CREST Star Kit Boxes for Engage community
The CREST Star Kit Boxes are designed to provide you with maximum support to run CREST Awards activities with your children, by including all the essential equipment and instructions you need. This support page includes digital copies of your resources, supporting slides that you can use with your class, as well as demo videos to give you tips and advice on how to run the activities.
Getting started
1. Receive
Receive your kit box in the post, delivered directly to your setting!
Open the box and read your welcome letter.
Ready...
2. Plan
Read the Organiser and Activity Cards provided in your kit box, and watch the demo videos below to see what is required for each challenge.
Plan when you will run the activities with your children.
Attend drop-in sessions to support your planning and delivery.
Set...
3. Run
Try to complete at least six of the activities in your kit box throughout the school year.
Perhaps you could encourage parents and carers to be part of the CREST activities?
Go!
4. Award
Reward children with their Star certificates!
You could organise an assembly or invite parents and carers (ordering more certificates in advance, if you need them).
Re-use your kit box next academic year, or pass it on to colleagues.
Reward & repeat
1. Receive
Receive your kit box in the post, delivered directly to your setting!
Open the box and read your welcome letter.
Ready...
2. Plan
Read the Organiser and Activity Cards provided in your kit box, and watch the demo videos below to see what is required for each challenge.
Plan when you will run the activities with your children.
Attend drop-in sessions to support your planning and delivery.
Set...
3. Run
Try to complete at least six of the activities in your kit box throughout the school year.
Perhaps you could encourage parents and carers to be part of the CREST activities?
Go!
4. Award
Reward children with their Star certificates!
You could organise an assembly or invite parents and carers (ordering more certificates in advance, if you need them).
Re-use your kit box next academic year, or pass it on to colleagues.
Reward & repeat
Demo videos
Animal Adventure
Be Seen Be Safe
Peggy Problem
Plant Detectives
Animal Adventure
Get children thinking about minibeasts and habitats. They will explore an outdoor area and go on a minibeast hunt!Be Seen Be Safe
Get children thinking about reflection and light. Test materials to see how reflective they are and how to be seen at night.Peggy Problem
Get children thinking about grip and strength. They will test different types of peg and see how strong they are.Plant Detectives
Get children thinking about where plants grow. They will investigate plants in their outdoor surroundings.
Sneaky Shadow
Sniffly Sneezes
Testing Timers
Useless Umbrella
Sneaky Shadow
Get children thinking about shadows. They will experiment with making shadows, then create their own shadow play!Sniffly Sneezes
Get children thinking about strength and absorbency. They will test materials to see which will make a good hankie.Testing Timers
Get children thinking about how sand timers work. They will observe real sand timers and then make their own!Useless Umbrella
Get children thinking about materials and their water resistance. They will test these to find which is best to repair an umbrella.
Supporting webinars
Pilot kick off
Support webinar 1
Support webinar 2
Support webinar 3
Pilot kick off
An introduction to the aims and timeline of the pilot project. Meet the new CREST Star characters and see what activities will be inside the kit box!Support webinar 1
Explore each of the eight activities included in the kit box in more detail, including the equipment provided and supporting materials.Support webinar 2
Consider how to use the new activity whiteboard slides with learners, and order more CREST certificates to re-use the box with another group of children.Support webinar 3
Watch this space!
Printed resources in your CREST Star Kit Box
Your CREST Star Kit Box comes equipped with a class set of CREST Passports, Activity and Organiser Cards for each of the eight challenges, and a welcome letter.
Additional copies can be printed from the links in the sections below.
Additional CREST certificates can be ordered on the CREST platform, so you can use the box with another class or year group.
Order more CREST certificates
Additional CREST certificates can be ordered on the CREST platform, so you can use the box with another class or year group.
Your Star resources
- Children can track their progress as they complete CREST challenges by using a Star passport. Once they have completed at least six activities they can be awarded a CREST Star certificate to recognise their achievement!#Star#Passport#Explore#Investigate
- This activity is designed to get children thinking about materials and their water resistance. Can they help Cosmic and Gem find something suitable to fix Aunt Stella's umbrella?#Star#Materials#Early years#Investigate
Evaluation of CREST Star Kit Box
We hope that you and your pupils will be the first of many to benefit from free CREST kit boxes.
Sharing your feedback will help the British Science Association tailor the product and support to best suit educators and young people most likely to be underrepresented in STEM, as well as gather evidence of the boxes’ benefits, with a view to providing more to other schools in the future. That's why, as a condition of receiving a free kit box, we ask that you complete a questionnaire about your CREST experience.
Please complete the questionnaire by {DATE}.
CREST Star Kit Box FAQs
Frequently-asked questions about the CREST Star Kit Boxes. For general information about the CREST Awards, visit the CREST Help Centre.
We recommend you complete at least six activities with your pupils in order to be able to award their certificates.
We hope that the equipment provided in your kit box will allow you to run the CREST activities with as little planning and preparation time as possible!
