Finger Puppets
This workshop is wonderful for all EARLY YEARS CHILDREN and has tremendous potential for both KEY STAGE 1 and KEY STAGE 2 pupils.
The FINGER PUPPETS are simple to construct, yet amazingly effective, and can cover any theme that you wish. With Reception and Year 1 I have had great fun helping them to make various MINI-BEASTS:- spiders, wasps, ants, snails, butterflies, dragonflies etc.
The older children can make Fairy Tale characters like Kings, Queens, Princesses, Witches, Dragons, or any animal, person or mythical beast that you wish. Great fun can be had in devising stories to act out with the puppets, which naturally leads to creating a coherent storyline, dialogue, settings, imaginary lands etc., depending on the class age and abilities. I did a group of 70 or so Year 1 children recently where they all worked together in the hall making their puppets.
We had lots of mums and dads in to help, but even so it was a very busy day. I lifted my head at one point, from busily assisting, to see a group of some ten children who had put two spare tables on their sides and using them as impromptu puppet theatres were having a wonderful time acting out stories with their puppets.
This reinforced my belief that children, given the resources and a certain amount of creative freedom, just naturally produce spontaneous theatre. Also, when they are behind a screen all inhibitions and shyness vanish as it is THE PUPPET that is doing the talking.
It’s a great self-confidence booster! The actual `making` teaches the requisite Design and Technology skills and as I bring every possible thing needed the children can let themselves go in a riot of creativity. The puppets are based on a short length of cardboard tube, a table tennis ball for the head, `wiggley eyes` and masses of `stuff` to complete the `beast` or character.
I provide EVERYTHING REQUIRED.
