Educational Insights GeoSafari® AntZone Review and Giveaway

As many of you that have been following my blog for any amount of time knows my little man that we appropriately named “Bug” is well obsessed with bugs and all things creepy crawly and of course I love the fact that he is interested in nature and I do all I can to find him fun learning books and playthings that help teach him about bugs and other outdoor critters to help fuel his imagination and love of learning . So of course when I was contacted by Educational Insights about becoming one of their preferred bloggers, I was thrilled especially after looking over all the wonderful scientific games and activities they offer on their website, I knew it would be perfect for “Bug”! We immediately decided for our first review and giveaway for Educational Insights would be for the GeoSafari® AntZone, since it has to do with ants, I knew it would be a huge hit with “Bug”!

About Educational Insights (taken from website):

Based in Southern California, Educational Insights, is the manufacturer of playful products with serious educational value, including subject-specific classroom products, teacher resources, educational toys, and games. Our products are designed by seasoned educators and parents who know that, first and foremost, learning must be fun.

About the GeoSafari® AntZone (taken from the website):

Aspiring young entomologists will be captivated as they discover amazing 'ant-ics' in this unique, escape-proof habitat with high rounded walls that allow ants to freely roam. After easy assembly, students can watch ants lead each other to food, createnetworks of tunnels throughout the entire habitat, and work together to build and defend their colony. AntZone's snap-on lid with a built-in magnifier allows close-up views. In addition, students can conduct a variety of experiments described in the activity guide provided. Also included is a full-color 17" x 22" All About Ants classroom poster, dual magnifier, tweezers, water dropper, unique Sugarcement sand, tunnel starting tool, water dish, and certificate to obtain ants by mail ($2.00 fee required for shipping, handling, and insurance).

This product has won the following awards:

* The National Parenting Center Seal of Approval
* 1999 Parents' Choice -  Silver Award 1999

Our Thoughts:

Our or I should say “Bug’s” GeoSafari® AntZone arrived on our doorstep about a week after we had placed our order and I have to say this is the most excited I have seen “Bug” since Christmas morning! He immediately grabbed the box and was carrying it around the whole house showing everyone who wanted to see it and he immediately wanted to put it together and let the ants loose…only problem was we had to fill out the very simple ant certificate and mail it in along with two dollars for S&H. “Bug” was a little disappointed about not having the live ants in the box but it didn’t take him long to realize they would be here in a week or two once we mailed his certificate which we did that afternoon.

Once the ants arrived it was time to set up their habitat, now I would recommend like the directions say to prepare the habitat before the ants arrive to make sure they are immediately comfortable but due to a chain of events that kept us going our ants arrived much sooner than expected. Like I said above the directions were very easy to follow and set up took less than 15 minuets! Below is a few photos showing how easy the set up actually was:

Here “Bug” and I had laid out all the pieces of the habitat so that we could easily find the items we needed while putting it together.

After placing some of the sand around the sides of the plastic habitat I had “Bug” stir the sugar water mixture before we applied it with the dropper to the sand we had already placed in the habitat (quick note: be sure to save some of the sand to put on the top of the plastic before putting the ants in.)>

After making sure the sand was moist with the sugar water I let “Bug” place the tunnel starters along the sides of the habitat as he wished.

Next we took the habitat outside to let the sugar water mixture dry to give the ants easier access to create their own tunnels as well as give them nutrients.

Just had to include this photo! “Bug” really didn’t know what to think about the ants in their vial!

After the sand was dry we released the ants and “Bug” was so excited to watch them explore their new home.

Here is “Bug” GeoSafari® AntZone all set up in it’s permanent home on the fireplace.

I can say that we had such a great time setting up the AntZone and it was actually fun and we learned a lot about the ants from the colored ant poster that came with the AntZone. Just a little side note: be sure that you make sure that your ants have water at all times especially when they first arrive.

We have been enjoying our GeoSafari® AntZone now for about a week and much to my surprise we have only lost about 3 ants since they arrived and during shipment, these littler boogers are defiantly tough! We do have to water our ants daily and we have fed them a little each day, not a lot just a few crumbs and a slice of grape so far, but they are doing extremely well and it seems like every morning we wake up to a new set of tunnels. I’ve never been much on bugs and especially ants but I have to admit these little guys are really interesting to watch and well….I’m really amazed at how hard these guys work, I don’t think they ever slow down! “Bug” has already gotten hours of entertainment out of these guys as well he spends quite a bit of time sitting and watching them work, he has even started giving some of them names LOL!

Bottom Line:

As if you guys and gals didn’t already know…..the entire family gives the GeoSafari® AntZone we got from Educational Insights two thumbs way up! And of course this is no surprise either but we highly recommend this AntZone to anyone who enjoys watching nature work and learning about the critters that we co-exist with on a daily basis. These guys are not only educational but they are very fun to watch.

If you are looking for the perfect gift for the critter lover on your gift list, I would suggest picking up one of these amazing little habitats! Also, I have to say that I think every science class should have one of these guys to help the kiddos learn, while also having fun.

This really is a very fun family activity set that is sure to get the entire family involved!

Buy It:
To purchase the GeoSafari® AntZone mentioned above visit the Educational Insights website!

Win It:
Educational Insights has very kindly offered one of my awesome readers a GeoSafari® AntZone (ARV $24.99) so they can experience it’s awesomeness!

Mandatory Entry: Visit Educational Insights and tell me who you think would enjoy the GeoSafari® AntZone the most or another product you would love to have! Please remember to leave your e-mail address if it’s not visible in your profile.

Want or need extra entries? Check out how to grab em’ below! (Mandatory Entry must be complete for these to count)

1. Become a public follower of my blog (2 extra)

2. Follow me on twitter @sgrant2005 and tweet this giveaway (can be done daily)

3. Subscribe to my feed via a reader

4. Blog about this giveaway with a link to this post and to Educational Insights be sure to leave me a link (5 extra)

5. “Like” Educational Insights on Facebook

6. Follow Educational Insights on Twitter


Giveaway ends June 19, 2011 @ midnight CST. Winner will be chosen at random, using random.org and contacted by e-mail and has 48 hrs to respond before a new winner is chosen.

This review is based strictly my opinion. Others may have a different opinion with the product listed above. I did receive the GeoSafari® AntZone mentioned above complementary for this review. No monetary compensation was received.