People, animals, buildings, cars, stars, fishes - absolutely anything can be used as a theme for a puppet. If a child suggests an idea that you may not have thought of, go with it and let their imagination run wild. They might stretch yours! Below are some suggestions for small puppets that can be made largely from scrap materials in 30 minutes or less - ideal for a busy out-of-school club that doesn't want to commit itself to a long-term project.
Older children may want the artistic challenge of making more intricate string puppets so I have included a lovely wicked witch - and in April and May Out of School I will show you how to make puppets on a large scale as well as puppet theatres for all sizes of puppets.
Fingers, hands and feet
You will need:
* Face paints
* Make-up sponge
* Make-up brush
* Scraps of wool, threads, paper, card and fabric
The simplest puppet is probably a face painted on to a finger or fingernail. Face paints can also be used to paint other parts of the body such as knees, feet and hands and you can add mini clothes and wigs, or horns or teeth if it is an animal.
Finger puppets
You will need:
* Felt
* Needle and cotton
* Material scraps for decorating
* Card and paper
* Scissors
* Paints or felt tips for decorating
* Brushes
Finger puppets are very quick and easy to make. Cut two identical 'finger'
shapes out of felt (make sure they will fit around your finger) and sew the edges, leaving the bottom edge free to slip your finger in. Now decorate your finger puppet in whatever style you want.
You can also make card finger puppets where a finger or several fingers have a special significance. One finger could be a nose - you could grow a Pinocchio nose! Four fingers could represent the tentacles of an octopus. Simply cut out your puppet shape from card - for Pinocchio it could be a boy's face, for the octopus, the mollusc's body - and make a hole for the finger or fingers.
You may remember the TV programme 'Fingerbobs' where a mouse was created by a cone-shaped piece of paper placed on a finger. A tortoise was also created by a shell being painted on to card and then placed on top of a hand. Make the shell out of a circle of card about the size of your hand and then make six small cuts around the edge of the circle. Overlap the cuts slightly and glue together. This will make your circle into a bowl shape and you can decorate it. A piece of elastic or string large enough to fit over your hand can be attached inside the shell to secure it. Paint your fingers, one with a tortoise face, and place the tortoise shell on top of your hand.
Sock puppets
You will need:
* Socks - make sure they're clean!
* Cardboard
* Fabric
* Wool
* Buttons
* Glue
* Scissors
* Beads and sequins
You can make any character with just a sock and odds and ends. By preparing eyes and nose shapes beforehand and sticking or sewing Velcro to them, children can create puppets from any sock in a few minutes.
To make:
1 Cut out an oval of cardboard, no wider than the sock.
2 Fold the cardboard oval in half.
3 Turn the sock inside out and flatten it so that the toe seam runs from side to side.
4 Place some glue on the inside fold of the cardboard and press the sock into the fold. Leave the glue to dry for a short time and turn the sock right side out.
5 Pull the sock back over the cardboard. Your sock should now look as if it has a large mouth and nose.
6 Decorate your sock in the theme that you or the children want.
Stick puppets
You will need:
* Ice lolly or lollipop sticks (which can be bought at craft shops or educational suppliers) or strong straws
* Strong card
* Scissors
* Glue or sticky tape
* Paperclips
* Paints and brushes or felt tips
Cut out the shape of your puppet character from card - children are likely to be amused by a Smelly Skunk so I have chosen that! But it could be anything - colour and decorate the puppet and then fix it on to an ice lolly or lollipop stick.
To make a Smelly Skunk
1 Cut out the shape of the skunk's body (or creature of your choice).
2 Cut out the tail and head of the skunk.
3 Paint or decorate the head, body and tail and leave to dry. A skunk has strong black and white markings on its body.
4 Using the paper clips attach the tail and the head to the skunk's body.
5 Now glue the skunk to the ice lolly or lollipop stick.
6 If you glue a separate stick to the skunk's head and tail you will be able to move them.
String puppet
You will need:
* Newspaper
* Tights
* Clear tape and glue
* Scissors
* Black plain or crepe paper
* Black thin and thick cardboard
* 3ft (90cm) stiff wire
* Pliers
* Large needle and strong thread
* Cork
* Plastic bottle about 6in (15cm) high
* Skewer
Making a string puppet is more of a challenge but may be just the thing for older children to get their teeth into. A wicked witch is a colourful character to start with, so here are the instructions for that.
To make a Wicked Witch
1 Make a head out of newspaper balls inserted into the toe of an old pair of clean tights. Cut the leg and knot the loose ends. Pinch a nose from out of the head and wind strong thread around it. Make eyes from card and glue them on.
2 Measure around the witch's head and make a pointed witch's hat with a brim out of the thin black card.
3 Cut a small hole at the top of the hat and bottom of the bottle.
4 Make a witch's cloak by cutting a circle of black plain or crepe paper, long enough so that you will not see the bottom of the bottle when you centre the cloak over it. Cut a small hole in the centre of the cloak and place the hole over the top of the bottle.
5 For the arms cut out four rectangles 3 x 6in (8 x 15cm) in black thin card. Roll these into tubes of about 3/4in (1.5cm) wide and fix with glue. Press the ends flat.
6 Using paperclips join the joints at the elbow. Cut out some little hands and attach these with tape. One of the hands could be holding a little wand.
7 Attach each of the arms to each side of the bottle using clear tape. You will need to make a small incision through the paper cloak first.
8 Make a hole through the puppet head with the skewer. Poke up through the knot and come out at the top of the head.
9 Push the wire in the other direction right through the witch's hat, head and bottle. Use the pliers to bend the wire at right angles at the bottom and then tape into position.
10 Cut out a rectangle of the thick cardboard approximately 4 x 2in (10 x 5cm). This will be used to control the puppet. Make a hole with the skewer in the cork and the middle of the card. Glue the cork over the hole in the card.
11 Bend the wire back at right angles, 1ft (30cm) above the witch's hat. Slide the cork and piece of thick card on to the wire. Curl the end of the wire upwards and make a small loop. Wind it around with some tape.
To suspend your puppet
1 Lie the puppet down and hold it firmly.
2 Thread your needle with some strong thread. Sew through the wrist and run the thread up to the wire loop at the top of the puppet and down until you can attach the other end of the thread to the other wrist. Cut and secure the knot.
3 To make the witch fly or move, hold the cork and rock gently. Move the arms by pulling the strings.
Note: Legs can also be added to the puppet if you wish.
