Let’s All Go to the Puppet Show

Earlier this week, three of our fourth grade friends presented us with a puppet show.  They had spent three weeks writing the script, practicing their lines, and preparing for the show.  We adapted the bottom of the loft with some silks and created an instant puppet stage for the performance.  The story was pleasantly silly and just the right length for our wiggly Pre-K friends.

The best part about this show, however, was that it inspired our students to create their own puppets shows all week.  Although many of the stories involved the store-bought puppets used by the older children, personal puppet creation has also been a big hit.  We seem to be producing at least 8 new stick puppets a day.

We’ve been witnessing lots of learning throughout the process.  On the first day, the children wanted to make a puppet theater in another portion of the room.  Once the silks and the clips were carried over, it took some serious experimentation to find a way to create a hidden spot for the puppeteers.  After the stage was set, many negotiations were needed to figure out how a shared story would go.  Would she have to be the bad guy? Would he have to be the dog?  Could she tell the whole story and everybody else just do what she says?  Now that we are on day five of this type of play, the road is a bit smoother, but we’re also getting better at navigating the bumps.