Dinosaur dig kits: The best of 2022
Dinosaurs are an exciting topic for children. Many are amazed that these fantastic creatures even lived. And that scientists can discover so much about these terrible lizards. With dinosaur dig kits, you can be a scientist and discover a dinosaur of your own!
They make great activities at home, and are especially good on rainy days, when you can’t get outdoors. Most children are more than capable of completing a dig kit independently, without the help of mommy or daddy.
Here we will provide you with the best dinosaur dig kits, along with a buying guide. These should make finding the best ones for your needs easy.
Table of Contents
Best dinosaur dig kits: our picks
1. Smithsonian Diggin’ Up Dinosaurs T-Rex Plastic Skeleton Set
Up first, we’ve got the Diggin’ Up Dinosaurs T-Rex plastic skeleton set from Smithsonian – a dinosaur dig kit, perfect as a gift for any young dinosaur lover with ambitions to grow up to be a paleontologist. Smithsonian make loads of outstanding educational, dinosaur products for kids, many of which we’ve included in our other product reviews and buying guides, such as dinosaur charts and dinosaur Perler beads. This STEM kit offers plenty of fun and educational benefits for kids aged 8 years and up.
In the box, you’ll find a sand block with a T-Rex skeleton inside, a mallet, a dowel, a pair of safety goggles, a brush, and a color dinosaur poster complete with instructions for the kit. The skeleton figure will need to be assembled once each of the separate pieces has been excavated, essentially making this activity a 2-in-1 – part dinosaur dig kit, part dinosaur construction kit. Everything here is non-toxic and kid-safe, complying with or exceeding US toy safety standards.
All in all, you can’t go wrong with this kit – it’s affordable, in fact, it’s the cheapest kit on our list – and is from a brand well-known for the quality and educational benefit of its kits and other products. You also get things with this kit that you don’t get with others, notably the included safety goggles – something that most kits in this price range leave out, offering maximum protection for your little one. This kit also comes well-rating, with 642+ verified customer ratings giving this one an average of 4.5-stars – not bad, considering its incredibly low price of just $9.
Buy it: From $9, Amazon.com
2. Jurassic World Stem Playleontology Kit
This next pick is the first and only officially licensed Jurassic World dig kit on our list – making it the perfect choice for any young fans of the popular movie franchise – the Stem Playleontology Kit from Jurassic World Toys. Once the excavation part of this kid’s activity is complete, your little one will need to construct the T-Rex skeleton model, making this a 2-for-1 activity set that offers plenty of value for kids aged five years and up.
There’s an excavation kit in the box – which includes a brush, hammer, and shovel – along with a platform to build the skeleton figure and a plague packed full of educational T-Rex information and facts. As you’d expect with an officially licensed product, this one complies with all US toy safety standards and is made from 100% non-toxic, kid-safe materials.
This product is overall pretty good – it’s affordable, well-packaged, and from a reputable brand, giving you a safe, well-presented Jurassic World dig kit that will make the perfect inexpensive gift for your child or for that of a friend or loved one. As well as this, the product has scored an average 5-star rating from 378+ verified customer ratings, giving you some idea of the quality that this product has to offer.
Buy it: From $14, Amazon.com
3. 4M Dig A Dino Tyrannosaurus Rex
Next up, we’ve got the Dig a Dino Tyrannosaurus Rex dig kit from 4M, a kit that’s recommended for children aged eight years and up. 4M make all kinds of great educational products for kids, some of which – like the brand’s bathtub dinosaur stickers dinosaur bath toy set – have made it into our other buying guides and product reviews. This product is another excellent choice for anyone looking for an affordable gift for a young paleontology fan, offering an engaging, fun activity at a low price.
In the box, you’ll find a digging tool, a brush, a plaster block with an embedded T-Rex skeleton, a cardboard display platform complete with fun facts, and soft wax to help position the joins when constructing the dinosaur skeleton toy after excavating it. Like all those from the 4M brand, this product complies with or exceeds all domestic safety standards and is made from 100% kid-safe, non-toxic materials.
Overall, this dinosaur dig kit is a pretty good buy, being both affordable – at just $10 – and of the sort of quality you would expect from a relatively well-known STEM toy brand like 4M. What’s also good about these kits is that 4M offers a range of others – including a mammoth kit and their dig and glow series – all of which are worth looking for your next dig. This product is nicely presented, featuring high-quality packaging that makes it great as a gift. It also benefits from an average rating of 4.5-stars from 438+ customer reviews, making it a fairly well-rated pick.
Buy it: From $10, Amazon.com
4. VIBIRIT Dig Up Dinosaurs Skeleton Fossil Excavation Set
Our next pick is from brand VIBIRIT, and it’s the brand’s dinosaur T-Rex skeleton fossil excavation set. This kit is part of a broader range of excavation kits from VIBIRIT – a set which, in addition to this T-Rex kit, offers four others, including Brachiosaurus, Stegosaurus, and Triceratops, as well as a Mammoth excavation kit. This product is recommended for children aged three years and up, making it a simple, fun activity to enjoy with your little one without too much effort at home, on lazy days with not much else to do.
Inside the box, you’ll find a set of excavation tools – including a hammer, chisel, and brush – and an excavation block, in which you’ll find the pieces of the skeleton toy that you’ll need to construct once all the parts have been dugout. The skeleton toy inside this kit is well-made and durable, being made from BPA-free vinyl and non-toxic plasterboard, making this product 100% kid-friendly and safe, complying with US safety standards.
