Geo Journey

Geo Journey Review

By Emma, Thomas & Isabella (April 2018)

Up here in the sunny north we are always looking for fun, rainy day activities that will help keep the children entertained. I was therefore pleased to be asked to review the Space Journey subscription box, especially as my five-year-old son, Thomas, is somewhat of a space fan. Ask him what football team he supports and he wouldn’t have a clue. Ask him to name the planets of the solar system and he will happily reel them off in order and include an update on Pluto’s sorry status.

The package arrived quickly and safely via Royal Mail. This being the first package, the box was fairly large so wouldn’t fit through the letterbox. Thankfully, I was in to receive the package, but as it was Royal Mail, if I hadn’t been in, then I’m fairly confident I could have easily collected it from the sorting office. It’s worth noting that it is only the first package that is fairly large, subsequent packages will happily fit through most letterboxes.

What We Received

For the purpose of the review, I was sent both the initial welcome pack, and the first month’s activity pack together. The team at Geo Journey were also kind enough to include additional resources for Thomas’s two year old sister, Isabella.

The Welcome Pack – The Suitcase

We looked at the welcome pack first. Most of it came inside a sturdy looking mini suitcase with the space journey logo on it. My son was very impressed with the suitcase and immediately asked if he could use it for his trip to Centre Parcs next half term. Sadly, it’s not big enough for a week’s worth of clothes, but it is big enough to store all those knick-knack style toys that five year olds seem to accumulate.

You can use it to store all the activity packs you receive during your subscription, and then once you have finished it would make for a nice additional toy storage box. I liked the idea of having somewhere to store everything related to the service, as it’s easy to lose track of these sorts of things when faced with a sea of trading cards, party bag fillers, and the collection of recyclables brought home from school.

The Welcome Pack – Contents

Most of the contents of the welcome pack were stored inside the suitcase. The only exception was a large poster that came in a separate shiny silver envelope. The poster had all the planets of the solar system with a fact about each one. It was printed on good quality paper and was designed in way to appeal to children with fun characters mixed amongst the planets. My son loves posters, so this was a big hit.

Inside the suitcase we found a number of objects:

• Two “Astronaut In Training” wristbands
• A “Space Passport”
• Two copies of an activity booklet on the topic of “Earth”
• A boarding tag
• A sticker sheet
• Three earth themed postcards
• A mission log book
• A personalised letter

The wristbands were an instant hit, and both children insisted on wearing them immediately.

I thought the space passport was a nice edition. Each month you get a sticker sheet with a sticker to place in the passport to show which planet you have explored. The passport seemed to be made of good quality card and I liked how each page had various constellations on it, showing great attention to detail from the design team. The character cards were also a great addition.

The mission log book is similar to a scrap book. There is space for more of the stickers to go in, as well as the postcards, plus room for the child to make their own drawings and notes. Again, this seemed to be made from good quality paper, and each page had a different design. This is a wonderful way for your child to record their past adventures with Geo Journey and to remember what they saw in previous boxes.

The letter had been addressed to Thomas and Isabella, which was a lovely personal touch. The letter was from the two Space Journey characters, Atlas and Geo, and explained how they were going to start exploring space. It also contained information about the first planet, Earth, which could be used to complete the activity booklet. The activity booklet contained a quiz, word search, and other games that are similar to those we often find in my son’s favourite magazines.

The Monthly Pack – Mercury

In order to help us see how the service works, the team behind Space Journey also sent us the first monthly pack, in a shiny silver envelope. The pack focused on Mercury and contained another letter from Geo and Atlas with an update on their travels. It also contained another sheet of stickers, another activity booklet, some more postcards, a travel tag, and a souvenir. In this case, we received a pair of sunglasses as the sun is very close to the planet Mercury. The sunglasses were another instant hit.

The Activities

Thomas is currently in reception class and therefore needed my help with most of the activities. However, he was keen to try and read the letters himself, and this meant we were able to get in some reading practice without the need to persuade him to do so. He was very motivated to read the first couple of paragraphs, and then I read the rest to him. After, he was able to answer the quiz questions using the information from the letters. This was a great way of testing his reading and listening comprehension.

My son is not particularly keen on writing at the moment, but he was keen to do the rest of the activities in the booklet, and again, this meant that we were able to get in some sneaky writing practice. He loves word searches and maze puzzles, and because they were all focused on the space theme, he was really keen to complete all of the tasks. We probably spent about an hour in total doing to the activities from the welcome pack and the first monthly pack.

Thomas particularly liked the log book, and loved the idea of collecting bits each month to stick into it. He was also quite keen on the postcards, and wanted to take them to show his friends.

Overall Impressions

I was generally very impressed with the quality of the boxes. The suitcase in particular is very well made and will definitely be able to take a battering. It even passed Isabella’s “Can I Stand On It” test. The other items have been printed on high quality paper and the design has clearly been thoughtfully considered.

The contents definitely appealed strongly to my space loving son and I was really pleased with how it motivated him to practice his reading and writing. The box has been designed in conjunction with the national curriculum and so it was lovely to have something for Thomas to do that was both fun and educational. I also liked the personalised nature of the box, with the letters placed in envelopes that had been addressed by hand to Thomas and Isabella.

I have reviewed several similar boxes and what stood out with this service was how each box followed on from the last, rather than being a standalone item. I think this is a great way of keeping kids continually engaged in the idea and getting them keen to learn more. My son was particularly keen on completing the log book with all of the other planet details.

At just under £10 a month plus delivery, this subscription box is priced slightly more than most children’s craft based subscription boxes, but less than many other services aimed at children. In terms of value for money, I think it probably depends on what is important to you. The activities, stickers, and cards are similar to what you would find in a children’s magazine, and these tend to be priced at around £4-6. However, with those magazines, you don’t get the personalisation, the mini-suitcase, or the story to follow, as well as the convenience and excitement of having the package delivered each month. There is also the added benefit of having a fun, yet educational element and, for me, these additional factors justify the cost of the service.