Written By: Naz Haider | Updated : May 24, 2016 4:19 PM IST
As a working mom, I am always on a lookout for fun ways to keep my toddler engaged. Since I am an ardent believer of no screen time for kids so young, I invariably have to resort to books, toys and interactive activities to keep her creatively engaged. Now here's the catch, while reading books is great, it does nothing to help enhance motor skills obviously. The thing with activities is that repeating the same one often becomes monotonous, and that's big-time-boring in toddler language. So on occasions I had to work from home, I had to resort to the TV to babysit my child. I am not very happy with that decision either!
That's how I discovered the magical world of subscription activity boxes. We have enjoyed the Flintobox in the recent past, and my toddler still loves a few activities from that one. But as established earlier, kids need novelty often. Hence, I began searching for similar activity boxes and came across XploraBox. I was sold at that name itself! The team from XploraBox was amazing enough to send me an activity box for 2-4 years old for review, and here's my take on it.
XploraBox (2-4 years old)
The theme of the box I received was fun with shapes and colours, and the first thing my toddler went for on opening the box was this amazing version of fishing. Using a very simple wooden fishing rod (made with stick and magnets) you can 'fish' different shapes. Amazing, right! My tot LOVES this activity and we have spent hours discussing colours and shapes. It is a fun and effective way of getting kids familiar with shapes. Also, it is a great activity for building focus and concentration. Here are 5 educational toys for one-year-olds (books not included)
Toddler rating - 5/5
The second activity was 'my lovely objects' wherein you have to match and place different shaped foam blocks on a car, house, etc, like in a puzzle. This did not go very well with my tot, because matching and placing accurately is something she isn't very familiar with, but this is definitely a good brain exercise. On another note, do you know how much does it cost to raise a toddler today? 13 lakhs!
Toddler rating: 3/5
Memory match card game had me the most interested. My daughter loves naming things she recognises, so this was a nice way to teach her more words and names of objects. The only problem with this was that as it is with butter-fingered children, she kept losing the cards. I wish it was binded in a ring. You should try these 8 tips to make your toddler eat well.
Toddler rating - 3.5/5
Activities with values are definitely a win-win for any parent. As a working mom, I place a lot of onus on my family who take care of my daughter. 'My happy family photo frame' is an activity where you can paste pictures inside foam photo frames, with the backdrop of a beautiful house and tree. With a little help from me, my daughter completed the picture frame and has never been prouder!
Toddler rating - 4/5
Fun with colours -- need I say more. Give a toddler some colours and a paintbrush and you have a happy toddler! I love the fact that the paint came in a tiny package that is a little difficult for little fingers to open, or else imagine the mess! My toddler broke the brush even before the first stroke, so I recommend you have some extra brushes handy. It comes with a set of crayons and a colouring book. Here are 8 tips to make your toddler s mealtime more fun! (Gallery)
Toddler rating - 4/5
All in all, XploraBox will definitely keep your child occupied. And in a parent's books, that means it is an amazing product!
Image source: XploraBox website
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