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Kentucky Kids on the Block can provide your troupe with new puppets while updating the look and style. We have maintained the integrity of the original characters while giving them:
If your Kids on the Block troupe needs updated puppets, please contact Amanda Guerra at 270-842-2259 or [email protected].
(in the Higgins Center for Nonprofits)
958 Collett Avenue Suite 100
Bowling Green, KY 42101
Phone: 270-842-2259
Mon – Fri: 8am – 4:30pm
Website created by Sublime Media Group
Choose any 2 of the following topics to make 1 program
Duration: 40 minutes total for 2 programs.
Age Appropriate: 2nd – 6th grade
Characters: Anna Perry, Brenda Dubrowski
Anna and Brenda go to the library to work on a report. Anna, who has ADHD, keeps getting distracted and is very loud. The librarian gets onto the girls for being too loud. Anna reveals to Brenda that she has ADHD, and she talks about some things that she does to help herself focus. This program also includes a time for questions from the audience.
Characters: Mark Riley, Melody James
Age Appropriate: K-6th grade
Melody meets Mark for the first time and assumes that because he is in a wheelchair, he must be sick. Mark explains that he has CP but can still do lots of things that other kids do, such as swim, ride a horse, and play basketball. This program also includes a time for questions from the audience.
Characters: Ellen Jane Peterson, Brenda Dubrowski and Muffy
Age Appropriate: 2nd-6th grade
Brenda arrives at the vet’s office to pick up her dog Muffy, where she meets Ellen Jane, who has Down Syndrome. Brenda is worried that Ellen Jane doesn’t know how to care for her dog, so Brenda tries to take over. Brenda learns that it is harder than it looks, so Ellen Jane teaches her the right way to care for Muffy. Brenda quickly learns that Ellen Jane is just like any other teenager, and can learn to do most things by herself. This program also includes a time for questions from the audience.
Characters: Valerie Perkins, Joanne Spinoza (K-6th)
Age Appropriate: K-6th grades
Joanne is practicing her cheer for tryouts when Valerie arrives to tryout too. Joanne is surprised that Valerie is trying out because Valerie has Spina Bifida, wears braces on her legs, and uses crutches to help her walk. After Valerie does her cheer for Joanne she realizes that Valerie’s cheer is really good. Both girls are called to tryout together, so they decide to use Valerie’s cheer. Valerie says, “There are some things that I can’t do, but there are TONS of things that I can do!” This program also includes a time for questions from the audience.
Characters: Mark Riley, Renaldo Rodriguez
Age Appropriate: K-6th grades
Mark, who has CP, is getting ready to go camping with all of his friends. Then Renaldo, who is blind, catches Mark reading a map. He is surprised to learn that all of his friends are going camping but he wasn’t invited. Mark explains that he and his friends didn’t think that a blind person could go camping. Mark is surprised to learn that Renaldo goes camping all the time. Mark and Renaldo discuss how they do things differently, but that is okay because everyone does things in different ways. This program also includes a time for questions from the audience.
Age Appropriate: 2nd-6th grade
Duration: 45 minutes
Characters: David Franklin, Eddy Franklin, Joanne Spinoza, and Jacob Philips
In part one of the program, Joanne spies on her new neighbors and really wants to meet David, because she thinks he is cute. She finally gets to meet him and learns that he has low functioning autism, which means that he can’t talk or do things for himself. David’s younger brother Eddy, helps Joanne learn more about autism. Eddy asks, “I guess David is not who you expected him to be?” Joanne answers, “There is one thing that Is exactly as I expected, I still think he is one handsome hunk.” In part two, Joanne learns that her new friend, Jacob has autism, but he is a lot different than David. He can talk and do most things himself. Jacob says, “If you have met one person with autism, you have met one person with autism. This means autism is different for everyone who has it.” This program also includes a time for questions from the audience.
