Yippee adventure box - bug hunting theme box
We received the marvellous Yippee adventure box to trial, and after having enjoyed the activities with both 7 and 3 year old, I felt a review was worthwhile.
Yippee boxes are designed to encourage science, technology, engineering, art and maths (STEAM), and 'To facilitate fun and special family experiences.'
Upon opening the 'Bug box' both kids were overwhelmed with the contents and eagerly dived in, so off we were, on our yippee adventure!
What's in the box?
The bug box arrived with two categories of activities, 'Bug homes' and 'Go on a bug adventure'.
Bug homes
Bug homes activities were all about that, making, creating and designing homes for little creatures. The first activity little person dived into was, making his spider web and spider. The activities can be easily carried out by children, except using the scissors....but this is a family time activity box (and sometimes as an adult you can't wait for the opportunity to dive in!!)
Whilst designing his spiders web, little person stated 'he really enjoyed spinning his web!' It was a great activity that worked on creativity, but more so really helped improve that hand eye coordination! Making the spider was super fun (and if you follow us on Instagram you'll have noticed our spider was a little flat!)...younger sibling (3 year old) added that the spider needed to be off the web and hugged - hence the slightly flat body!
The second activity from this sub category was making the bug house. It was great to see wooden pieces cut to size to slot together (like a jigsaw). The ease allowed 7 year old to complete this on his own, and decorate using the small ladybird stickers. The instructions, in detail, tell us how to set the bug house outside, and as soon as the weather changes we will be doing this!
Create a bee and butterfly nectar cafe is high on our to do list. The seeds have been provided, which makes it super easy, and the instructions are so clear cut, that even if you've never ever partaken in any sort of gardening/sowing, you'll be able to do it! As little person has shown concern about declining bee and butterfly numbers, he is extremely pleased to have received this activity as part of the box. That is one of the many reasons this box has been a huge hit. It has not only provided what we need to carry out the nectar cafe activity but has enabled ongoing discussions about the environment and declining bugs/animals. Raising awareness is the starting point, and Yippee box has enabled and armed me with that.
The final recreational activity in this sub category is making a worm farm. Now this was an important read for little person, who has previously only been introduced to worms very briefly. The activity booklet is fabulous as not only do you get the step by step instructions on how to carry out the activities but it also provides lots of facts. For the worm farm, little person has been introduced to how important worms are, and why. Learning through play has always been high on my list, so this was great, knowing that the children have learnt something whilst having a lot of fun! I love how the following information is also included, which was new to me too 'Charles Darwin studied worms for 39 years, and concluded that life on earth would not be possible without them.'
Go on a bug adventure
Within this category there were three activities, going on a bug adventure, Bug bingo and Spider web spinning disc illusion.
Going on bug adventures can be a little boring when you don't have any information about what you're looking for, or don't have any equipment to use. Yippee bug box comes with a magnifying glass, 2 wooden spoons (no fighting in this house who gets to hold the spoons!), magnifying bug pot and most importantly Bug and insect spotter sheet. Each and every item makes bug and insect spotting super easy (with adults as insects are delicate beings), and the spotter sheet is full of information, including where to look, what to take, fun facts and a lovely illustrated list of the insects to look for.
The second activity in this category is the fun Bug bingo game. I love the leaf button counters provided as they make play all the more fun! The kids are working on decorating their A5 cardboard box to store the game in!
Final activity is the exciting spider web spinning disc illusion...I loved reading the following from the activity booklet 'As the circle spins, your eyes see one picture after the other in rapid succession. The images are moving faster than the human eye...'
...what do we think of our Yippee Bug box?....
After having tried most of the activities (except outdoor ones just yet), we have thoroughly enjoyed this box. Not only have the kids enjoyed designing and creating, the box has enabled thought provoking conversations about the environment, insects and declining numbers and the science behind concepts such as vision.
As a mum who orders most things online, I absolutely love it when, we receive a box that caters for us - by which I mean, even the glue is provided! I honestly cannot say this enough times, but when we receive boxes like Yippee adventure boxes, it means we can get to work on the fun, rather than wait for the tools!!
The quality is excellent, anything that enters this house has to be sturdy enough to withstand the tough love from 3 year old! Things like the leaf button counters, the bug house are solid (wood), so we don't need to stress about those breaking, we have enough wool to make a fair few very large spiders, the card is nice strong card, the insect spotter sheet is tough enough to withstand rain and the activity/instruction booklets won't be ripping anytime soon! It's always great to find good quality products, that can be enjoyed by the slightly tougher child!
I truly believe incorporating so many different themes and ideas (STEAM), is very clever! The facts have been so interesting, and I've learnt a fair few things, and I shall leave you with the following taken from the fun facts section (to think about as I won't be giving it away) 'All bugs are insects but not all insects are bugs.'
Have a look for yourself
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