New dinosaur-themed indoor playground, Disney+ animated series Baymax!, graphic novel

Make family time all the more special with these ideas and activities.

Play: New dinosaur-themed park at Marina Square

Ride on an animatronic pachyrhinosaurus, climb a Tree-cera-top treehouse playground and have a spinning good time on the Hatchling Eggs-plorer ride.

The new Roarrr! Dinosaur Adventure Park at Marina Square mall opened on July 1 and runs till Sept 25. It takes over the site of The World Of Nickelodeon Singapore, the previous themed pop-up playground.

Ticket prices start at $25 and are available on the Sistic website.

Choose from four sessions daily - 10am, 1.30pm, 4pm and 6.30pm. Kids 12 years old and below must be accompanied by an adult.

The company behind this dinosaur-themed park also operates Let's Play@D'Marquee, a pop-up indoor play area at Downtown East.

It has been extended till Aug 9 and has added new attractions: a choo choo train, six-seater virtual-reality ride and King Kong robots. You can enjoy longer playtime here now, from 100 to 150 minutes. Ticket prices start at $25 and can be booked here.

Watch: Disney+ animated series Baymax!

 

Baymax, the lovable character from the animated movie Big Hero 6 (2014), has his own show on Disney+ now. It is created by the same film-makers who won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature for it.

Titled Baymax!, the six-part series sees the inflatable robot hero going around to help others, from a 12-year-old girl who gets her period for the first time to an old woman with hip pain.

His goal is to heal their pain, both physical and emotional, and make them healthy.

Older children and parents will appreciate the heartwarming storylines and inspiring messages. But at just eight minutes an episode, the series is good for younger viewers too.

Read: Amazing Ash & Superhero Ah Ma

 

Two years after the first Amazing Ash & Superhero Ah Ma graphic novel was published, writer Melanie Lee and illustrator Arif Rafhan are back with its sequel, Coming Of Age.

Eleven-year-old Ash and her grandmother, both of whom have superpowers, are still going on rescue missions around their neighbourhood. But Ah Ma's memory is getting worse.

Through the comic, young readers are introduced to the topics of ageing and dementia although Lee did not write this series with the intention of imparting values.

"I just thought it would be a ball of fun writing a superhero comics series with a South-east Asian setting that kid readers here may get excited about," she tells The Straits Times. "However, as I did more research on dementia, I felt it was important to portray it as a condition that can be managed and integrated into everyday life. Ah Ma, despite having this condition, is a valuable individual with agency and strength."

She is working on the third and final instalment of the series, scheduled to be out next year-end.

Get a copy at $17.90 from its publisher Difference Engine's website and in selected bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia.

Kids can also learn more about caregiving and dementia-friendly spots around Singapore at this website.