The equipment is designed to be used by children under adult supervision. Always carry out a full risk assessment when undertaking practical work, taking into account the needs of your individual children.
Some of the resources will be used for more than one activity. Where possible, we have provided enough sets of equipment for you to run the projects both with small groups or with a whole class. Two of the eight projects work best with small groups so, for these, we have supplied fewer sets of equipment that you can reuse.
As the activities are aimed at a range of ages and abilities, please use your professional judgement and feel free to adapt them for your children, giving them the opportunity to explore each project in a way that is accessible and appropriate for them.
See what's inside for each activity below.
Some kit boxes may contain additional general equipment like pencils, paper and scissors. If not, these items should be easily found in your setting!
Animal adventure (outdoor activity)
- Magnifying glasses - Collection scissors - Plastic tubs to observe minibeasts (we recommend that you do not make holes in the lids of your tubs but instead avoid keeping any minibeasts collected for extended periods of time) - Cloth bags (for children to carry the equipment outside) - An example petri dish – optional (a model to show what scientists might use to examine a sample)
Be seen be safe (best run in small groups)
- Large black tablecloth (to create a dark den to observe the materials) - Torches - Materials to test (e.g. black and white cotton t-shirts, coloured paper and foam, high-vis material)
Peggy problem (best run in small groups)
- Washing line - Coloured socks - Selection of pegs - Large pebbles - Sticky dots (use these to number the pebbles, then use the pebbles in the same order each time)
Plant detectives (outdoor activity)
- Magnifying glasses (shared with the Animal Adventure activity) - Sticky dots – optional (can be used for marking children’s findings on a map)
Sneaky shadow
- Torches (one is shared with the Be Safe Be Seen activity) - Cardboard frames, tracing paper, notched stands – these are used to make small, table-top shadow puppet theatres. Top tip: fold the notched stand in half to make a ‘V’ shape to give your theatre the best stability! - Chopsticks, black card and sticky tack to make shadow puppets - Translucent coloured paper – optional (can be used for further investigation – is it possible to make a coloured shadow?)
Sniffly sneezes
- Plastic trays - Beakers - Green paint – mix a small drop with water to make a coloured liquid, this makes it easier for children to see - Pipettes - Materials to test (e.g. paper, cotton wool, tissues, baking parchment)
Testing timers
- Real sand timers to demo – you may have some larger ones in your setting that the children are familiar with too! - Paper cups - Sticky tack (to place under the cups to make the holes safely) - Coloured sand - Your kit box may include some simple digital timers, or you can use a stopwatch on your whiteboard or a tablet for this activity.
Useless umbrella
- Plastic trays (shared with the Sniffly Sneezes activity) - Blue paint – mix a small drop with water to make a coloured liquid, this makes it easier for children to see - Pipettes (shared with the Sniffly Sneezes activity) - Paper towels for testing - Materials to test (e.g. sponge, wood, foil, cotton) - Mini umbrellas with small holes – optional (these can be used as a visual story prop when introducing the activity. You could also use them to model the flexibility and visual appeal of the materials being tested if children are considering the additional properties needed to successfully fix an umbrella)
We recommend you complete at least six of the activities in your box within the academic year, this way children will complete their CREST Awards and receive their certificates. You can however re-use the box for as long as you like.
The kit box contains enough certificates for 30 children. If you would like to use your kit box with more children or re-use it, you can order more certificates on the CREST platform.
Yes, the kit boxes are designed to be re-usable. To re-use your box, you may need to replace some consumables and you can order more certificates on the CREST platform.
The kit boxes are designed to help you support and engage young people most likely to be underrepresented in science/STEM. For this reason we recommend using the boxes with an entire class rather than in a STEM club.
We recommend you complete at least six activities with your pupils in order to be able to award their certificates.
We hope that the equipment provided in your kit box will allow you to run the CREST activities with as little planning and preparation time as possible!
The equipment is designed to be used by children under adult supervision. Always carry out a full risk assessment when undertaking practical work, taking into account the needs of your individual children.
Some of the resources will be used for more than one activity. Where possible, we have provided enough sets of equipment for you to run the projects both with small groups or with a whole class. Two of the eight projects work best with small groups so, for these, we have supplied fewer sets of equipment that you can reuse.
As the activities are aimed at a range of ages and abilities, please use your professional judgement and feel free to adapt them for your children, giving them the opportunity to explore each project in a way that is accessible and appropriate for them.
See what's inside for each activity below.
Some kit boxes may contain additional general equipment like pencils, paper and scissors. If not, these items should be easily found in your setting!
