Leaf Puppet

ages 4-6

Supplies

White construction paper; markers, crayons, or colored pencils; child-safe scissors; white glue; fall leaves; sequins (optional); twigs; clear adhesive tape

Activity Detail

Draw the outline of face and neck, about 1.5 inches long, onto a piece of white construction paper. Let your child color in the face and give him or her eyes, nose, and mouth. Then cut the shape out. Next, help your child to draw, color in, and cut out a dress shape, about 6 inches long. Glue the head to the dress. Then take some leaves from one of the trees in your yard or that you found on a walk around the neighborhood -- small pointed ones work the best -- and help your child to glue them around the puppet's face to make hair. Take some more leaves and help your child to glue them onto the dress, starting with large leaves at the bottom and smaller ones at the top. If you want, you can also glue sequins to the neck, sleeves and waist of the dress, and dot some over the leaves to make a fancier outfit. Lay your puppet flat and let everything dry. Once the glue has dried, turn the figure over and attach a small twig to each sleeve with tape. Then tape a long twig up the length of the puppet leaving about 4 in. at the bottom. Your child now has a fun homemade autumn puppet.