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Ken Dumm Inner circle 1239 Posts |
Hey everyone. Just received "Kid Control" by Julian Franklin. It's a behavior management book for children entertainers. I picked it up on the positive review in Magic by Trixie Bond. I gotta tell you it's a great book. Just like Ken Weber's "Maxium Entertainment" from last year, it'll make you evaluate your kid show. It will help you with children misbehaving and make your show more enjoyable for kids and adults. I found it online at julian's site:
http://www.julianfranklin.com/ If you're a performer that ever has to encounter children, this is a must buy. Even if you don't do "kid shows", pick it up, it's got great insight into child psychology and the ability to control many distracting situations that arise when performing for families. Ken |
Ron Reid Inner circle Phoenix, Arizona 2732 Posts |
Thanks, Ken. I had seen this book, but wasn't sure if it was worth getting. I'll get it based on your recommendation.
Speaking of Maximum Entertainment, I'm currently reading through it a 3rd time; there is so much wonderful information in there. I think it's made me a better children's performer. Ron |
Michael238 Inner circle 1192 Posts |
Julian Franklin is a very good performer, and I have bought stuff from him. He knows his stuff.
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Ken Dumm Inner circle 1239 Posts |
Ron,
You won't be disappointed. Looking back at Julian's site, I had a little trouble finding the area on his site that contains the book. Here it is... http://julianfranklin.com/kidcontrol.htm This is definitely one of those books that you will return to and continue to absorb more info, just like Maximum Entertainment, as Ron mentioned above. Ken |
itsmagic Inner circle middle earth 1117 Posts |
Any more details would prove helpful. Like how specifically has it helped you?
Are the concepts practical or theories? Thanks. |
Ken Dumm Inner circle 1239 Posts |
The concepts are very practical. A full review of the book is in Marketplace of January Magic magazine.
Julian was a behavior management specialist in the Texas public schools. So he knows a lot about child psychology. In the book he covers: Why Children misbehave 8 distinct methods of directing behavior How to increase desired behaviors How to decrease negative behaviors How to deal with particularly difficult children Dealing with shy children Handling power struggles and a lot more. He writes from experience and has many funny anecdotes from his performance history. In the review from Trixie Bond in Magic, she ended the review with three simple words, "Buy the book" and I couldn't agree with her more. Ken |
ekins Special user Portland, Oregon 513 Posts |
I just finished reading this book and am surprised there hasn't been more discussion and comments in the Café regarding it. Unfortunately it’s probably because it doesn't contain any tricks.
This is an incredible book. I'm a magic hobbyist, but have been performing occasionally for about 30 years. I remember doing a birthday party when I was about 15 or 16 and all of the problems of attempting to manage that audience. It was a nightmare. Unfortunately I still run into some of the same problems now. What I liked most about this book is that it discusses specific problems and the appropriate solutions. Too often in theory books, there's too much theory and it's left to the reader to interpret it and figure out how to apply it in the real world. Not here. Julian first discusses a common problem you might encounter at a show. For example the constant comment from a child, "I know how that works". He then discusses the problem and solution at a theoretical level but finishes it with specific, practical examples. In these examples he is also able to cover most of the cases. It seems common where books will give an example problem (which can have varying levels of badness) and then provide a solution to the simplest of the problems. Julian provides example solutions from the easiest to the most difficult situations. I found a lot of the advice to not necessarily be common sense but once explained it makes sense. Julian has the educational and performing experience to present this as an expert. I also found his perspective on why he’s there to be very positive. It was also a bit humbling when he pointed out a few of my flaws in performing. It would have been nice to have a brief summary of the problems and techniques but now it's going to force me to read through the book a second time, this time with a highlighter and pencil in hand, and generate this summary myself. I'm sure I'll get more out of it that way. If you perform for kids, and who doesn't, you need this book. |
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