Children’s Book Museum
Interactive exhibition ‘I am Frog’

How do you recreate the world of Max Velthuijs?


The Children’s Book Museum wants to bring the stories of famous (Dutch) writers and illustrators to life. Young children (and their parents) can xponjoy the adventures of Frog at this interactive exhibition long before they learn to read.

I am Frog
Step inside and imagine yourself in one of Max Velthuijs’s books: a soft, gentle word of trees, grass and water. Put on your red-white striped pants and go hammering with Rat, treasure hunting with Bear, pie baking with Pig, skating with Duck, reading with Hare and much more.


Great for development
The activities invite children to play with them in their own way and at their level of development. Crawling, eye-hand coordination, word games and other exercises help children apprehend novice reading skills. But above all the goal is to have fun while discovering the stories, portraying them and developing a rich imagination.

A getaway for young families
The exhibition is designed for children up to six years old, with relaxed seating areas for parents, an extra-soft baby trail and space to store your stroller. There really aren’t that many fun outings for children – a visit to the Children’s Book Museum is therefore a favourite among young families in the wider region.

Frog’s world has many cozy corners for kids while parents have a clear overview.

Physically acting out the stories from the books — that’s how frog becomes a hero. There’s nothing quite like it!.

Finding hidden treasures and hiding them again — the most simple activities are the start of the most imaginative play.

Construct a bench with Rat: saw the planks and nail them together… 

…and finish it off with a creative paint job. Excellent work!

Baking pies in Pig’s oven is already a favorite with toddlers.

Hare’s house is the ultimate place to read or listen to a great book.

Fishing is serious fun. Kids can reel in their catches, and then combine the letters on the fish to make short words.

Are you as scared as Frog’s friends in ‘Frog is frightened’?

‘Frog in winter’ becomes instantly real when you feel the cold wind blowing as you mount the skates. Slide around the pond on your socks as Duck encourages you.

 

The process


Teamwork
Our second successful exhibition at the Children’s Book Museum was a solid team performance. Together with the museum, Taken By Storm developed and came up with the concept and activities, which are based on the twelve original books by Max Velthuijs.

Our interactive games were tested by students of The Hague University and were realized by Kiss the Frog. We developed the spatial design in collaboration with Thisisjane. Taken By Storm created all the artwork and Kloosterboer Decor built everything.

Exhibition photography: Sarah Dona

Can you wrap your head around the fact that this is the same space, only months earlier?

We start by developing the activities and then we puzzle them into a coherent plan, moving, combining and adjusting as we go. After many iterations the final plan looked like this.

After the walls and doors come the defining elements on the floor.

The main parts are built by Kloosterboer in their gigantic workshop.

The development of the sandy hill where the treasure is buried.

Almost there!

When everything is complete, there are always details to be improved. We review with the whole team and come up with solutions to make every activity the best it can be.