All of a sudden, my four year-old son started playing make believe. It’s been an incredibly exciting thing for me. He animates his toys, creates sounds for them, and turns our sofa into exotic locations. He’s not concerned with the fact that the sofa looks nothing like a firehouse or that the ribbon he is holding doesn’t spray water. He just plays. His little brother and sister trail after him, happily following his orders. He sometimes asks me to assist with his firefighting, which I do whenever I can.
When I join him, I sometimes have to resist the temptation to interrupt him---to steer him towards story lines that I find more interesting or push him to make the object he is using more believable. I try to stay quiet and listen to his instructions because I know the best thing I can do is stay out of his way and observe his little mind stretching in all sorts of new ways.
When he plays like this, he is essentially making a puppet show out of his world. He is bringing objects to life by moving them with intention and feeling. He is animating his world using sound, emotion, story, and character. He is naturally creating puppet shows on his own. He may not have an audience but he has the satisfaction of acting in an invented world on his own.
When I join him, I sometimes have to resist the temptation to interrupt him---to steer him towards story lines that I find more interesting or push him to make the object he is using more believable. I try to stay quiet and listen to his instructions because I know the best thing I can do is stay out of his way and observe his little mind stretching in all sorts of new ways.
When he plays like this, he is essentially making a puppet show out of his world. He is bringing objects to life by moving them with intention and feeling. He is animating his world using sound, emotion, story, and character. He is naturally creating puppet shows on his own. He may not have an audience but he has the satisfaction of acting in an invented world on his own.
We are just now starting to make more formal puppet shows together: ones made on a stage, with an invited audience. When we do this, I follow him. I lead by asking lots of questions. I remind myself that this is his show (and not mine!) and that whatever he makes and feels good about is perfect. I do steer us away from complexities in the story or object we are making and focus on what we can do to have a complete “show” within 20 minutes (as I know that is usually how long he can focus at one time). Here are 5 things I do to make the show successful:
1. OBJECTS: Any object can be a puppet: a spoon, a scarf, a ball, or your fingers with eyes drawn on them, a stuffed animal, a handmade or store-bought puppet—anything works! Just move the object with feeling and maybe give it a voice or sound effects.
2. STORY: Make up a simple problem for the puppet to have and solve the problem—trying different solutions along the way. Maybe a ball can’t stop from rolling or a spoon can’t find it’s matching fork or a stuffed animal doesn’t know how to dance.
3. SOUND: Put on some music while you work---it can be very inspiring for your story. Choose a tone you want: playful, scary, dramatic: movie soundtracks are a great place to start.
4. AUDIENCE: Decide who will be your audience before you start working. Will you perform for siblings? Grandparents? Or will you videotape it? If you know who will be watching the show, you can make it fun for the audience by including some fun jokes only some people will get.
5. LET IT GO: If the formality of making a show isn’t working, no sweat. Just let your child enjoy playing with the stage and puppets collected. Some of the best shows are improvised and performed for an audience of one!
*This post was originally published on BabbaCo's BLOG, February 2013*
BabbaCo delivers age appropriate activities for kids 3-7 right to your door once a month.
2. STORY: Make up a simple problem for the puppet to have and solve the problem—trying different solutions along the way. Maybe a ball can’t stop from rolling or a spoon can’t find it’s matching fork or a stuffed animal doesn’t know how to dance.
3. SOUND: Put on some music while you work---it can be very inspiring for your story. Choose a tone you want: playful, scary, dramatic: movie soundtracks are a great place to start.
4. AUDIENCE: Decide who will be your audience before you start working. Will you perform for siblings? Grandparents? Or will you videotape it? If you know who will be watching the show, you can make it fun for the audience by including some fun jokes only some people will get.
5. LET IT GO: If the formality of making a show isn’t working, no sweat. Just let your child enjoy playing with the stage and puppets collected. Some of the best shows are improvised and performed for an audience of one!
*This post was originally published on BabbaCo's BLOG, February 2013*
BabbaCo delivers age appropriate activities for kids 3-7 right to your door once a month.
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