Age Appropriate: 3rd-6th grade
Duration: 30 to 45 minutes
Characters: Melody James, Shaun James
Melody is stressed out because she has a soccer tournament, and ballet recital coming up. She also has a spelling test to study for. She is frantically running around trying to practice and study for all three at the same time. Her older brother, Shaun enters and is trying to make sense of what is going on. He sits down and talks to Melody about prioritizing the import things first, and working on one thing at a time. They then lead the audience through some exercises they can do when they feel stressed. They also talk about the importance in talking to a grownup, such as a parent or counselor, if you are having a hard time and nothing helps you feel better.
Age Appropriate: K – 6th grade
Duration: 30 minutes
Characters: Zach Jones, Jason Robinson (Opening dance by Christine Kontos)
Jason’s father has given him and his friend Zach an assignment, to come up with goals that will help them become more healthy. Zach sets really good goals that he can stick to for a long time. Jason on the other hand, has a huge list of over 40 goals that he will never be able to achieve. Jason says, “I will participate in and win a 26.2 mile marathon by the end of the month.” The audience is encouraged to help Jason make his goals more manageable. The audience will also help figure out healthy food options you can get when eating fast food, and things you can do besides play video games and watch TV.
Age Appropriate: 4th – 6th grade
Duration: 35 minutes
Characters: Jamie Higgins, Melody James
Age Appropriate: K – 2nd grade
Duration: 30 minutes
Characters: Steven Arthurs and Nam Nguyen
Age Appropriate: 3rd – 6th grade
Duration: 45 minutes
Characters: Steven Arthurs, Nam Nguyen, and Joanna Spinoza
Age Appropriate: 3rd-6th grade
Duration: 30 minutes
Characters: Christine Kontos and Jason Robinson
Christine and her friend Jason are doing the dishes at her father’s restaurant. Jason notices that Christine isn’t her usual self. Christine reveals that she has been feeling down about how she looks, and she wishes she could be someone else. Jason points out all the good things about Christine, and helps her realize the way a person looks isn’t important, that it’s what’s on the inside that really matters. Jason encourages the audience to give Christine suggestions on what she can do when she feels down.
Age Appropriate: 3rd – 6th Grade
Duration: 30 Minutes
Characters: Claire Sanchez, Jamie Higgins and Eddy Franklin
Jamie discovers a mean post about her online. Tons of her classmates are making mean comments, and Jamie feels overwhelmed. Claire and Eddy put on their detective hats, and figure out who made the mean post. Once they have all the information they need, they help Jamie take control of the situation. With help from the audience, we figure out what to do if we’re being cyberbullied, as well as ways to prevent it in the future.
Age Appropriate: 4th – 6th grade
Duration: 45 minutes
Characters: Eric Van Aart, Paul Worthington, Joanne Spinoza, Valerie Perkins
This program features Eric Van Aart. The curriculum explains the harmful effects of drugs and alcohol on the brain and body. Eric says, “It was really hard for me not to do something that all my friends were doing.” The program teaches children about peer pressure and how to prepare themselves to stand up for their beliefs and say NO to drugs. Eric also talks about his experience in rehab and how it helped him turn his life around.
Age Appropriate: 2nd-6th grade
Duration: 30 minutes
Characters: Eric Van Aart and Joanne Spinoza
Eric goes to the mall, where he will drop off the poster he made for the “smoke free campaign.” He runs into his friend Joanne at the mall. Eric shows her his poster of lungs that have been breathing clean air, and he explains to her what smoking can do to your body. The two also talk about the effects of chewing tobacco, and lightly cover vaping. Joanne asks the audience questions to see what they learned from Eric, and then Eric takes questions from the audience.
Age Appropriate: K – 3rd grade
Duration: 30 minutes
Characters: Melody James, Brenda Dubrowski, Shaun James
Brenda and Melody bought a movie together and then get into an argument about who will keep the movie after they’ve watched it. Brenda gets mad and leaves. Melody’s older brother, Shaun comes in and has a talk with Melody. Shaun explains that everyone gets mad and has arguments sometimes, but it’s important to listen to each other and work it out. Brenda comes back, and with help from the audience, Melody and Brenda resolve their problem.
