Little Builders, Big Adventures
"Raphael's Playground"
adventure book available on
Amazon!
Little Builders, Big Adventures
"Raphael's Playground"
adventure book available on
Amazon!
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"Raphael's Playground" series is about a bright, adventurous and creative little boy named Raphael whose grandparents built a wooden indoor playground for him. With the mention of a simple phrase, the playground comes to life as a friendly guide named Atlas, who transports Raphael and his favorite dinosaur, T-Rex, to exciting places worldwide. There they meet new friends and learn fun facts about famous buildings and other structures. Raphael and his new friends have lots of fun on the adventures because they enjoy “construction play” (expanding their creative abilities while playing with building blocks and other construction toys).
Throughout history, the world’s most famous structures are admired as amazing attractions and they represent the designer’s creativity. Children also demonstrate creativity in the way they play with objects, such as building blocks. Construction toys are a great way to spark creativity in children because they are naturally fascinated with anything new, odd, complex or huge. Learning about the design and construction of buildings and other structures yields may educational benefits. With a little imagination, there’s no limit to what they can achieve. A simple block-shaped structure today could lead to the construction of a magnificent monument in the future.
Inspired by a boy named Raphael, each story in this delightful series takes the concept of "construction play" to a new level—from playing with building blocks to learning how real structures are made. Raphael’s Playground series explores construction, architectural design and engineering as young readers go on an adventure and learn fascinating facts about the design of famous structures worldwide. With captivating storylines and creative illustrations, this series features a major league baseball stadium, a tower that leans, a suspension bridge, electric cars, a pet park, and more.
Lyrics written by Genia M. Owens
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Raphael (a.k.a. Raph) is an energetic little boy who is very caring and enjoys helping others. When he is not in school, he spends most of his time playing with his favorite toy dinosaur, T-Rex, in his indoor playground that his grandparents built for him. Raph's upbeat energy is demonstrated as he swings, climbs the playground rock wall and plays with building blocks every day. He is very meticulous, carefully arranging and connecting the blocks with great attention to detail. Other than building structures with blocks, his favorites are the color blue, all things dinosaurs, the number 45, and eating spaghetti. |
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Oli is a kind, warm-hearted, curious little boy who worries about everything. If something doesn’t seem right, he’s the first to investigate or ask questions. Being neat and organized is very important to him. That’s why his grandparents built a unique wooden toy box that has special compartments, doors and drawers so each toy can be stored in a special place. Though he appears to be somewhat shy, he has a very creative imagination, and is the only student in the first story of “Raphael’s Playground” series who asks about the talking T-Rex during the tour. Other than playing with building blocks, his favorites are the color green, collecting dinosaurs, and eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. |
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Ross is a very smart, creative little boy. His friends see him as a genius who is fascinated with baseball and stadiums. Unlike some children who dislike wearing glasses, Ross loves to wear them because he sees them as his superpower. His grandparents were so impressed with his creative abilities, that they built a custom play cabinet to display his creations. Though he is extremely intelligent, he is so down to earth that he makes everyone around him feel just as smart. Other than playing with building blocks, his favorites are the color combination of blue and brown, taking toys apart to see how they work, and eating crispy potato pancakes. Ross has a black labrador puppy named Bodie. |
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Pete is a cool kid who other children look up to and admire. He has such a positive outlook, and is more concerned with being a good friend rather than having lots of friends. In his backyard, he enjoys rolling in his wheelchair through a wooden obstacle course his grandfather built for him to stay active. It has special ramps and activities that are also fun for other children who stop by to visit. Though he enjoys high impact activities, he is basically laid back and motivated by his ability to overcome any obstacles he might face. Other than playing with building blocks, his favorites are the color yellow, shooting a basketball in a hoop, and eating pizza. Pete has a rabbit named Dexter. |
