The usually quiet basement of the Flossmoor Library echoed with claps, stomps and a lot of singing thanks to a visit from the ScribbleMonster on July 11.
The ScribbleMonster led the children in a lively 45-minute performance of songs, stories and interactive games. The performance began with “Clap Your Hands,” a song to get the audience moving and ready to participate.
During the performance, Jim Dauge, the leader of ScribbleMonster, led the children in a “11th of July” march around the room, a follow-directions dance game, and read “Groovy Joe: Ice Cream and Dinosaurs.”
“It was such a fun group, and they were great because all of them were engaged the whole time,” Dauge said. “It makes it super fun for me.”
Dauge, a resident of Homewood for 36 years, became the ScribbleMonster 25 years ago after discovering a passion for creating engaging learning for children while he was in high school.
“I just am obsessive about trying to find ways to engage kids in play and especially within the arts so whether it be drawing or singing or just sharing ideas… hopefully they are encouraged to go off and make their own fun then,” Dauge said.
Since then, he’s performed solo as ScribbleJim and with a band at libraries, schools and festivals bringing joy and learning to kids across the Chicagoland area.
While Dauge enjoys traveling as the ScribbleMonster, his favorite place to perform is in his own community.
“I love, love, love playing, you know in my hometown area, like this was so much fun today. It’s a lot of fun for me because it is my community, and I can talk to them about things that are happening in our community,” Dauge said.
ScribbleMonster won’t be performing in the south suburbs for a while, but the closest performance near the Homewood-Flossmoor area will be at the Will County Fair in Peotone on Aug. 23.
Outside of local performances, ScribbleMonster’s games and songs can be found in two PBS shows, Wimee’s Words and Our Show Today which both feature interactive games and learning for children.
Wimee’s Words, which is written and produced by Dauge, follows Wimee the robot’s creative playtime with words and conversations. Past episodes of the show can be streamed on the PBS website.
Our Show Today is a new show that will create a live, interactive television experience for children and their families through games, music, stories and more. New episodes will air beginning Sept. 6 at 8 a.m. on ourshowtoday.com.
“[These shows are] just an extension of everything I’ve been doing for the last 25 years, so I’m super excited about that,” Dauge said.
Music, videos, coloring pages and more creations by ScribbleMonster can be found on scribblemonster.com.
