Making Puppets

ages 2-6

Supplies

Old socks, buttons, felt, popsicle sticks, used greeting cards, felt pens, wooden spoon, fabric, glue.

Activity Detail

Puppets are fun to make and great to play with, especially when acting out stories. Silly dog -- An old sock can be quickly transformed into a "silly dog" puppet. Make a dog from a sock by cutting out two ears from some felt -- or any sort of fabric scraps you may have -- and sewing them on either side of the heel. Sew on two buttons for eyes, and add some black stitching for a nose (or you can draw these on with a Sharpie). Snake - Create a snake from any color sock. To begin, sew a strip of red rick-rack starting at the heel and going along the back of the sock. Glue or sew on two black eyes that have been cut out of felt and a red felt tongue. Stick puppets - A great use for old greeting cards and coloring books! Cut out a few characters from old birthday cards or books, or draw the outline of a character (a cat or teddy bear) and color it in with your child. Glue a washed popsicle stick to the back, which you can use to move the puppet around. Spoon person - Using felt-tip pens, draw a face on an old wooden kitchen spoon. Cut out some clothes for your spoon person from some extra fabric or an old shirt, and glue it on to the handle of the spoon. Don't expect the spoon back for cooking, though!