Puppet Show teaches children to accept each other’s differences

The Kids On the Block return to the Fall River Public Library on Saturday, November 18 with an all new show featuring near kid-size puppets. Children will meet Mark Riley, an 11 year old boy with Cerebral Palsy. He can’t use his legs, but that doesn’t stop Mark. He loves the freedom his “cruiser” or wheelchair gives him and can even pop “wheelies” in it! Mark likes to try new things and always has a positive, optimistic outlook.

“I’m just a regular kid,” says Mark. “I like it when people treat me like one.” Meet Mark and his friends in this entertaining and informative show. The show is recommended for children ages 4 and up. More details can be found on the Event Page on Facebook.

About Kids on the Block:

Using the power of puppetry, our mission is to educate children about social concerns and differences, giving them the skills to stay safe and healthy.

Our Goals
– Encourage open communication
– Provide accurate information
– Encourage acceptance of physical, social and cultural differences
– Build self-esteem and empower action
– Keep children safe

Kids on the Block, Inc. is an award-winning international educational program created in 1977 by Barbara Aiello. It was originally created when “mainstreaming” children became a law. It was designed to help introduce children with special needs into school classrooms. The program uses child size puppets to carry out its mission.

The highly trained puppeteers use a form of puppetry called Bunraku. They are dressed in black and become shadows behind the puppet. The puppets have distinctive personalities and portray, through carefully scripted material, a world of real life situations. As our puppets come to life, children identify with them and open up to them as if they were trusted friends. Our hope is to prevent problems before they happen. We want to empower children, teaching them the skills to stay safe and healthy.

Kids on the Block, Inc. provides over 44 educational puppet programs addressing various disabilities, educational and medical differences, and social concerns. These programs are thoroughly researched and field-tested before they become available to schools, community service organization, hospitals and special interest groups. Currently, the “kids” are active in all fifty states and in more than 36 foreign countries.