Animal adventure (outdoor activity)
- Magnifying glasses - Collection scissors - Plastic tubs to observe minibeasts (we recommend that you do not make holes in the lids of your tubs but instead avoid keeping any minibeasts collected for extended periods of time) - Cloth bags (for children to carry the equipment outside) - An example petri dish – optional (a model to show what scientists might use to examine a sample)
Be seen be safe (best run in small groups)
- Large black tablecloth (to create a dark den to observe the materials) - Torches - Materials to test (e.g. black and white cotton t-shirts, coloured paper and foam, high-vis material)
Peggy problem (best run in small groups)
- Washing line - Coloured socks - Selection of pegs - Large pebbles - Sticky dots (use these to number the pebbles, then use the pebbles in the same order each time)
Plant detectives (outdoor activity)
- Magnifying glasses (shared with the Animal Adventure activity) - Sticky dots – optional (can be used for marking children’s findings on a map)
Sneaky shadow
- Torches (one is shared with the Be Safe Be Seen activity) - Cardboard frames, tracing paper, notched stands – these are used to make small, table-top shadow puppet theatres. Top tip: fold the notched stand in half to make a ‘V’ shape to give your theatre the best stability! - Chopsticks, black card and sticky tack to make shadow puppets - Translucent coloured paper – optional (can be used for further investigation – is it possible to make a coloured shadow?)
Sniffly sneezes
- Plastic trays - Beakers - Green paint – mix a small drop with water to make a coloured liquid, this makes it easier for children to see - Pipettes - Materials to test (e.g. paper, cotton wool, tissues, baking parchment)
Testing timers
- Real sand timers to demo – you may have some larger ones in your setting that the children are familiar with too! - Paper cups - Sticky tack (to place under the cups to make the holes safely) - Coloured sand - Your kit box may include some simple digital timers, or you can use a stopwatch on your whiteboard or a tablet for this activity.
Useless umbrella
- Plastic trays (shared with the Sniffly Sneezes activity) - Blue paint – mix a small drop with water to make a coloured liquid, this makes it easier for children to see - Pipettes (shared with the Sniffly Sneezes activity) - Paper towels for testing - Materials to test (e.g. sponge, wood, foil, cotton) - Mini umbrellas with small holes – optional (these can be used as a visual story prop when introducing the activity. You could also use them to model the flexibility and visual appeal of the materials being tested if children are considering the additional properties needed to successfully fix an umbrella)
We recommend you complete at least six of the activities in your box within the academic year, this way children will complete their CREST Awards and receive their certificates. You can however re-use the box for as long as you like.
The kit box contains enough certificates for 30 children. If you would like to use your kit box with more children or re-use it, you can order more certificates on the CREST platform.
Yes, the kit boxes are designed to be re-usable. To re-use your box, you may need to replace some consumables and you can order more certificates on the CREST platform.
The kit boxes are designed to help you support and engage young people most likely to be underrepresented in science/STEM. For this reason we recommend using the boxes with an entire class rather than in a STEM club.
Involving families and carers
Share
Share photos of the children taking part in the activities in your newsletter, or on a photo sharing platform if you use one.
Share information about the kit boxes at parent coffee mornings.
Pass the activities on to outreach teams who might like to share them with families where children are currently unable to access/attend nursery or school.
Hands on help
Invite parents and carers into your setting to support running the projects, or to see the projects in action.
Send some of the activities or follow-on tasks home for families to try together.
Celebrate
Share
Share photos of the children taking part in the activities in your newsletter, or on a photo sharing platform if you use one.
Share information about the kit boxes at parent coffee mornings.
Pass the activities on to outreach teams who might like to share them with families where children are currently unable to access/attend nursery or school.
Hands on help
Invite parents and carers into your setting to support running the projects, or to see the projects in action.
Send some of the activities or follow-on tasks home for families to try together.
Celebrate
Invite parents and carers to a special celebration assembly or ceremony to watch the children receive their CREST certificates.
Taking CREST further
CREST early years
Children in early years might like to try our ‘Earth and Beyond’ challenge pack, which provides eight hands-on and exciting space-themed activities.
More Star resources
Our main Star collection is suitable for children aged 5-7, or those working at this level, and has lots more fun, practical STEM projects to explore.
You can re-use the magnifying glasses and cloth bags from the kit box for the Discovery Bag activity.
Additional support
Why not invite a STEM Ambassador to help deliver activities! STEM Ambassadors are volunteers who want to help inspire the next generation of young scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians.
CREST early years
Children in early years might like to try our ‘Earth and Beyond’ challenge pack, which provides eight hands-on and exciting space-themed activities.
More Star resources
Our main Star collection is suitable for children aged 5-7, or those working at this level, and has lots more fun, practical STEM projects to explore.
You can re-use the magnifying glasses and cloth bags from the kit box for the Discovery Bag activity.
Additional support
Why not invite a STEM Ambassador to help deliver activities! STEM Ambassadors are volunteers who want to help inspire the next generation of young scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians.
Supporters of the Engage Teacher Network
We thank our generous funders The Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, Horners' Education Charity, NCR Foundation, and Mewburn Ellis for making it possible to provide free kit boxes to schools in challenging circumstances.