We like most about this product because there’s a much broader range of other kits from the same brand – something which could be perfect as an activity for dino-themed birthday parties or playdates. While this kit isn’t cheap – in fact, with a price tag of $17, it’s actually the most expensive on our list of picks – it is one of the best quality, being well-made and nicely presented, far more so than some of the cheaper alternatives. The kit also comes well-rated, scoring an average of 4.5-stars from some 729+ verified customer reviews.
Buy it: From $17, Amazon.com
5. XXTOYS Dinosaur Skeleton Dig Kit for Kids
Last but not least, we’ve got something a little different – a glow-in-the-dark dinosaur skeleton dig kit from XXTOYS, a brand that makes all kinds of dig and excavation kit toys. There are three options with this kit – either this one, which features a T-Rex skeleton – or either a Triceratops or Dilodocus model. Once complete, the model measures 7″ in length and glows in the dark – it looks great on a bookshelf or bedside table.
In the box, you’ll find the dinosaur fossil block, with skeleton parts buried inside, safety goggles, excavation tools – including a mallet, chisel, and brush – and an educational sheet packed full of fun facts and info on dinosaurs. This activity itself is easy, simple, and fun, with there being enough in this kit to keep your little ones entertained for several hours, whether digging out the skeleton pieces or putting them together afterward. Everything here is 100% kid-safe, made from non-toxic materials that comply with US toy safety standards.
Overall, suppose you’re looking for a simple, fun activity that offers plenty of educational and developmental benefits at a budget price. In that case, this glow-in-the-dark dinosaur dig kit could be worth a look. Offering a 2-in-1 experience – one part dig kit, the other construction toy – this $16 toy offers, without doubt, plenty of bang for your buck. This kit also benefits from an impressive 5-star customer rating – a rating aggregated from 16+ verified customer reviews.
Buy it: From $16, Amazon.com
Buying guide for dinosaur dig kits
Dinosaur dig kits are very popular with children that like hands-on experiences. Children often love these kits because, in the end, they have the reward of what they have found.
Dig kits are worth keeping on hand for birthday party gifts or special activities when the weather outside is blah.
Some of these dinosaur dig kits have dinosaur fossils in them. Others will contain dinosaur bones or fossils, such as a T-Rex or a Velociraptor, for you to assemble yourself. We have seen kits that contain the entire dinosaur or just the head. Some kits are dinosaur eggs that are cracked open, while others are a mud-brick.
Keep reading to learn how to pick the best dinosaur dig kits to brighten your child’s day.
Interest in history
When you purchase a dinosaur dig kit for your child, you spark their interest in history. Children learn all about prehistoric creatures that ruled the world long before humans were created.
By using a dinosaur dig kit, the child can learn a lot about different periods. This may allow a child to have a desire to learn more about the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods.
Some of these kids will also come with booklets that tell what each fossil is. This may further spark the child’s interest in the dinosaur.
Dinosaur types
A dinosaur dig kit can also help teach a child about the various types of dinosaurs. We all know about the basic ones, such as triceratops, brontosaurus, iguanodon, T-rex, pteranodon, apatosaurus, and the stegosaurus. So many children may not even realize how many more there are. They may become interested in learning about the flyers, such as Dimorphodon, Plesiosaurus, or Rhamphorhynchus. Or perhaps they will have a special interest in the dinosaurs with long necks, such as the sauropod.
Dividing the dinosaurs into types may also interest them in meat eaters, plant eaters, and those that ate both.
Problem-solving skills
A dinosaur dig kit will help a child use their problem-solving skills. Perhaps they are unsure about how to go about getting the fossil or bones out of the kit. They will need to think of a strategy to do this.
Individual play
Today it may be very hard for children to know how to play by themselves. Many kids go to daycare, preschool, or elementary school where they are surrounded by others. But if they are an only child at home, they may not have anyone to play with. This often means that their parents pick up the slack and sit with them all the time.
While this is OK sometimes, a child needs to learn how to play by themselves. With a dinosaur dig kit, a child can do just that.
Family team building
You can also purchase a few kits for family night. This is a great idea to make your family come closer. You may wish to have teams with this, or just complete the kits together. This is a fun time to talk and learn as well. Parents can ask questions, such as ‘what do you suppose we will find?” or “what do you think this dinosaur ate?”
Scientific tools
Many of the dinosaur dig kits will come with various tools. And if they do not, then you can purchase them to use with your kit. These tools will be great for a child to learn how to use. These tools include a chisel, a magnifying glass, a brush, or a pick.
Creativity
When children use dinosaur dig kits, they become paleontologists. This is a great learning experience for them and may get them interested in other digging kits.
Dinosaur Facts
- The Allosaurus has dozens of small sharp teeth and was a huge carnivore.
- Ankylosaurus was an armored lizard that ate plants.
- Dinosaur means terrible lizard.
- Every dinosaur watch hatched from an egg.
- The first dinosaur to be named was Megalosaurus.
- Most of the dinosaur’s brains were not very big.
- Some dinosaurs were smaller than a turkey.
- Dinosaurs were neither warm nor cold-blooded.
- Fossils of dinosaurs have been found on every continent.
- Sauroposeidon Proteles was the tallest dinosaur at 55 feet.
- The Spinosaurus was considered the most dangerous dinosaur.
- The largest dinosaurs, which included the Brachiosaurus and Apatosaurus, were actually herbivores or plant-eaters.
Final thoughts
We hope you have enjoyed our dinosaur dig kit review and buying guide. You will now have enough information to make an informed decision on what dinosaur dig kit to purchase.
A dinosaur dig kit can keep the kids entertained for hours. These dinosaur toys are perfect for birthday parties, holiday gifts, or just because. Kids can learn a lot when they play with a dig kit.
A dinosaur dig kit is a great addition to any child’s playroom. They are extremely fun and allow a child to experience what it is like to be a scientist.