Horse Puppet

Objective

To help teachers in creating a puppet face of a Horse for story-telling and other purposes.

Estimated time to create the LTM

30 to 45 Minutes

Materials required for activity

  • Chart paper – Yellow and Brown colour
  • White chart paper for the eyes
  • Pencil
  • Black marker
  • Glue drops or Fevicol
  • Scissors

Preparation of activity

Keep the materials ready.  If you are using hot glue instead of Fevicol, ensure that the hot glue is heated suitably and is ready for use.

Procedure

  • Take the yellow chart paper of rectangular size.
  • Roll and make a cone shape and flatten it. Draw the face of the Horse on one side using a pencil. Cut along the outline to get the hollow face of the Horse.
  • Take another small rectangular piece of yellow paper, fold it into two. On one side of the paper, draw the shape of the ear of the horse. Cut along the outline, to get a pair of ears. Take one piece and make a small slit at the bottom of the ear. Overlap and paste the slit ends. Now the ear piece resembles that of the Horse. Repeat for the other earpiece too.
  • Apply fevicol only at the bottom of the ear pieces, on their rear side. Fix them correctly on the head part of the Horse.
  • Take a strip of brown chart paper. Make small cuts in the strip, for the strands of hair. Fix the strip on the head, below the ears.
  • In another piece of brown paper, draw and cut for the shape of nostrils. Fix them on the lower part of the face.
  • For the eyes, fold a small piece of white sheet into two.
  • On one side of the sheet, draw ‘an eye’ with a pencil. Cut along the outline using scissors, to get a pair of eyes. Apply fevicol and fix them on the face, in a slight angular position. Care should be taken to maintain equidistant and the same angle for both the eyes. 
  • Using a black marker, draw the outline for the eyes and eyeballs.
  • Now the face of the Horse is ready.
  • For the finger pipe – Roll a small strip of yellow paper as a tube, such that it fits your forefinger/Index finger and glue it to get a pipe.
  •  Fix the paper pipe inside the hollow portion using fevicol. 
  • Allow to dry for a few minutes and the puppet is ready.
  • Insert your forefinger/ index finger into the paper pipe.
  • Move your finger up, down and sideways to demonstrate the movement of the head of a Horse.

Step by Step Pictures to create the puppets

Important Tips

  1. For these types of puppets, it is better to use thick chart sheets so that they are durable and can be used many times.
  2.  Wedding cards / book covers can be used instead of drawing sheets. 
  3. For reference we can take images from drawing books or the internet. 
  4. While creating the puppet, replicate the character illustration given in the children’s textbook. Once the puppet is ready, use the character’s name from the textbook. Using the name in the textbook helps children to remember the content.
  5. The teacher should use the puppet at an appropriate time. The teacher can narrate the story in a humorous manner.   The teacher may make intentional mistakes to encourage children to correct them, thereby helping them become more actively engaged.

Precautions

Precautions to be taken while manipulating finger puppets:

  1. Always keep the face of the puppet towards the audience.
  2. Focus of the Puppet Master should be on the puppet.
  3. Puppets that are talking are only activated.  Other puppets should remain in a still position.

Troubleshooting:

  1. While making a paper pipe, take the exact size of your finger/hand which you are using. It aids in the proper movement of the puppet.
  2. Use a cutter to make holes.
  3. Holes that you are making should be exactly the size of your fingers. If the hole is big, the puppet cannot fit on your fingers. If the hole is small, you cannot insert your fingers.

Instructions to the Teacher Notes to the Teacher

Puppets can be used in the classroom to teach children about emotions. They are a valuable tool for teaching rhymes, songs, stories and more. Using puppets also aids in developing motor skills, such as hand-eye coordination. Additionally, puppets can enhance communication and social skills, improve focus and concentration and help teach concepts and values.

Using the LTM

The teacher can demonstrate a ‘Puppet Show’.  Teachers can encourage the students to create these puppets and have a ‘Puppet Show’ in the classroom.

Video: How to use LTM

Source and Attribution of images
All images used in the above Assets and Aids are originally created.
This digital material has been developed by the Sri Sathya Sai Vidya Vahini Inclusive Education Project, a unit of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust, Prasanthi Nilayam, as a collaborative offering in the service of our nation.