Mischievous monkey walks on the wild side

There's a great new interactive bongo exhibit at the children's museum. You can just picture your kids thumping their fingers to their hearts' content. But when it's time to go, your children don't want to leave their favorite fort in the basement. How can you help them step out of their comfort zone to drum up new kinds of fun?

The film Curious George can help spark an adventurous spirit in your kids. After the movie, use our Talk Together section to tap into their imaginations. Then do our family activity, “Go Bananas,” to bring the lesson to life!

The movie, now on home video, features the infamous inquisitive monkey Curious George at his home in the African jungle, where he constantly stirs up trouble.

Worlds apart is Ted (voice of Will Ferrell), a conservative curator who must locate the Lost Shrine of Zagawa to save his fledgling museum from becoming a high-priced parking lot. During Ted's travels to Africa he encounters George, who thinks Ted's yellow hat is a banana and tries to eat it.

Ted discovers the Shrine and takes it back to America —along with George, to his landlord's dismay. Ted, who rarely steps outside his comfort zone, is frustrated as George's mischievous ways put his job in jeopardy.

As Ted learns to love his rascally new pet, can he learn to love life's adventures as well?

Talk Together

Let your kids' imaginations run wild so you can help them have exciting escapades!

Ask your kids to gather their five favorite books. Look through the stories and talk about the exciting things they like—from train rides and life under the sea to faraway castles and funny animals.

Is there any way you can draw elements from these stories into your everyday lives to make a typical day more delightful? If your child loves racecars, call your pancakes “Speedy Wheel Pancakes.” Or if she is intrigued with the Outback, visit the new wallaby exhibit at the zoo.

With a little extra effort and imagination, your kids can ditch the doldrums and learn to love new adventures.

Play Together: Go Bananas

You'll go ape for this a-peeling adventure!

You will need:
• Banana
• Marker
• Camera
• Photo album

Go Bananas can help your kids capture life's exciting moments as they seize new and wonderful opportunities.

If you're about to embark on a new adventure, buy a banana to take with you. (It's best to buy the banana as close to the event as possible.) Help your kids draw a face on the banana that best expresses their feelings about the event.

Take a photo of the banana at the adventure—whether it's a fearful banana on a plane flight or an exuberant banana on the Ferris wheel. Put the photos in an album where your kids can look back on all their adventures.

They will learn—just like Ted learned from Curious George—that life can be more fun when you monkey around with new adventures.