Remember in my FinFun post when I said that was the best thing to ever happen to me? Read the first line of the post if you forgot. Well, now forget that. No offense FinFun, but the Big Fat Notebook series by Workman Publishing beats you by a mile, partially that you can use them anywhere, where as FinFun you can only use in water. But don't worry FinFun, I still love you. The Big Fat Notebooks are Middle School textbooks that cover five major subjects: English, Math, American and World history, and (Cue the angelic music!) Science!(Thank you for the music, angels, but you can stop now.) Big Fat Notebooks cover the main topics and help the info sink in. They have mnemonics, phrases, doodles, and more to help you learn. I love them so much, I care for them like babies (That was a hyperbole, by the way.) The owners should get millions of dollars for these things, trust me, if you had one, you'd understand. They helped me with at-home projects, too. Nanometer conversions, … [Read more...]

K'Nex is a construction toy system invented by American Joel Glickman. It was first introduced in America in 1992. K'Nex is designed and produced by K'Nex Industries Inc. of Hatfield, Pennsylvania. K'Nex was purchased by Florida-based company Basic Fun! in 2018. They sent us the K'nex 3-in-1 Amusement Park for us to review and donate to the local elementary school for their maker space. I will tell you that this company was VERY generous with our maker space program and my Mom said she will be a lifelong fan of them. Their line includes: K'nex, Mighty Makers, Lincoln Logs and Tinker Toys. Not only are they made in the USA, but they replace broken pieces for free! K'nex 3-in-1 Amusement Park Now, let's see what the kids had to say: Bottom line? The kids really seemed to enjoy working with it and loved using the kit directions to make exactly what they showed how to do. After that? The sky was the limit as they created a lot of their very own ideas and contraptions with … [Read more...]

Disclaimer: We were sent Lux Blocks product in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are entirely our own - and the elementary school students who tested this out for us. The product was then left at the school to be part of their "maker space". A new block for a new century. Lux blocks is the super high performance construction system that imitates nature - all of it. These identical modular construction elements imitate molecules, cells, waves, and all kids of structures and machines. They are the true universal construction system. It makes for a different kind of building set and lets the kids stretch their minds in slightly different ways than they are used to.  With Lux's patent-pending snap and lock hinge, builders are now freer than ever before to make structures that curve, bend, and move! I love how many sets they have, such a great variety of sizes and kits to choose from! So, here is what the kid's had to say about Lux Blocks... Other toys we … [Read more...]

In an ever changing, technology driven worlds - making sure girls are interested in STEM technology is very important. Finding things that interest them and are not geared towards boys can be a bit hard though. Thankfully Thames and Kosmos sells the Barbie STEM Kit! The Annual Animal Shelter Gala is just hours away! And With the Barbie STEM Kit you can help Barbie and Nikki prepare for the party as you learn important STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) skills. The full-color storybook manual guides your journey through seven building projects and more than seven experiments. Build a spinning closet rack, washing machine, jewelry holder, hammock, dress designer platform, shoe rack, and greenhouse with fan. Make a chromatography dress, leaf-print dress, and optical-illusion origami dresses. Additional Features Include: Build 7 Barbie® Dreamhouse® models and accessories. Create three unique dresses for Barbie®. Explore biology, chemistry, physics, engineering, art, and … [Read more...]

Disclaimer: We were sent this Mighty Makers product in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are entirely our own - and the elementary school students' who tested this out for us. The product was then left at the school to be part of their "maker space". Girl power building sets that model careers in STEM? I'm in! Welcome to the world of Mighty Makers. These come to us from the Amazing People at K'nex - and work in a slightly similar way. They have a huge variety of sets and are on a real mission to empower Girls in the world of STEM. Even if these toys are geared for girls, boys enjoy them too! I have a small problem with gender labeling of toys, and kind of feel that they should all be non-binary. Now, let's see what the kid's had to say about the set they worked with: As you can see, the kids liked the Mighty Makers set that they got to play with and recommend it! Other toys we tested that you might like: Anki Cozmo Limited Edition, Interstellar … [Read more...]

Disclaimer: We were sent product in exchange for an hones review. All thoughts are entirely our own - and the elementary school students' who tested this out for us. The product was then left at the school to be part of their "maker space". If you have an older kid or teen who is interested in building things, science, electronics, or the link, you need to look into getting a Circuit Scribe Kit! This kit actually allows you to physically draw working circuits onto paper! This kit allows you to make at least 6 different working circuits. The way it works is by using an actual conductive ink pen. This pen allows you to draw metal circuits directly onto a special paper to design your own circuits! Who needs wires, when you can just doodle something onto paper?! The conductive pen uses silver ink, and is totally non-toxic. It doesn’t give off any weird smells, so you don’t have to worry about stinking up the room! This kit lets you connect LEDs, use a capacitor to fade them from … [Read more...]