KidKraft's Deluxe Activity Cube

Disclosure:  I was not compensated for this review.  I received the Deluxe Activity Cube from KidKraft and the review is based on my own personal experience and opinion of the item. 

When we received the package from KidKraft, I was impressed with the size of the box and the limited amount of excess waste.  As a parent who wants to assemble my son’s toys IMMEDIATELY and not take the time to look for the tools needed to put it together, I love that KidKraft’s products come with all of the hardware and tools needed for immediate assembly.  Trust me; this is a huge bonus, not to mention the simple, step-by-step directions with pictures rather than words that totally lose me in the first step.  I think total assembly time for the Deluxe Activity Cube was under a minute- 4 screws and I was finished! 

My son has had the activity cube in his play area downstairs for almost 2 weeks now and it’s one toy he navigates to regularly throughout the day!  (I won’t lie, I do too!)  He loves pushing the wooden beads (shapes) across the paths on top as well as spinning the ABC blocks.  As a teacher, the ABC blocks with pictures on the opposite side are an added bonus and definitely allow us to build in that literacy time each day!  Furthermore, the abacus is introducing him to colors, patterns, and counting!  In the short time he has been playing with the discovery center, I have seen improvement in his hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills as he is pushing, pulling, and manipulating different parts of the cube.

The only downfall to the Deluxe Activity Cube for us is the difficulty turning the gears.  He loves watching them go around while we talk about colors and how they work together, but they are a little tricky for him to turn independently which causes some frustration for him, but I am confident the more we reinforce this skill, the sooner he will be able to turn them himself. 

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DIY Sensory Table

We bought our little learner a water table that he is absolutely in love with, but I wanted a sensory table for his learning area to include sand, colored pasta, oatmeal, etc. without spending an arm and a leg!  During one of my favorite Google searches I came across an easy DIY double sensory table thanks to http://blog.jaxinthebox.com/2013/05/01/diy-sand-water-table-60-minutes-50-done/. 
 
I had to alter the measurements in order to fit the bins I purchased at Home Depot.  (Thanks to the awesome store associate, she measured and cut everything for me!)  I also had extra PVC pipe leftover, so I asked the Home Depot employee to cut me 2 additional sets of legs so the table can grow with our little guy.  As an added bonus, Home Depot had many of their plastic storage items on clearance; so watch those sales tags!
 

 

 

 

Supply List: 

2- 28 quart bins (grab the lids too!)

10- 1.25 inch tees

8- 1.25 inch ninety degree elbows

4- 1.25 inch PVC pipe (10 feet each)

2 cans of spray paint

 

PVC pipe cut into the following:

5- 20 inch

2- 23 inch

4- 10 inch

My 3 sets of 4 legs are 16 inches, 20 inches & 24 inches  

 

*There will be some leftover PVC pipe.  I used it to make rain sticks.  (If you do this, purchase the caps for the ends.)

 

Ideas for your sensory table bins: 

sand, rice, colored pasta, cotton balls, oatmeal, flour, water, beans, corn meal, bubbles, shredded paper, popcorn, sponges, straw, ice cubes/blocks, tissue paper, felt pieces, a variety of material scraps, newspaper, bottle caps, pipe cleaners, shaving cream, soil, mud, fingerpaint, bird seed, the ideas are endless! 

 

*Always supervise children at the sensory table. 

 

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