed the experience is always priceless.
Have you tried Koala Crate? What did you think of this month’s theme?
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