The Life Lessons of a Live Event

Fraboom Expert Victoria

When a kid comes to our website, they can learn about almost anything. Space, dinosaurs, anatomy and history, but in the myriad of things to learn, it’s the unspoken lessons that really matter.

When I was in grade school I was home schooled and I learned all about Space, Dinosaurs and everything else, but I didn’t learn some of the things most kids pick up on the playground. I never really learned how to play kickball, or how to swear properly. I did however, learn the word "myriad", so you can guess that when I got to public school I was pretty much the Queen Bee.

Lessons I learned my first year in public school were things like how to lose gracefully and to volunteer my idea, because it feels really good if the group actually likes it. Some things are less fun to learn than others. The lessons that come from sticking your neck out, for instance. These lessons are important and unavoidable. While I wouldn’t say that we provide a lot of opportunities to fail at Fraboom, we do give plenty of chances to compete, imagine and aim really, really high.

Sometimes, you don’t win, your idea isn’t chosen, or you just don’t quite reach the heights you were hoping for. In Fraboom, that’s okay. We believe that teaching the proper way to “bounce back” from failure may be even more important than learning to succeed. After all, most people will fail at one time or another and reacting to failure the proper way may indeed play a major role in eventually succeeding.

We have three live event presenters who take this on really well; Ryan, Leslie, and Tasha. The rest of us are pretty neat too, but these three are excellent at finding opportunities for individual expression and sheer creativity, giving more chances to win, lose, and—most importantly—learn! Oh yeah... they can also rap with mad skills. Cool points to them.

What about you? What did you learn in elementary school that you still use today? Besides to be wary of any mass produced food with "surprise" in the title.

A Letter To Moms

Fraboom Expert Leslie

Dear Moms,
 
It is no longer May 12th. Mother’s Day has come and gone. That means once you cash in on that “Coupon for 15 minutes of Cleaning,” your momcation is over, right? Wrong. We strongly believe time for yourself can exist during the other 364 days of the year.

You’re ready to hear more, aren’t you?

We know you’re constantly racking your brain, trying to figure out arts and crafts that don’t require intense parental supervision or other kid’s activities that will allow you to take a deep breath, browse a magazine, or finally get around to the washing of your hair. But, we also know you care about what your kids are doing when you’re not watching. There are many games for children online and activities in this great, wide world that aren’t safe and don’t contribute to the ever-learning awesomeness that is your child.

That’s why we’d like to introduce you to our educational, fun, safe website and ultimately, contribute to your Post-Mother’s Day Me Time. For your kids, we recommend Train Your Brain, where they’ll be a contestant on a real LIVE educational game show. And for you, we recommend a cold glass of iced tea. Feet up. Drink it all in. You’re welcome.

Sincerely,

Your new best friend,

Fraboom.com

Fraboom Sneak Peak

Fraboom Expert Ryan

Pssst! You’re probably wondering why I’m whispering. I want to tell you about some top secret stuff we’re adding to the Fraboom Museum this year. Don’t tell anyone.

1. S.T.E.M. Content
S.T.E.M. is an educational initiative to expose kids to Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. We believe in this movement so much that we are creating videos, classes and games that will make our museum more STEM-friendly. Afterall... what’s a brain without a stem?

 
2. Fraboom Labs
One example of our STEM content can be found in our Fraboom Laboratory. Our staff scientists are working on a series of experiments and videos that will bring STEM concepts to life. The Fraboom Laboratories are located deep in the bowels of the Fraboom Museum and is staffed by a team of intense and dedicated (sometimes to a fault) scientists. This brilliant group is working diligently to bring the world of science to life for children around the world. Fraboom Labs! Bringing yesterday’s tomorrow to life today!

3. Brain Avatar
Every Fraboom member will soon have the ability to build their own custom brain avatar Members will get to choose the way that their brain avatar looks, dresses and even talks! Your kid will also have the ability to earn brain cells (Fraboom’s virtual curency) by playing the games for kids throughout the museum. Collect as many brain cells as you can and then spend them on all kinds of amazing educational stuff! For those of you that have always dreamed of having two brains... your dreams can finally come true thanks to Fraboom!

4. New Registration
Becoming a Fraboom Gold Member is about to become easier than ever! We’ve redesigned the entire registration process so it’s super easy to create a free account or become a Gold Member. The new process is not only user-friendly, but fun for all.  

5. New Exhibit
If you’ve explored our museum, you may have seen our existing exhibits: U.S. Presidents, Bugs, and Cartooning. We have plans to add many more and we are excited to announce that you will see at least one new exhibit this year. We aren’t ready to say exactly what it is because we love surprises. It’s like Christmas only without the eggnog and wrapping paper!

We are always looking to add new and cool content to the museum! Do you have any ideas for things that you would like to see us build at Fraboom? Leave a comment below with your idea.

Bugs Bugs Bugs... and your kids and learning!!

