Sago Mini Doctor is Open and Accepting New Patients
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This post includes affiliate links, if you click on them and purchase items I may earn a tiny commission at no cost to you. I purchased the Sago Mini Subscription Box (yearly) with my own money and this blog post is not sponsored by Sago Mini. Just wanted to share information about this Subscription Box with you all!
The Sago Mini yearly subscription has been one of the best investments I have ever made! My son, Oliver (age 4 and 10 months now – been subscribed since he was 3 years old) absolutely adores this box and when he sees it delivered he can’t wait to do the activities. It’s a unique box that rocked the activity box subscription world in 2020. It is not an art box, it’s not a science box, not a reading box, it’s a play pretend, imaginative adventure box with buildable (and recyclable) cardboard activities. Each month brings a different theme, some of our favorites included Fairy Tales, Superheroes, Big City and Space Explorer.
Each box contains a figurine of a Sago Mini Character dressed up for that box’s theme and each month the actual shipping box can be reassembled to be used as part of the project. Each box comes beautifully packaged with individual envelopes per project and awesomely wrapped extras. With plenty of eye candy to wow the little ones! What kid doesn’t love to rip packaging and unwrap presents?
This month’s box, “Doctor” came with three unique activities geared towards kids 3-5 years old.
Figurine: Nurse Sebastian
Sebastian is a Sloth and in this Sago Mini Box he transformed into Nurse Sebastian with a stethoscope to be the Kid Doctor’s helper.
Activity 1: Welcome to the Clinic
Typically the Sago Mini boxes are all-encompassing but this one does require taking care of a very important patient; the Kid Doctor’s favorite stuffed animal. Oliver wouldn’t give up his #1 pal but he was okay with his #2 pal, a little lion (who was a trooper getting checked up by Doctor Oliver). This activity, like all of them, included a letter from one of the Sago Mini characters as well as a cardboard stethoscope, a flyer showing basic “inside” and “outside” body parts, name tag stickers so your little doctor can play pretend, and the shipping box turned inside out and upside down to reveal the inside of a doctor’s office including a bed, letter chart and blood pressure monitor.
Pretend and imaginative play galore with this entire box! Activity 1 was a great way to practice writing Oliver’s name as well as drawing a self portrait on the “Doctor’s” name tag.
After I put the doctor’s office together the Lion was ready to meet the new doctor! With his stethoscope on and name tag attached, Doctor Oliver opened his practice! This activity really encouraged Oliver to gently check up on his patient, teaching gentleness and empathy. He listened to the Lion’s heart, checked for a head ache and upset tummy and came up with a remedy: MORE HUGS!
We also listened to each other’s hearts and made “lub-dub” heartbeat sounds as we listened. We brushed on learning the body parts as Oliver knows most of them by now but the chart, for younger kids, would be a teaching moment. Of course, Nurse Sebastian was by his side the entire time.
We have been Sago Mini Box subscribers for almost 2 years now and this theme was not one of our favorites, it was still fun but there are definitely ones that Oliver liked much better. We had a tough time playing at length and imagining scenarios at the doctors office so the fun was short lived. But each kid (and each parent/caregiver) is different. Oliver gave this Activity a “Boring” rating and he was ready to move on to Activity 2.
Sidenote: Even though it was a “Boring” rating there were nice “awww” moments and many smiles so don’t let that deter you from giving Sago Mini a try!
Activity 2: Doc Checkup
Drumroll please…we are ready for our first checkup by Oliver M.D. First things first, Oliver had to check-in the patient by filling out the Patient Info card. What’s really cool about this is that it is laminated so you can use a dry erase markers (we LOVE these Fine Point Dry Erase Markers from Amazon) to fill out the card again and again for different patients with different ailments. This is a great time for your little one to practice writing and learn to spell the different names that their patients may have. As well as practice writing their numbers and learn about valid ages, height and weight metrics.
There is also a section on “Feelings” which is an amazing learning opportunity to help your little one understand facial expressions. Lastly, the Symptoms section can be used to learn about different types of “hurt” and can open up discussion about when the child last had a tummy ache or the sniffles and how that made them feel or what can be done to help those ailments.
This second Activity really opened up many points of topic and discussion which, maybe wasn’t necessarily “fun”, but it was an important lesson that sometimes people feel bad, get hurt or need a doctor or medicine to make them feel better.
This activity also came with cardboard medical equipment to do checkups including a tongue depressor, thermometer, q-tip, reflex hammer, syringe, etc.
One of Oliver’s favorite tools was the measuring tape (he LOVES numbers). Oliver M.D. was able to diagnose using all these tools and then write out a Prescription for his patients. Oliver’s favorite “medicine” was “pet a puppy”, which was on the Prescription pad provided (along with many other options which was super cute).
This brought back memories of Oliver’s Well Child Checkups so we could talk about his doctors’ visits and have a nice dialogue about what happens at the doctor’s office.
To re-cap, the first activity was “BOOORING” and “BAH” this second one got a “Ding ding ding” ringing review. Now off to the 3rd and last activity!
Activity 3: X-Rays and Treatment
As you saw in the video, Oliver needed a potty break between the 2nd and 3rd Activity. I have spoken with other Mamas and they oftentimes tell me that their children lose interest in doing activities that come with monthly subscription activity boxes. Don’t be afraid to just let your little one stop at 1, 2 or 2.5 activities. No need to finish anything, no need to force them to finish a project / activity they do not show interest in. There’s always next month’s activity box that may spark their interest.
Oliver, like many 4 year olds, LOVES stickers (you should see his furniture / bed – COVERED with random stickers). The 3rd activity gives your little doctor the tools to make their patients feel better including a cast, bandages, medicine and customizable x-rays. It also included a lollipop as a reward for being a good patient!
The Giggles…
Every Sago Mini Box comes with a character figurine and that is always very exciting! Sometimes the characters repeat but they have outfits customized for that month’s theme. Creating a custom name tag was definitely a win-win moment. Pretending the heart made some silly sounds using the stethoscope was also a giggle-worthy moment. Practicing writing letters and numbers was a win for Mommy! Taking the patients temperature, administering shots, and writing the prescription was also a fun part for Oliver. And finally, perhaps the least educational but MOST fun was sticking ALL the band-aids all over our patient! Poor Lion must have had quite the fall on the playground. Thankfully hugs were in order to make him feel better.
The Pouts…
This box was one of our least favorite and Oliver did call it “Boring”. But if your little one is into pretending to heal patients or take care of patients like a Doctor, I imagine this would be a hit! It just didn’t have the replay value and engagement of previous Sago Mini Activity Boxes. Perhaps it would have been better if the patient was supplied by Sago Mini or if the thermometer could have a mechanism to change the temperature, the “cast” would have been a better fit and representation of the real thing, and the syringe would have a working plunger. Oliver always loves the part of the boxes where he gets to dress up we wished the doctor tools would also include a head-mirror, light, or surgical cap and/or a lab coat or apron.
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