Out of the Box

Vivian is tending to some bean seeds that she planted last week which are beginning to grow into bean plants. They'll need soil, sunlight, water, and air. Vivian shows the kids how they can make newspaper trees. They play out their own version of 'Jack and the Beanstalk' in which the kids plant newspaper 'magic seed' that grows into a newspaper beanstalk. The friendly Giant learns what seeds need to grow.

The kids use their noses to sniff out where Tony is hiding some muffins he's made for them. They pretend to be different animals with different types of noses and make nose puppets out of paper cups which they use to play out their own version of 'Pinocchio.' Pinocchio, whose nose grows when he tells a lie, meets some animals and has a nose contest with them. He learns to be happy with the nose he has and all the great things it can do.

Vivian brings in her new pet mouse, Nugget, to meet everyone. Nugget accidentally gets loose in the box and hides. The kids jump into a picture, from Vivian's picture box, to ask a cool cat for some mouse finding tips. They make Nugget a little mouse house out of everyday objects and set out a mouse trail of mouse snacks for Nugget to follow. They play out their own version of "The Lion & the Mouse." Nugget returns and Vivian takes her home where she'll be safe in a proper mouse house.

Nicholas pulls around a make-shift toy decorated with eyes and a mouth. It's his 'practice pet' to help him decide what kind of pet he would like to get for his birthday. The kids try to help him choose by transforming themselves into different pets with the help of everyday articles from the costume box. Then, Vivian puts on all of the separate costumes to make one big fantasy combination pet - a 'kitty-parrot-bunny-dog.' They use this new pet to play out their own version of 'The Three Bill Goats Gruff' and learn that taking care of a pet is a big responsibility.

Dane brings in a toy boat which inspires the group to make their own little boat out of some corks and toothpicks. Vivian finds a picture of a ship's captain in her picture box and everyone jumps in for an adventure. The kids jump out and make a pretend ship that they all fit in. They play out their own version of "Captain Hook" in which they sail to a far away island to rescue him.

Jill's new toy airplane breaks its wing, and Vivian comes to the rescue with her glue bottle. While the glue dries, the kids make toy parachutes out of paper cups and tissue. They sing a parachute song and play out their own version of "Peter Pan", in which Peter forgets how to fly and is rescued by a friendly eagle and a passing airplane.