Fraboom Expert Victoria

Did you know that there are over 120,000 species of flies? No? Did you know that scorpions, moths, and crabs are all part of the same animal group? No? Did you know that spiders are not insects?! Actually, you probably did know that one. No matter, whatever you and your pupa already know about the incomparably large and intricate world of insects and bugs there’s still more to learn! The question is where does one go with their curious critter collector who keeps putting rolie polies on the breakfast counter? 

As a parent, I’m sure you don’t want to go just anywhere when it comes to your child’s quest for knowledge. When I was a young lass I loved biology. I had a book showing the stages of butterfly metamorphosis that I read through and through, my favorite Sesame Street cartoon was The Ladybugs Picnic, and I played a fly squashing PC game all the time. Looking back, I was happy with these things because of my truly undying love for all things animal. Honestly though, on a scale of 1 to Pathetic, the overall educational content of my entertainment landed somewhere around “Very Disappointing”. Do not be disheartened, there is a better tomorrow for your children!

Silly games and activities with bug pictures are fine, but you are the parent of a budding insect enthusiast and you know better than to settle for anything less than top notch learning, discovery, and good solid information. The question for you, the dedicated and discerning parent, is where on earth do I take these kids? It has to be someplace educational. It has to be engaging and keep their attention. They should also be able to interact and absorb the information. “Where is this magical place?” you ask.
 

Bugs Exhibit

"Let me answer your question with a question,” I say, (preferably with a pipe and smoking jacket), And that question is, "GUESS WHAT?! We totally have that.” I finish with a slightly arrogant sniff and puff on my pipe like the true hipster I am not.

The Fraboom Bugs Exhibit is fully stocked with games, activities, bugs, bugs, bugs, an interactive book that will blow your buggy mind, and—you guessed it—a LIVE CLASS! Bring your insect enthusiast to the Bugs class and let me and some of my Fraboom friends, like Fred Smertz, teach you all about the fantastic and often overlooked world of creepy-crawlies.

In all seriousness, the information hidden in every nook and cranny of the Bugs exhibit is expansive enough for your pint-sized entomologist to sink their pincers into. At the same time it is presented in a way that is accessible and fun for the mildly curious as well. So, come on down! Learn some stuff! Make memories! Last but not least, we apologize in advance for Fred. He’s...well... you’ll see soon enough.

Here are 10 easy ways that you, a parent, can help your child develop a great sense of humor.

Fraboom Expert Ryan

1. Be intentional about developing your own sense of humor. Start by making sure that you intentionally treat yourself to a good helping of laughter by spending time with your funny friends more often or by watching some good comedies. Surround yourself with funny moments and
enjoy them all.

2. Don’t take yourself too seriously. Make
jokes about the annoying things in life so that your kids can see you handling a negative situation in a positive way. Poke fun at yourself and be willing to let your children know that it’s okay to be the butt of a joke once in awhile.

3. Do your part to shape your child’s sense of humor. Use real people in their lives to discuss how different folks have different jokes. Humor can be very different. Different laughs are for
different folks. Is your child a slap-stick, prat fall, bodily function guy or gal? If not, maybe dry witty humor or puns are their kind of thing? Help your child find the right kind of humor for their
personality. See number 6!

4. Celebrate the jokes they tell. Let your child know when they are funny. Don’t be afraid to say...”Good one!” once in awhile. If you’re trying to get your child to use their humor more than perhaps challenge them to try and make mom or dad laugh five times a day. Winner buys ice cream!

5. Expose your kids to comedic media. Put a family comedy like Finding Nemo, Big Fat Liar or The Muppets into your NetFlix queue so you can all laugh together.

6. Learn what makes your child laugh. One of my favorite children’s activities is trying different styles of humor to find out which one gets them to laugh. Usually they laugh the most when I accidentally hurt myself. Once you learn what tickles their funny bone, look for examples of this kind of humor and expose them to it on a regular basis.

7. Take the time to interpret your humor to your kids. When they don’t get it you can teach them why you laughed to teach them something new about you and about culture. If your child doesn’t get it... help them understand. Once they get the joke, who knows where it may lead?

8. Create an environment where failure is safe. If you take a risk and accidentally tell a stereotypical, flopping dad-joke they will feel comfortable to step out on a limb more often.
Not every joke is a home run... even Seinfeld flopped now and again. It’s okay to lay an egg... it’s even MORE okay when mom and dad show it’s OK.

9. Get goofy. Use some scotch tape to make your face look like a weird monster. Dad, wear a dress. Mom leave your hair in curlers and make your lipstick a lot wider than usual. Don’t be afraid to look silly. Silly is contagious.

10. Set expectations about what you deem to be inappropriate. Farts may be funny for some families and not so funny for others. Make sure your children know the clear guidelines for what your family considers appropriate, what is fair game for content and what locations are off limits. Setting clear expectations will ensure that funny doesn’t become tragedy. We’re sure that your pastor, their teacher and the family doctor will all appreciate clear expectations.