Girls Can Crate is a monthly subscription for children between 5 and 10 years of age that promotes the idea that girls can do whatever they set their minds to. Each month features a different female pioneer whose story inspires girls to achieve. Each box includes a 20-page activity book that includes the heroine’s story, 2-3 STEAM activities, and creative play props. Boxes cost $29.95 each month with themes that celebrate female pioneers from diverse backgrounds, but the activities themselves are usually gender-neutral.
DEAL: Save 15% on your first box! Use coupon code HELLO15.
The box is always full of fun stuff and activities.
The items were cushioned with bright yellow squiggles. Some items were also protected by plastic.
There’s a pamphlet that lists what’s inside the crate. This month, we’re celebrating the life of Eugenie Clark!
Meanwhile, these are pointers on how to be adventurous!
Everything in the box!
As always, the box includes a booklet featuring information about this month’s heroine.
At the back of the booklet is a quote from Eugenie Clark!
I can’t think of anything I regret. Everything I’ve done, I’ve enjoyed doing… I’ve done it all, but mainly I’ve enjoyed studying fish and being underwater with them, being in their natural habitat, looking at the fish and the fish looking at me.
Eugenie Clark is an ichthyologist, a scientist who studies fish.
When Genie, as she was known by her friends, was 9 nine years old, she spent her Saturdays at the New York Aquarium at Battery Park. She loved it, but most especially, she loved the sharks! Watching the sharks swim through the water, she wondered how it feels like to be swimming with them, and that gave her the interest to study ocean life.
She decided to become an ichthyologist. Genie began working with different aquariums. Despite doing what she really loves, she had faced many challenges such as when she was told that she couldn’t do things because of her gender, because she’s a woman, and sometimes, she was treated differently because she was part Japanese. But she didn’t let those things stop her from pursuing her dreams! She learned to Scuba Dive, which means that she can explore life under the sea! She went on and swam in different oceans, studying and learning all about fish. She was one fo the very first scientists to use scuba as a means to get up close and discover more about the fishes. She even discovered new kinds of fish in the Red Sea in Egypt, and some of them are even named after her.
Her biggest adventure happened in 1955. She started working with sharks! She discovered that these creatures are actually really smart, and they could even be trained to do things! Whenever she was at the aquarium where she worked, she made time to teach the kids and groups everything she’d learned about sharks.
The booklet included activities for the kids, like this one where they can match the shadows of the sharks. On the next page is a fun maze.
Here’s a spread dedicated to sharks! It talks about the different body parts of the shark, like its teeth, pectoral fins, gills, and more!
There are also on-page quizzes to test what the kids learned about the sharks.
This feature is all about the ocean zones and kids need to match the different zones of the ocean to the different creatures that live on them.
Here’s the adventurous ichthyologist in this month’s pin, The Shark Lady, Eugenie Clark!
Challenge #1: Feed The Shark. It’s time to play a fun game where kids will learn about what the sharks eat!
For this activity, the box provided the following materials: shark game frame, glue dots, spinner card, spinner and base, wood stick, wood cube, wood discs, and sticker sheet.
The booklet came with detailed instructions for each activity. There are two games that the kids can play: Food Flip and Food Toss!
First, my daughter assembled the game frame, the spinner, and the pegs that will go inside the shark’s mouth.
Now, it’s time to test them out and play a game! We started with the 2-player game, The Food Flip.
The goal of this game is to “feed” the shark all ten types of prey.
Before flipping, make sure that the red dot on the stick is closest to the shark.
That was close! It almost hit the goal!
The second game is another 2-player game, the Food Toss.
The pegs have different creatures on them like seabirds, crabs, rays, dolphins, squids, and more!
The goal in Food Toss is to “feed” the shark enough food to gain 15 points!
Before starting, make sure that you are 8 feet away from the shark. The players take turns in tossing, they should be able to land the disc inside the shark’s mouth or even on top of it. Give 3 points for discs that land inside the mouth, and 1 point for those that get on top of the shark. Repeat until a player reaches 15 points!
Challenge #2: Make “Cartilage-y” Sharks. My kids have learned from the first few pages of the booklet that instead of bones, the skeleton of the shark is made up of cartilage, which is a strong and rubbery tissue. For this challenge, we explored why this cartilage is beneficial to the sharks!
For this activity, we used the molds, unflavored gelatin, blueberry gelatin, a measuring cup, a whisk, a microwave-safe bowl, and water.
We prepared the gelatin first by mixing the bags of gelatin with water in a microwave-safe bowl, then microwaved it for 1 minute.
We let it cool and then poured the mixture into the molds.
We let it rest for longer so that it will film up more.
After ensuring that they’re firm, it’s time to unmold them! My kids were amazed by the final product, which is also edible.
Challenge # 3: Experiment with Density. Sharks are heavy but they don’t sink! If you’re wondering what makes it possible, the third challenge answers that question. It’s a simple science experiment to discover how their amazing liver helps them stay afloat and swim easily.
For this experiment, we used a packet of oil, gummy sharks, and a bag.
We also used a clear container full of water from home! First, we placed the gummy inside the bag, put some air in it, and sealed it close, then dropped it in water. It floated! The air in the bag represents the air bladders of fishes, which enables them to float in water.
Then, we added oil into the bag this time and repeated the same procedure! The bag sort of hung out in the middle and didn’t sink! The oil represents the fats in the liver of a shark, which helps the shark float although they don’t have an air bladder like fishes. Isn’t that amazing?
Also included in the crate is a colorful, adjustable bracelet!
The bracelet reminded us of the ocean because of the blue base color, while the colorful wood beads remind us of the colorful creatures that live in the ocean!
We were really inspired by this box and read these books too:
- Swimming with Sharks: The Daring Discoveries of Eugenie Clark
- Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean’s Most Fearless Scientist
- If Sharks Disappeared
- Science Comics: Sharks: Nature’s Perfect Hunter
This month’s box featuring heroine Eugenie Clark introduced kids to different underwater wonders! The booklet is filled with trivia and on-page activities, while the projects are all fun and easy to do. My kids enjoyed every bit of the crate, and they were inspired by Genie who is a brave and strong woman! She overcame all the challenges to fulfill her dreams of exploring the ocean and of swimming with the sharks! Girls Can! Crate is an amazing activity box because aside from keeping the kids busy with activities, they also make sure to teach kids about life lessons and to encourage them that they can be whoever they want to be!
Do you enjoy Girls Can Crate as much as we do? What’s your favorite thing about this subscription?
Comments