Lesson Idea: Puppet making

String discs of wood together with a larger piece of wood for the head. Use knots or beads to separate ‘body parts’.

Clever hands can bring your puppets to life.

Wood Cookies or Name Necklaces

6-8cm of drilled wood discs makes good rustic name badges. Children can decorate them with felt tip pens. Older children and teenagers may be able to use pyrography or chisels. This links well with an introduction to tool use and safe handling of tools.

Resources:

• A small bow saw (or pre-cut slices of wood)
• drills
• wood to rest on
• string
• scissors
• glue

The activity:

1. This is a good introductory activity to make badges to enable the leader to get to know the names of children or later, to make woodland pendants

2. Place a small log of about 6 cm diameter in a frame designed for sawing or a vice and help the child saw off a slice of about 1 cm thickness

3. Place the slice on a rest and help the child drill a hole about 1 cm away from the edge of the wood

4. Cut a piece of string large enough to fit around the child’s head, thread this through the hole and tie. For young children use wool which will break more easily

5. Write the child’s name on it and the child can decorate it by gluing on leaves etc. found in the wood.

Whittling Begins!

Our lunch club started with the basics or whittling by peeling carrots (so now we can help at home!!). We learned all about safety with peelers and have now progressed to sticks to make whistles, pencils and puppets.