Hand puppet

Hand puppet
Contributed by - RobinAge Hand puppets are very simple to make and use and amuse kids. Teach your child to make hand puppets by just using waste stationery and other material at home.

Excerpt from Robinage - weekly newspaper for kids

What you need

Newspaper
Waste greeting cards
1x1 ft cloth
Needle and thread
Glue
Scissors
Poster colour or sketch pens
Colour brush

Process

Part 1 - the head

1. Use your hands to roll a newspaper into a ball. Secure it by wrapping it with a thread.
2. Draw hands (as shown) on the greeting card or a card paper.
3. Roll another greeting card into a tube (wide enough to fit on your fingers).
4. Use a scissor to make 1-inch slits on one end of the tube. Fan out the slits.
5. Stick small pieces of white paper on the tube and ball. Cover entirely in this way.
6. Cut out a mouth, two eyes, two ears and a nose and stick onto the ball.
7. Paint the face and then the hands using poster paint.
Part 2 - the glove

1. Draw the shape of a glove onto paper and cut it out. This is your stencil. 2. Fold the cloth into half and use the stencil to draw a glove. 3. Stitch up the cloth on all sides except the end which will be used to insert your hand and the end that would form the neck of the puppet. 4. Cut the cloth one centimeter away from the stitching. 5. Insert the first part of puppet into the opening on the top of the glove. Insert the tube only half way into the hole and stick using glue. 6. Similarly, stick the hands on either end of the glove.

How to use the puppet

Put your index finger in the neck of the puppet. Insert your thumb and middle finger into the arms and fold your remaining two fingers into your palm. When you move your index finger the head of the puppet will move. Move your thumb and middle finger to move the puppet's arm.