PLAYSTEM Garden Kits - Grow Your Own Fairy Garden for Kids- Maze Planter Fun Science STEM Learning Educational(Dried beans and soil not included)

Great product with multiple experiments.I got this so that we could teach my homeschoolers a bit more about plants, how they grow and how they are affected by light, soil and water etc.This kit provides all of the equipment, except for soil, water and seeds, that you will need to conduct various different experiments that will allow you to find out the many different ways in which growing plants can be affected.The components of the kit are very well made and fit together easily. Following the well written instructions makes life a lot easier also.I would have liked some better information about the best types of fast growing seeds that allow for the experiments to be seen working a bit sooner, however a quick search on the internet helped me to find some good bean varieties to use.Overall this is a great quality teaching kit for all ages I have a pre-school age 3 and 8 year old and a 10 year old and they all love it

Damaged box

Saving this for next summer so the kids can start a grow, it is packaged well and looks really good, the pieces inside are easy to put together and it will look great in the garden

EDIT: 2 images added to show the progess of the 2 bean plants through the maze, although mine made straight for the roof & one is now peeking out the top of the chimney!ooOooNOTE: The back of the box (last point in ‘Warning Message’ ~ image below refers) suggests that batteries are required in this kit…that is not the case with the one I received, and I cannot see where there could be a battery compartment.Also, there is no mention of 'Grow Your Own Fairy Garden', as in the current product title, on the item I received.The concept is to provide education on how plants grow from seed through germination and then to see the development of roots as well as top growth over time.So far, following ACTIVITY ONE in the 36 glossy page combined INSTRUCTIONS/LEARNING BOOKLET included, we have reached the stage of placing our own bean seeds in the transparent, plastic-type CULTIVATION DISH around 6.5 cm diameter supplied, which have started to sprout roots after 2-3 days (image below refers).Page 5 shows the items supplied in the kit; page 6 shows those that are necessary to do the activities that are NOT included (images below refer).My concerns are on the practicalities of how long these things take and keeping the interest. There is no help in deciding which type of seed to use to best see the development as the plant grows. The seeds in the booklet look like bean seeds and experience suggests this would be best type although the depth of the soil area seems too small for this.There are four main activities in the learning booklet so it could take quite a while to complete all with only one ‘house’ available.Building the house frame, which stands around 21 cm tall x 15 cm wide overall x 5 cm (back to front) was straightforward if a little fiddly and needed some force to get the various half-shelves to stay in place.It includes both clear and opaque walls to assist in the activities.You do need to supply your own growing medium as well although very little is needed to fill the soil compartments.ooOoo~ PLAY STEAM™~ PLANT MAZE BOTANY KIT SETAGE GUIDE (from the box): 8+ooOooThe kit is presented in a freshly coloured, sturdy cardboard box measuring around 22.5 cm square x 7 cm, which is cellophane-type wrapped.The aforementioned LEARNING BOOKLET, which measures around 18 cm square, is clearly laid out and includes the instructions on how to build the plastic-type house, as well as a number of activities on how plants use light/dark to grow the way they do.The activities are quite educational, explaining the various botany terms such as GEOTROPISM & the plant growth hormone AUXIN (image below refers).[20 images attached]

This ‘grow your own fairy garden’ and plant maze is a great idea, which doesn’t quite work perfectly in practice.The packaging makes much of the kit’s “STEM” learning credentials, and it definitely has a lot of educational potential, especially for children interested in plants and the natural world.The lengthy booklet backs up the educational angle with plenty of relevant information about botany and how things grow. So far, so good.The problems begin with the assembly of the house frame. I am reasonably handy but I found this assembly quite fiddly, and I had to draw on plenty of patience to get it made properly.You then assemble the maze, for the growing plant to navigate through. My co-testers aged 9 and 7 enjoyed this stage, and there was much debate and also cooperation in agreeing the final design.At this point I must mention that you need to provide your own soil and dried beans. I am sure there are good logistical and legal reasons why these are not bundled in with the kit.My final two review points are the negative ones. First, the house is very small, only 8 inches tall, so it’s not great for observing the plant’s progress in detail. Second, while this is not a simple toy, I did find it hard to keep up the enthusiasm for our new plant- the fun was really at the design and making changes.So, overall a well intentioned educational activity, just slightly flawed in execution due to the small size.

The kit isn't the completed kit (you need soil, seeds and water)but it great for helping parents and kids gets some at-home experiment in. Great for Homeschooling or those who aren't in school yet.

My daughter has really enjoyed doing this and checks on it daily to see the results.Very easy to use and looks great.