Using puppetry in distance-learning

Kent Suss
Tuesday, September 1, 2020

This scheme of work introduces primary-age students to techniques of puppet-building and performance. Making puppets and using them in spontaneous or planned dramas is fun, and is invaluable for achieving oral and written language objectives. These lessons are presented with distance-learning in mind. Classroom activities like games, story making and puppet making are described as if they were taking place on a conferencing platform such as Zoom, with each student connected online from home - but they can of course be experienced in the real-life classroom as well. Learning objectives: - Participate in drama games that encourage verbal and non-verbal communication - Create two puppets - Repurpose objects found around the house into art-making materials - Make up an original back story for their puppet character - Cooperate with a group of peers to create and perform a puppet show.