This edition is out third Bitsbox and we are beginning to like it. It’s mainly for my son and my husband to develop a bond and to learn something IT related. My husband does that for living and my son is very interested in computers and technology. There was a talk about coding school in our house, but because it never materialized, I decided to order Bitsbox instead.
I and my daughter are very different than our boys and have never been interested in this kind of thing, which is unfortunate, because I have more time than my husband and could help my son if I understood anything. But since it’s not the case, he has to patiently wait for his dad’s time and guidance.
Each box comes with a Grownup Guide, but all the coding language says nothing to me, so it doesn’t help. My son has tried Scratch program before, but also with his dad’s help, so Bitsbox is still a bit hard for him alone. The best age for it is 6-12, but even though we are about 8, the experience is still lacking. Some apps are complicated enough for adults and teenagers, so I might have to get on it one of these days.
Each small monthly box costs about $20 and brings quite a bit of material to work with. All app creation happens on bitsbox.com app, where kids have access to virtual tablet for programming and games to take place. Once the app is made, it can be modified, shared, tweaked, and played on with other people.
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This month’s theme is A Land Far Away and it looks like a fairy tale. As I mentioned above, it starts with a Grownup Guide, which I am leaving for my husband. Next was a surprise item – Checkers to go mini travel rug. No such item was included in the two previous boxes. This is really great because both of my kids love playing checkers, but some checkers is lost from their old set, so now they have a new one. We will definitely put it to good use at home and when we travel.
Next item is a stack of trading cards, which are directions to mini apps or so I understand. Out of 5 cards, 3 were the same as last month and two new – Tulip Grow and Magic Eyes. It would be nice to know another child with this subscription and trade cards, but for now we are the only ones in our circle.
My son’s favorite item is a sheet with three tattoos that this month are: a frog price, a red dragon, and a blue mermaid. These can be enjoyed by my daughter too.
The main ingredient from this box is app coding pages that all can be collected in the binder that came with the first box. Each hard laminated page has directions for app building and then mini and super challenges for more fun.
This time the apps are: Bling This Thing, Frog Prince Donkey, What Does the Troll Say, Flight of the Dragon, Cookiesnitch, 333 Little Pigs, and Flushioso Wandini. We haven’t created them yet, but we will. The last two pages in the stack are tips and tricks for creating more movement and changes to the apps.
The last item in the box is three pages of stickers. They are identical and can be used for gluing on the collectible app creation pages. In fact, there is one page dedicated just to stickers, which also helps keeping track of apps that have already been created by a child.
While I like this subscription, I am still waiting for a real interest from my son, which is definitely going to come when he and his dad will have more time to work on these fun apps. Anything that encourages learning and trying new things is awesome, especially with a new box getting delivered each month!
