Turn simple materials into a character that could lead to endless adventures in storytelling.
MATERIALS
- Construction paper (variety of sizes and colors)
- One 5 x 7” piece of paper for each color: red, orange, yellow
- Glue stick
- Scissors
- Markers, color pencils, or crayons
TRY IT!
- Puppet Body. Draw a shape (organic or geometric) onto your piece of paper. Cut it out.
- Puppet Legs. Your fingers will become the puppet’s legs. Draw two circles at the bottom of your shape that your index and middle finger can fit through. Make sure to leave a quarter inch of space in between the circles. Cut out the circles and test them to see if your fingers fit through. If you need more room for your fingers, adjust the hole sizes with your scissors.
- Puppet Features. Determine what kind of features your puppet will have. What shapes will you use? Will it have eyes, a nose, ears, or arms? Use your construction paper to draw and cut these out. Arrange and glue them down.
- Test your puppet out. Put your fingers through the two holes and make your puppet come alive. Do you want to add any other details? Continue to add more features or accessories until you think your puppet is finished.
GUIDING QUESTIONS
- What kind of shapes did you use? What other shapes can you think of?
- What is your puppet’s name? Does it have friends or family?
- Where does your puppet live? What does it eat? How does it communicate?
LEARNING BEHIND THE PLAY
- Supports fine motor skills through drawing, cutting and gluing
- Supports creative decision making
- Supports imaginative play and storytelling
TAKE IT FURTHER
Create friends and family for your puppet. Introducing another puppet can inspire more complex storytelling in your child’s puppet play.
Make props for your puppet. What does it eat? How does it travel? Where does it live?
Make a puppet theatre. Create a frame from cardboard. Have your child present a puppet show. Write a script together inspired by the performance.
Try other puppet making techniques. Puppets exist all over the world. Do some research with your child to learn more about how people make and use puppets to tell stories.