Monthly subscription kits for kids—with toys, crafts, science experiments, cooking and so much more—are all the rage these days, and for good reason. With supplies all bundled in one place and clear instructions on what to make or do, these convenient mail-to-your-doorstep boxes pack a ton of fun for a relatively affordable cost.
Summer break is the perfect time for kids to wander down to the mailbox in anticipation of a new educational surprise. Before signing up, consider important variables like your child’s age, interests and level of independence for completing projects.
COOKING KITS:
Many options abound when it comes to getting kids into the kitchen. For example, I’m the Chef Too! offers a unique and educational cooking club experience for kids ages four to 14, where every month kids receive a box filled with fun, themed recipes, easy to follow instructions and demonstration videos, baking molds, pre-measured ingredients and specialty supplies. One month kids might make an exploding volcano cake, the next they might build an edible dinosaur terrarium or bake astronomy donuts decorated like colorful little galaxies. This is food science at its finest, with lesson plans baked into the experience, so kids learn while they’re having fun. 1–12-month subscriptions are available. If you sign up for a six-month subscription you’ll get a free apron, and the twelve-month option also includes a bonus mystery kit.
The only downside is that the kits are not allergen friendly, so if your child has special dietary needs this may not be the best choice. In contrast, Little GF Chefs offers a baking subscription kit that is completely gluten free and certified to be free of artificial dyes and the top nine allergens (peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, wheat, milk, soy, fish, shellfish and sesame).
If your child is a fan of international cuisine, eat2explore is another great option. Kids will receive a taste of France, India, Brazil, China and so many other countries, as their kits come packed with all the spices and many special ingredients from abroad. Boxes can be customized to be gluten-free or vegetarian if desired, and each cooking step is rated for complexity for extra guidance.
ARTS & CRAFT KITS:
For kids who love to craft, many options abound. Craft kits can loosely be divided into two broad camps: project-based themed boxes, which offer defined structure and clear goals for start to finish projects, or art supply kits, which offer lots of open-ended craft materials kids can use to create independently.
If you’re not sure where to start, it’s generally a good idea to try a project kit based on your child’s age range, then expand to an art supply kit once it’s obvious your kid is interested in creative crafting. It’s worth it to pay for the plan, instead of running around town trying to hunt down project supplies to keep your kids busy and off screens this summer.
Some top choices include KoalaCrate for preschoolers, which has several short, guided activities, and WeCraftKids for elementary-aged kids who enjoy themed projects. If your child loves making gifts for grandparents, friends or other special people, ConfettiGrace can be a great option, as they offer seasonable and intentional giftable items.
SCIENCE / ENGINEERING KITS:
Founded by a small team of fun-loving engineers, designers and makers, this small independent company called CrunchLabs is led by Mark Rober, their “Head EnginNerd” and former NASA engineer who is YouTube famous for building real life squirrel obstacle courses and foiling the plans of nefarious porch pirates with exploding glitter bombs.
Monthly subscription kits are tailored for three age brackets: the Creative Kit (ages 6-10) for fostering creativity, the Build Box (ages 8-13) for hands-on engineering and the Hack Pack (ages 14-101) for robotics and coding. Children use real world engineering skills to build their own toys, such as model tree houses, ice cream stands, dinosaur museums, mirror bank prank boxes, sand gardens, music synthesizers and more.
According to their website, “Our goal is to show kids and kids at heart how to Think Like an Engineer (because who better to teach children engineering than childish engineers!?).” As an ecological bonus, the company focuses on sustainability by using as much wood as possible in the designs and shipping them in uncoated cardboard boxes and compostable plastic packaging.
Other great options for budding engineers and scientists include TinkerCrate (ages 6-16), which brings miniature science laboratories into your home or The Curiosity Box by Vsauce (ages 10+), which delivers four boxes per year of fun science-themed toys. Mel also makes a great series for different age ranges, including MelScience (4-18+), MelChemistry (ages 10-16+), MelPhysics (ages 5-10) and MelMath (ages 8-12).
BABY / TODDLER KITS:
Lovevery is a popular play-based subscription company designed by child development experts that specifically curates toys, books and activities for babies and toddlers. Delivered every two or three months, these play kits are designed to track with your baby’s brain growth and support important developmental milestones, such as fine motor skills, problem solving and language development.
Made from sustainable wood, organic cotton and non-toxic finishes, these playthings are designed to be high quality and sustainable, so young children can enjoy hands-on, open ended play and parents can invest in fewer toys overall. The useful parent guides that accompany
the kits also explain how to use the toy and why it matters at each stage
of development. For busy parents, having a ready-made guide with
week-by-week developmental tips and advice can be invaluable.
Another great option includes PandaCrate by KiwiCo., with themed
boxes like “Let’s Bond!,” “Let’s Sense!,” “Let’s Discover!,” “Let’s Listen!,”
“Let’s Explore!” and “Let’s Chat!” Young kids will delight in learning about
the world with these intentionally designed toys.
With all these options available, let the summer fun begin! If your child falls in love with a new hobby, they can enjoy it year-round through straight-to-your-door delivery.
This article appears in Bend Nest Summer 2026.
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