Age Appropriate: K – 6th grade
Duration: 30 minutes
Characters: Melody James, Brenda Dubrowski, Mark Riley
Melody is trying to figure out how to do a report on bike safety. She has her helmet and is substituting her bike with a broom, since her bike is in the shop for repair. Brenda enters and thinks Melody is trying to be a witch on a broomstick. Once Melody explains what is going on, Brenda gives Melody a hard time about wearing a helmet because she thinks helmets are only for little kids. Brenda leaves laughing at the helmet. When Mark arrives, Melody does her report for him. Unknown to Melody, Brenda has been listening to Melody give her speech the whole time. Brenda is inspired by Melody’s report and returns with her own “designer helmet with pretty pink bows.” Brenda apologizes for teasing Melody. Melody asks the audience questions to see what they learned from her report.
Age Appropriate: K – 6th grade
Duration: 30 minutes
Characters: Eddy Franklin, Claire Sanchez, and Melody James
Eddy is being bullied at school and is upset about it. Claire talks about how she had a group of girls who bullied her when she was in the 5th grade. She talks to Eddy about what he can do to put a stop to the bullying. Claire tells Eddy he should talk to a grownup, stand up to the bully, and try to avoid the bully without using violence to solve the problem. She asks the audience what Eddy can do to stop the bullying and takes any questions from the audience.
Age Appropriate: K – 6th grade
Duration: 30 minutes
Characters: Renaldo Rodriguez, Melody James, Joanne Spinoza, and Mom
Renaldo and Melody are supposed to be at his grandmother’s house playing, but they decide to stay at his house instead. They are playing army when they get hungry. Renaldo decides to make popcorn on the stove with no grownup around. He puts oil in the pan and turns the stove on. Renaldo starts playing and forgets about the stove. The oil causes a fire in the pan. Melody is able to put out the fire by putting the lid on the pan and turning off the stove. Renaldo’s mom arrives and has Renaldo go over fire safety tips with the audience. Joanne announces it is important to have fire drills at home. Melody and Renaldo act out what a fire drill might look like at home.
Age Appropriate: K – 6th grade
Duration: 15 minutes (30 minutes when presented with First Aid)
Characters: Nam Nguyen, Brenda Dubrowski, and Duck
Nam is trying out his new telescope, when he stumbles upon a duck swimming in a pond. Nam’s hot so he decides to join the duck in the pond. When he gets into the water, the mud causes him to lose his footing. Nam panics while struggling in the water. Luckily, Brenda comes along and reaches a stick out to him to save him from drowning. This program is normally performed with First Aid or another safety program.
Age Appropriate: K – 6th grade
Duration: 15 minutes (30 minutes when presented with Water Safety)
Characters: Melody James, Joanne Spinoza, Mom and Paramedic
Joanne tells Melody about their friend’s mom having twins. Melody wants to help out so she looks for a gift. She finds some toy blocks in the top of a closet. She stands on some books to reach them, but falls and badly cuts her leg. Joanne is really upset when she sees the cut and starts panicking. Melody reminds her to be calm and get a blanket or towel to apply pressure to the cut. Joanne then calls 911 for help. Mom and a paramedic come to the rescue. This program is normally performed with Water Safety or another safety program.
Grant Professional / Development Assistant
I started working at Kids on the Block as a Development Intern January of 2021. As I was finishing my Bachelors of Arts in Theatre, I fell in love with the puppets! I loved everything we were doing, especially our work in Child Abuse Prevention. Following my graduation from WKU, I was brought on as a Development Assistant and Grant Professional. It’s been an amazing adventure since!
When I’m not helping with the puppets, you might find me singing, reading, or geeking out over the latest theatre news. I also enjoy trying out new adventures with my husband, Reggie, our dog and two cats.
