Australians probably don't know what Mad Libs are, so here's the deal...
Mad Libs are a booklet of single page stories with fill in the blanks peppered throughout each story. When I was little, one person asked the other for the required words, giggling to themselves as they filled in the blanks with answers from their friend. The blanks are usually to be filled in with either a noun, adjective, or verb; occasionally they ask for a food, body part, or other random item. When the blanks were completed we would read the story aloud, it was always hysterical. Here's a example of what a Mad Lib looks like:
The teacher's name was Miss __________ (adjective). Some kids thought she was _________ (adjective), because she kept a/an ____________(noun) in her _________ (noun).These days, there is a page proceeding the story which looks like the following example (but longer) to be filled in:
adjective _______________
adjective _______________
noun _______________
The end result could sound something like this:
The teacher's name was Miss funny. Some kids thought she was hairy, because she kept a chair in her purse.
So whether you're an American who grew up with Mad Libs, or an Aussie who is saying to your self, "Self, I have no clue what Florida Girl is talkin' bout even after that lengthy, yet unimpressive explanation.", the bottom line, is Mad Libs are damn funny. And I think this video of my five year old doing Mad Libs for the first time hilarious, his laugh alone is worth watching, but then again-- he's my kid, I'm not at all objective.
It's totally unfortunate that you cannot buy Mad Libs in Australia.
And now after watching the video again, I have a feeling I may be the only person who thinks it's funny.
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26 comments:
I think we should have them! Loved the giggles.xx♥
They don't have Mad Libs here?? Between that and no Junie B Jones, Aussie kids are seriously missing out. Here's my funny mad libs story: When I was teaching 2 grade I often did Mad Libs with my class when we had an extra minute or two to kill. When I asked for a "body part" little Bobby raised his hand and answered "Ball Sack". I kid you not. LOL!
Mad Libs ROCK!!! You said it sista! I've always been a fan. When I first came to Australia and worked as a teacher, I had to write my own. The kids LOVED them.
Jenny-My Mom sent us some Junie B Jones and surprisingly, my husband is the one who laughs the most at the stories. We also love 'Fancy Nancy'.
Ive done them before! I used to do them online when i was younger... cant remember the website but im sure if u googled it u could find some :) so much fun!
i've just scrolled you're back posts and WHERE IS THE POST ABOUT A FARMER WANTS A WIFE???? excuse the yelling but i'm frantic here. you do realise it's started again? you do realise that as an american you must watch this prime piece of Australian umm culture? then post about it, then we can giggle and say which farmer is the cutest?!?! come on, i posted an entire season on my blog and you promised to watch it and become a fan like me! it's on mondays 8:30, i expect to see a post soon matey or i'll cry. lol, i probably won't, i'll just pout a bit. anyways, your kids are cute and sorry for yelling. still buds? :)
No madlibs?! That's rubbish!!
jpck- Total freakin' rubbish.
I can't imagine a life without Mad Libs. Your son totally rocked his performance, by the way. Maybe you should make up your own Mad Libs to pass out among your Aussie friends. And I definitely think "BALL SACK" should be one of the required words.
I had no idea Mad Libs weren't in Australia. I will have to ask my husband and see if he knows what they are. I guess I will add that to my niece's Christmas gift! She will love them. :) She loves Junie B. Jones (like Jenny mentioned), which I bring her from the States. I'm the coolest Aunt ever, by the way, since we got her a Billabong purse and Jonas Bros. hat last year for Christmas. :) SO much cheaper in the U.S.
Guess it depends who you hung out with. My wonderfully geeky friends use to do these when we were all in highschool together. I didn't know they were called Mad Libs, but they were silly all the same. :)
What is Junie B Jones?
Your son has an adorable hybrid American/Australian accent, I totally hear his Aussie-ness! So adorable! I love Mad Libs but I was always a very mature kid and would put anything involving bathroom humor in as my words. I would probably do the same if I got ahold of some Mad Libs at this age, too.
That IS funny! And cute! Oh I miss Mad Libs! They really rock!
I looked up madlibs online in my technology tutorial today and found heaps!
Was filling them out in class and having a little chuckle and ended up with a whole group of people around me telling me which words to use and laughing along at the stories... very popular!
I have heard of them before. I vaguely remember doing them at school or somewhere when I was young.
I loved watching this and I was SUPER SUPER impressed with his reading capabilities. He reads very well and fluently. Clever clever boy :-)
Here is an online sort of Mad Libs.
http://www.eduplace.com/tales/
Also, my hubby says they had something like mad libs that he remembers when was a kid. He's trying to remember what it was called. I'll let you know if he thinks of it. :)
I think your boys would dig Junie B. She is hilarious. It's a very popular with boys and girls.
I think it's pretty funny! And I dig his guitar shirt.
You are definitely not the only one who thinks that's funny. I was laughing my bajangles off. Madlibs rule.
Mad Magazine used to do excellent Mad Libs. They'd take a popular song, like the National Anthem, and provide a separate set of words for each blank, so that when you read it out loud, you'd laugh yourself silly. Awesome stuff.
Australia was a prison colony. Mad Libs were probably verboten, along with knives.
Rinniez- That sounds fun you crazy kids!
Traceyleigh- Yeah I'm pretty proud he's a little brainiac.
Mamabird- I'll check that out!
Jenny- I just got my Magic Tree House box set-- we'll try the Junie books next!
Freeman- Thanks!
Jill- He's pretty cute for a nephew huh?
Marvin- Mad Libs with song lyrics sounds great! I'll have to google that!
That's brilliant - your explanation, the words he used and the laugh! I never noticed they didn't have Mad Libs in Aus, I must remember to bring them back with me when we move back! What a great idea to do them with your kids - will definitely be doing that in a few years!
Taskers- That laugh just kills me, I want to eat him up. And now like a year or so later how did your un-expat-ing of moving from Australia back to the U.S. go? I'm going over to your blog to catch up now!
Kelli- At this point in our lives it's entertainment enough watching our kids do regular mad-libs, but in the future, should life get extremely boring and monotonous I'll definitely let you know if we need adult mad libs to spice things up! Ha, thanks for the offer mama.
Your kids are adorable! You just have no idea how much your blog makes my day! I LOVE reading it - you are a fabulous author - thank you!
Cherie- Thank you so much, that was incredibly nice for you to say!
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