Edutainment

ed·u·tain·ment

noun \ˌe-jə-ˈtān-mənt, ˌe-dyü-\

: entertainment (as by games, films, or shows) that is designed to be educational

  1. The act of learning through a medium that both educates and entertains.

Educational entertainment (also referred to by the portmanteau “edutainment”, which is education + entertainment) is any entertainment content that is designed to educate as well as to entertain. Content with a high degree of both educational and entertainment value is known as edutainment.

KAOTIC MYTHICALS brings a unique experience to faires & festivals. The activities have been selected, modified &/or created to have an educational impact within our theme. We are often the unofficial children’s activities area at events. We don’t just encourage imagination, we also inspire learning in math & science. Each activity we have has an educational element. With Roll The Stones is math, with Rub-A-Bug is natural science, our Petting Zoo is natural science, Mythical Mind is logic, Live Bugs is natural science, Celtic Explorers is geography & world history, our Escape Room is natural science, & our Hunker Hauser is physics. We bring science education to events under the guise of the Fae.

KAOTIC MYTHICALS catches the eyes of visitors as we are not what you are used to seeing in the mundane world by any means or in the realm of Renaissance & Celtic Faires. With our unique characters, we instantly engage the mind of fantasy & play, regardless of age. Within only a few steps on walkabout, we are continually entrapped in soul capturing devices (cameras) and often surrounded by visitors wanting to get up closer to us.  Being that we entertain the mind to wander in the realm of fantasy & mythology, we further that entertainment with our interactions and while we have acquired the attention through entertaining & playing games, we also stimulate the mind with education in 3 main areas:

ECOLOGY

Our main character, The Ent, reminds us all how important our resources on this planet need to be protected. As the protector of the forest, The Ent symbolizes respecting Mother Earth and ensuring we save our forests so future generations beyond will always have them. Our animal friends that live amongst the forest also need our protection. When The Ent is out on walkabout, he reminds children to do what they can to help protect the forest by reducing waste, re-using what can be and recycling to save our landfills. The Ent asks children to do their part by turning off the light switch when leaving the room, don’t leave the water running, and helping to find ways to reduce & recycle throughout their homes and schools. As a reminder and as a thank you to those that do promise to help save our planet, The Ent bestows upon them a small gift of a paper leaf.

MYTHOLOGY

When one of our mythological characters is out and about, he is often called by many a name that is not correct. We play a game with visitors young & old to help them with their mythology. Pan was not a satyr. Pan was a fawn.

What is half man & half goat? A Satyr.

What is half man & half horse? A Centaur.

What is half man & half bull? A Minotaur.

What is half man & half fish? Not a Mermaid, but a Merman.

ENTOMOLOGY 

Being creatures from the forest from far & away, we are friends with all creatures big & small. In our travels, we find many scared of those they do not understand. We also have found that small things in life are often missed or glanced over. As traveling companions, we bring along live insects for visitors to see, touch and learn about.

One of our troupe may be seen with a magnificent Giant Madagascar Hissing Cockroach on walkabouts. Many squirm; several have run away from such a harmless & stupendous specimen. Our troupe engages visitors to pet them to feel their exoskeleton and encourages them to open their hands and their minds to hold one. Did you know that scientists were confused for many years as they appear to give live birth, which no insect does?

At our pavilion area, we have  different species of insects & creepy crawlies in acrylic  for visitors to see and get more comfortable up close. 

We might also been bring live South American Cave Cockroaches.

We would like to acquire large millipedes again.

Natural History / Zoology 

Within our space at a festival or faire, we bring a collection of various real animal pelts and fur scraps. For many visitors we see in our space have never had the opportunity to see most of these animals in person, let alone on television. We have the visitors actually touch, feel & hold the fur scraps as they try to figure out what animal it came from. We give them clues to discover what animal the fur came from. Our collection of fur scraps includes rabbit, bison, skunk, raccoon, beaver, otter, coyote, wolf, fox, ferret, mink, pine marten, lamb, moose, badger, lion, and zebra to name a few of the 50+ species represented.  The excitement on a child’s face when they guess the animal is truly amazing.