Strawbees Crazy Scientist Builder Kit - 100 Straws and 808 Connectors Set, Educational & Creative Building Toy, Tinkering & STEM Learning, Suitable for Children 3 Years & Up

This was actually purchased for a school makerspace focusing on hands-on projects for students of a variety ages. This is why I really liked this as one of our options because it is definitely a scalable project. Younger kids can still have fun and build their own constructions at independent levels while we can have building challenges with the older classes. We definitely took inspiration from many of the challenge examples from strawbees themselves and other users worldwide.The older kids definitely have ambitious ideas for creations ranging from large polyhedrons, sharks, and are definitely interested in an egg drop construction challenge when school starts back up. While the price may be a little steep for an individual teacher an area or situation where the kits can be used by multiple grades would be an ideal solution. All in all this is a great option for STEM focused learning environments.

Plenty of material for a group of kids. The instructions are great in that they encourage experimenting.

 Strawbees is an "accidental" Swedish invention created from recyclables. They're a series of flat, plastic circles with 1, 2, 3 or 5 extending rays. They can be combined to form simple, yet inventive ways to connect straws and/or cardboard pieces for construction.The entire contents of the Strawbees kit can be neatly contained in the (included) canvas drawstring bag with the printed quote: "Dream Big, Build Bigger!" The kit contains a booklet (also found online) that will seem much too brief if you're looking for fun project ideas. Instead, the limited instruction appears to be consistent with a philosophy that emphasizes creative experimentation.The booklet shows you how to make secure connections with the Strawbees. Projects are then accompanied by easy-to-follow drawings of each design:-Pyramid-Arm-Cube-Catapult-Claw-Shoe-Merang (a cardboard boomerang made with 3 shoe shapes)There are also two building challenges at the end with a total of three questions.The Strawbees hold up well enough to be continually reused. I try to avoid cutting the straws that come with this set. Instead, I trim other straws I find to add to the kit...I use the straws I buy with our fast food and connect them with the Strawbees--a perfect fit! I appreciate that the standard 6mm straw size makes this type of recycling possible. Save enough straws to make larger structures, like huge domes. I found additional projects online (without instructions) like the swing model.Though you get a LOT of Strawbees in this kit, I learned that you can still use them as templates to make additional ones, if needed. This is a great way to recycle plastic (they appear similar to the plastic front cover of some spiral notebooks).With more straws, plastic scraps, a hole punch, scissors and a craft knife, you can expand your kit to accommodate even larger families/groups.Note: My kit came with two packs of blue straws. There's significantly more Strawbees, so an extra pack or two of straws would have been useful. Photos show straw projects illuminated by an LED strip light sitting alongside them.To see a few animated Strawbees projects, look up "Quirkbots" online. It's a compatible add-on that was also funded (like Strawbees) through Kickstarter.*Complimentary kit provided by Strawbees for testing and (unbiased) review.

ALL children are likely to enjoy using/playing with this kit HOWEVER the older/more creative ones in your family are likely to get the most out of it. BE WARNED - if you have a child who loves to follow instructions to build structures (think Lego or Knex), they are likely to be very disappointed with the booklet provided in this box. The company says that it is deliberately basic to allow the imagination to run wild BUT I personally think it is TOO basic. I would like to have seen instructions for more complicated structures included. On the back of the booklet it tells you to go to their website for more ideas but sadly that is still under construction so the "Play" page says "Coming soon".With that moan out of the way I do LOVE this kit especially the fact that you can use it with regular drinking straws. Two packets (100 straws - 50 in each pack) are provided in the box but you will soon realize that you need more. The flexible connectors bend easily and once a straw is placed on an end it does stay in place and you have to tug hard to take it off again. The straws provided are just under 9 1/2" long which means that the structures you make are VERY large. As you will see in one of my pictures, I cut some regular straws in half to make a "street lamp". I would like to see some shorter straws provided in the kit.Our kids (12, 9 and 6) enjoyed trying this out for the first time on a rainy afternoon and this is definitely a kit we will keep. All the connectors fit in a drawstring bag for storage which is great. The box is also a great place for dumping all the connectors when you are building. The connectors can also be used for joining cardboard together so when that big box comes, get out your connectors and let your child make something new. Depending on how you join the connectors they can be rigid or rotational providing even more flexibility.So would we recommend this? Yes! Although relatively expensive to purchase originally, with 808 connectors the chances of you EVER needing more of these is unlikely. Yes, the straws will split over time but to purchase replacement straws is SO cheap. This kit is one that is going to last for years. Product provided in exchange for an honest review. Thanks, Liz and crew

First impression: "I MUST HAVE THIS TOY" I saw their kickstarter video and instantly thought "This is the next generation of legos!" I am an educator who is always seeking new tools to use in the classroom. Strawbees has quickly become our first choice! What I love the most is their versatility. We have created bridges, catapults, houses, and even a dancing robot! Honestly, you can build everything from mathematical shapes to animated claws. If you are an educator, this is a must have!

I'm a Youth Services Librarian and I ordered Strawbees for Children's Program at my library and our young patrons loved playing and building with them!