An illustrated retelling of the story of Diwali. A lesson about the phases of the moon that ends in an Oreo snack. A jigsaw puzzle featuring the animal kingdom in the middle of the jungle. These are just some of the reasons why we love Jack In The Box, a set of monthly subscription boxes containing activities for kids aged 5- to 10-years-old aimed at boosting their cognitive, motor, and speech and language skills.

The idea behind Jack In The Box is not new or unique; parents are inundated with activity boxes these days. But its kids activities and games are thoughtful, varied, clear and, above all, tons of fun. We explored four themes – Jungle Safari, Sparkling Diwali, Space Expedition, and Things That Go – and came away impressed with how much fun we had and how much we learned. We particularly loved the Space Expedition box, which comes with a board game, constellation connect-the-dots, and solar system wind chime.

Jack In The Box shows great attention to detail and does a great job explaining concepts and activities to kids in simple language. The Jungle Safari box contains an animal origami activity that introduces kids not only to tiger and pandas, but also to an interesting form or art. The card for this activity gives a concise explanation of the difference between endangered and extinct animals, using the Giant Panda and dinosaurs as examples. The Sparkling Diwali box includes a colourful and easy-to-understand holiday story complete with a maze (‘Help Lord Ram find Sita!’) at the end.

We can imagine kids having hours of fun with Jack In The Box, but we do have a caveat: The company advertises the activities for kids as “extremely easy for your child to understand and play without much parental guidance,” but we don’t 100% agree. Some of the kids activities (like the board game) are meant to be played with company, while others included sharp edges that might be dicey for younger kids, especially without supervision. You’ll want to sort through the box before handing it over to determine which activities your child can do alone and which ones can be a team effort.

You can order a Jack In The Box from their website or at various retail toy stores. Boxes start at Rs. 295 and can also be purchased as part of a subscription plan.