Learning Resources STEM Explorers Sun Catchers for Windows, Gifts for 5 Year Olds, 30 STEM Challenges, Reusable Craft Kit, 422-Piece

I’m actually really impressed with this! It’s basically an art kit with pop in mosiacs that make a suncatcher. It can be used over and over again because the pieces pop in and out, though there are 3 suncatcher elements so 3 kids can use the kits at once.There are different ways you can use it - for younger children you can match from the cards, for older children there’s a challenge where you can do it from co-ordinates or coding instructions.It is easy to use and provides hours of fun. It is made from good quality materials and I think because of its replayability value that it is quite good value for money.

I recently got the Learning Resources STEM Explorers Sun Catchers Craft Kit for my daughter, and it has been an absolute hit! This 422-piece kit is packed with everything you need for hours of creative and educational fun.The kit includes a fantastic variety of components to create vibrant sun catchers, making it perfect for budding young scientists and artists. My child was immediately captivated by the bright colours and the myriad of shapes and designs available. The fact that it comes with 30 different STEM challenges is a huge bonus, providing plenty of opportunities to learn and experiment with concepts like light and colour.One of the standout features of this kit is its reusability. The materials are durable and can be used multiple times, which is excellent for both the environment and my wallet. The instructions are clear and easy to follow, making it suitable for young children to work on with minimal supervision, although it's also a great activity for us to enjoy together.The sun catchers look stunning in the window, and my child takes great pride in their creations. This kit has not only sparked their creativity but also encouraged an interest in science and problem-solving.Overall, the Learning Resources STEM Explorers Sun Catchers Craft Kit is a brilliant gift. It’s educational, engaging, and provides endless fun. Highly recommended for parents looking to combine learning and play in a truly creative way.

This is an exciting and colourful craft/learning resources kit for children. My 5-yr old granddaughter is into all things rainbow, so this is the perfect crafting toy for her; to be honest, I believe that children learn through any kind of play or art/craft activity, so if the manufacturer believes that something could be learned from it STEM-wise, then great!My granddaughter has had similar plastic peg-type craft kits before and enjoyed them, although this one offers the added dimension of the light coming through the pattern by virtue of it being able to be hung at a window.With multiple-use frames/jewel cubes and 30 design challenges, this kit will certainly keep my granddaughter occupied whilst teaching her new skills and/or honing those she already possesses. I like that it has an Activity Guide too, because it can help an adult answer that dreaded question: ‘what can I do next?’ rather than drawing a blank!Quite pricey, but then it could potentially last years, and could also be kept for when our youngest is old enough.

I absolutely love this set of ‘sun catchers’. It comes with 3 reusable base boards - round, cross and square and loads of good quality square beads to clip on. They are a good size for small fingers and can be easily gripped.There are loads of cards for the child to follow to make a ‘surprise’ pattern. The cards are different sections; coding, colour coordinated and simple copy and match. Of course they can also be used for ‘free’ build so the child can use their imagination.This is aimed at 5 plus but my 8 year old has enjoyed having a go especially trying to work out how the coding works. This is a good introduction for children to begin to understand coding.As with all the Learning Resource items this is really good quality at a good fair price.

This Learning Resources STEM Explorers Sun Catchers is an amazing craft kit. It comes with 3 reusable frames, 400 rainbow coloured cubes and 30 STEM challenges.Its aim is to challenge the children to create a sun reflector to catch the sun whilst learning a variety of valuable lessons and skills from creating and engaging with suncatchers. These enchanting creations are more than just colorful decorations - they’re educational tools that offer children a delightful journey into various STEM concepts. They’re designed to catch and reflect sunlight, creating a beautiful display of colours and patterns when hung in windows or outdoor spaces. They help children learn the basics of light and colour.Children will learn angles and symmetry by arranging and attaching materials to create aesthetically pleasing suncatchers.Suitable for children aged 5 and up.I highly recommend.

The media could not be loaded.  Small plastic cubes with a translucent esk finish allows light to mix and filter through. Like a mini rainbow when the suns catches them. There are three board pieces to attach your designs to however you wish, or if you want some structure use the flash cards with pre-made options.I found the multicoloured cubes are really light weight, the boards have a raised bit for the cubes to push fit into. Though you may find some cubes don't sit firm and are loose. So be careful if you have other young children around.You can hang up your desing using the string pre-attached to the boards. Though I found Blutack was just as effective if you want it to stick to glass as the boards have a flat finish to them.

Loved this concept so we gave it a try. We tried the coordinates cards first and so far every design from 1-5 has an issue. The coordinates do not match the answer key. I've reached out to learning resources to see if they can provide the correct print of the coordinates, or another way to resolve the problem, but I may have to return this activity to Amazon because of it. Too bad, my kid loves this.

I think this would be an ideal activity for home schooling families, as it could be fun and challenging for a range of ages. Our Preschoolers enjoyed matching (5 year old) and free play (3 year old).Older children would likely find the co-ordinate graph and coding activities challenging and enjoyable. The "crystal frames" are thick sturdy plastic, the 400 Jewel cubes are beautiful and easy for small fingers to manipulate. The Cubes fit nicely into the frame. Our Five Year old was entranced by the effect of the sun shining through her creations.There are Three different activities available for different ages/skill levels (Making a suncatcher via 1. Matching, 2. Coordinate Graphing and 3. Coding). The 5 year old in the family *loved* doing the matching activity (which she needed occasional help with). Unfortunately each activity applies to only one of the three "crystal frames". So all of the matching activities use the round frame. Fortunately our 5 year old was happy to use the pictures from the other activities (graphing and coding) and their respective frames for her matching enjoyment (We did Six of the patterns at her request in one session). The Three year old was content to have a couple handfuls of jewel cubes which he happily plugged into whatever frame he was given.Developmentally this was an opportunity to help the five year old look for different ways to problem solve transferring the pattern from the paper to the jewels/frames. We talked about rows, numbers, colors, concepts of above, below, next to, diagonal, patterns, and she had fun doing it.

This is definitely fun at first and good for both structured and open ended crafting, but it loses steam as a ‘fun’ activity pretty quickly. At this price point, I don’t think I think it’s worth it.

I got this for use at a facility I volunteer at that caters for adults with severe learning difficulties. They are heavily into arts of any sort and this particular set goes down well.With it, they can make up to three “suncatchers” by plugging different colored beads onto one of three shapes. The forms and the beads are translucent so they light up when the sun shines through them.The kit comes with a set of cards with what they call “algorithms” which are really a set of detailed instructions for what colored bead goes where. Not really an algorithm as such, but the purpose is to help teach kids how to follow detailed sequential instructions to achieve a particular result. Can’t comment on how effective this might be since we do not use the kit this way.We basically ask the client to think of a pattern—any pattern—and duplicate it. For some of our clients, people who might have challenges with thinking of or sketching out a pattern, we just have them plug in the beads wherever they want. They love it anyway and it’s good fine-motor skill exercise.An advantage of this kit is that the beads can be removed and used again at another session. The activity goes down well, and the clients get a real sense of satisfaction in completing a suncatcher which they can then hang in the window and display.Very good for this purpose with minimal clean-up. Recommended

These are so easy to color and then hang up to see the beautiful art the sun makes with your colors. A quick and gratifying craft with lots of ways to thank nature while stretching a child’s creativity.