Kiwi Crate is a kids’ craft and activity subscription that comes with everything you need to complete a great project or two, usually a pair of crafts that can be used as toys or playtime props. The box is geared for ages 5-8, and the projects are always age-appropriate, though some require more parental assistance than others.
Kiwi Crate is the most popular craft and activity subscription box for kids!
DEAL: Use this link to save 30% on your first box of Kiwi Crate! (or KiwiCo family subscriptions Tinker Crate, Koala Crate, Atlas Crate, Cricket Crate, and Doodle Crate).
This month’s theme is PRINTING PRESS!
Kiwi Crate includes all necessary supplies for the featured activities, plus explore! magazine.
Engineer your very own printing press, complete with stamping plate and handy lever. Use your press to quickly whip up a series of picture-perfect print. Then design your own reusable and recustomizable stamps.
Explore! Magazine
An issue of explore magazine is included in every Crate. It is full of fun content that brings the project to life. explore! has read, draw, learn, explore, eat, and make designated activities. There is really a lot to look at and read – a comic, puzzles, and games – and it really extends your young one’s engagement with the Crate. Each expands on the theme of the box, whether through factoids, drawing activities, or recipes, but the variation is helpful for engaging different learning styles and interests.
Tinker, Create, Innovate
KiwiCo equips the next generation of innovators with the tools and confidence for creative exploration and problem solving.
There is always a comic featuring Steve the Kiwi and his pals.
This month’s featured activity is Printing Press, a mechanism that uses pressure to make a printed image.
This magazine also includes a lot of historical and scientific information relating to the current theme.
The first evidence of printing started at about 6000 years ago and is continuously being developed and improved up to this modern digital age.
Kiwi Crate Crafts
The second booklet that comes in every crate is the actual instruction booklet for the crafts, and it often includes additional activities beyond the extension projects included in explore!
Every Kiwi Crate comes with a unique Steve sticker (like your merit badge for completing the box). The first box of an annual subscription includes a poster for displaying your earned stickers.
The booklet contains a list of all the supplies they provided for the crafts. It also has a rating of messiness and parental involvement for each activity.
Here are all the items we need for this month’s Printing Press!
For our first project, we are creating Printed Pictures! This booklet provides detailed instruction and some illustrations, to help you finish the project.
They also provided some useful tips and suggestions to finish the project with ease!
For the printed pictures, we used the completed printing press which includes the green platform, gray platform, wood platform, side pieces, stands, lever, base, dowels, rubber bands, straws, and sticky foam.
My son enjoyed reading everything about the science of printing, the kids find it so interesting!
The most challenging part of this project is building the printing press, as it requires perseverance and patience.
Put the dowels through the side pieces and to the lever, make sure to insert the straws in between.
Next step is to put a sticky foam donut on each side of the lever.
Using the second dowel, pierce it through the lever’s hole together with foam and lock it on the side stands.
There you go, our completed printing press machine!
For the second part of the project, we will be using the printing paint, paint stampers, blank paper, and stamping plate.
Choose your desired color, and using the paint stamper, you start dabbing the paint onto your stamping plate until all the raised areas are covered.
Reminder: This part of the project is quite messy, make sure to put some scratch paper to cover your workplace.
Lift the lever to open the printing press, then lay the clean piece of paper on the green platform and place the stamping plate on top. Close the press and let it stay for at least 10 seconds, then open.
Here’s our finished product, the color was transferred on the clean white sheet together with the figure of the stamping plate.
We’re also doing the Stamp Design Challenge. We used the sticky foam shapes and a clear sheet.
They included some suggested samples you can try for your stamp design.
My son is working on a mini robot figure with a bit of design made by scratching the ballpen on the sticky foam.
Using the printing press, put a clean white sheet and place your newly designed stamp on top and then press.
The first try is a bit unbalanced, and the stamp plate was not completely covered by the color.
The second try is way much better, the robot’s details are clearly visible. He was SO proud of his robot!
Once you’re done with the print, you can also add some more designson your sheet. You can put some stars, shapes, and even place another stamp on it.
Extension Activities
Every Crate includes extension activities. This month it’s called Stamp Champ, which is about making a stamp that you can use to sign your name.
An on-page activity involves following animal footprints and finishing the pattern by drawing in the missing ones.
The booklet even introduced a cookie stamp snack recipe! The other page also features a quiz, and they also encourage your kids to email a letter or picture to Steve, and if it is published, they’ll be sending you a plush kiwi.
We love Kiwi Crate because they combine a variety of science and engineering concepts with arts and crafts, in a fun and enjoyable way at that. As usual, my son loved all of the projects and even the on-page activities. Making stamps for the design challenge also helped him unleash his creativity. This box is really intended for ages 5-8 but appeals to all age ranges too. If you’re looking for an activity box that will keep your children busy for hours while teaching them some science and history (and new yummy recipes!), this is the perfect box to try!
Did you enjoy this month’s activity? Let us know in the comments!
Visit Kiwi Crate to subscribe or to find out more about this fantastic kids’ craft subscription box!
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