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Laura (a.k.a. Lark) is a very confident and outspoken little girl who lives in Vienna, Austria. She loves to voice her opinion with the intention to help others, but most of all to show off what she knows. She enjoys singing and dancing on the stage that her grandmother built for her in the playroom, and making stage props with building blocks. Other than playing with building blocks, her favorites are the color purple, playing with dolls, and eating tea cookies that she helps her mother bake. |
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Silvie is a creative, persistent, little girl who is confident, and has a very positive outlook. She is athletic and never shies away from a challenge. She lives in Puerto Rico and enjoys the warm, tropical climate for outdoor activities. Though she is the youngest with five siblings, she believes she can do anything she puts her mind to do. She enjoys playing with the wooden jungle gym her grandfather built for her, because she likes to climb. Other than playing with building blocks, her favorites are the colors red, blue and yellow, climbing just about anything above her height and eating yogurt snacks. Silvie has a friendly pitbull mix named Bella. |
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Darla is incredibly independent and an extremely compassionate little girl who won't hesitate to stand up for what's right. She and her parents live in Germany on a U.S. military base, where she was born. Darla enjoys tumbling, spinning and walking on the balance beam that her grandparents built for her while visiting one weekend. She is very active, creative and shows great potential of becoming a gymnast someday. Other than playing with building blocks that she stacks and leaps over before stepping onto the balance beam, she likes the color pink, painting pictures and eating fresh baked pretzels with dipping sauce. Darla has three cute little pomeranian dogs named Pixel, Lexie and Chanel. |
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Pria and her parents live in San Francisco, California. She is a kind little girl who is very optimistic, inquisitive and full of creative ideas. When her grandparents visited from Mumbai, they built a unique art easel so Pria could paint and draw the beautiful pictures that she enjoyed creating. Every year, her grandmother makes a doll dressed in authentic Indian attire to keep her connected and proud of her heritage. Other than playing with building blocks, her favorites are the color orange, drawing pictures and eating fried pastries stuffed with veggies and spices that her mother makes. Pria has two dogs named Lady and Tiny. |
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Cooper is Raphael's next-door neighbor. She is a very polite, studious and level-headed girl who would rather ask a million questions than forego the opportunity to learn something new. Her grandparents built a desk, customized to her favorite interests. One afternoon, she brings her dog, Elliot, to visit Raphael, and to her surprise Elliot comes to life on an adventure in the fourth story of “Raphel’s Playground” series. One additional note about Cooper; she has an identical twin sister named Claire. Other than playing with building blocks, Cooper's favorites are the color yellow, science and technology, and eating oatmeal raisin cookies. |
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Jack is Raphael's neighbor from across the street. He goes on an adventure with Raphael in the playground. Other than playing with building blocks, his favorites are the color light blue, playing chase, reading comic books and eating mac and cheese. |
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T-Rex is Raphael's favorite toy dinosaur and closest friend. He comes to life when he and Raphael are transported to different places to learn about famous buildings and other structures worldwide. T-Rex is not like any other Tyrannosaurus Rex. He is gentle, friendly and happy that he can talk. |
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Raphael's Playground (a.k.a. Atlas) is the indoor, wooden playspace that Raphael's grandparents built for him during the COVID-19 pandemic. This adorable structure offers fun activities and a special place where Rapheal likes to play with building blocks. It is also the gateway to exciting adventures where Raphael and his friends learn about famous buildings and other structures worldwide. |
Explore the "Cool Construction" of real buildings: Click links below.
Time Lapse: Wrigley Field Stadium Restoration
Constructing The Golden Gate Bridge
THE LEANING TOWER OF PISA! | Tour Inside This Engineering Marvel
Time Lapse: Building a House from Start to Finish
Learn and Laugh with Perkins Builder Brothers
Download Fun, Educational Activity Sheets and Coloring Pages.
Coloring Pages
Types of Building Blocks
(Blocks to stack, snap, or stick together)
Word Builder
(Build words with other words!)
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