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Teaching artist Ayrin Gharibpour demonstrates how students can make puppets based on their own family members using common materials found in their home. 

Vocabulary You Will Learn:

• None in this video

Materials You Will Need:

• A toilet paper roll
• A ping pong ball
• Paper or newspaper
• Masking tape
• Glue 
• Scissors 
• Markers
• Colored paper
• Paint
• A paintbrush
• Yarn, cotton balls, pipe cleaners, beads, and anything else you could use to add details to your puppet

How to Create Your Own Puppet Based on a Family Member

1. First, decide which family member you want to create! You can use photos as inspiration and to help you decide what your puppet should look like and wear.
2. Once you’ve decided what your puppet will look like, take your toilet paper roll and cut an oval shape near one end of the roll, so the longer side of the oval is parallel to the edge. Your fingers will go through this hole and become the feet of the puppet.
3. Next, paint the toilet paper roll whatever colors you would like the puppet’s body or clothes to be.
4. Use your markers to draw a face on your ping pong ball, painting it beforehand if you would like to. If you don’t have a ping pong ball, you can make a ball out of newspaper and cover it in masking tape.

5. Now, cut a piece of paper to create a circle slightly larger than one end of the toilet paper roll and glue it to the end. If you’d like, you can cut the excess paper off of the edge. Then, glue the head of your puppet onto the circle of paper. Give the glue time to dry.
6. Now it’s time to add detail to your puppet. Using materials such as cotton balls, yarn, pipe cleaners, and anything else you’d like, you can add details such as hair, arms, a hat, or a scarf.
7. Now you can put your fingers through the hole you cut to operate your puppet and make them walk, run, and dance!

In this video, Ayrin Gharibpour shows us how to create our own finger puppets based on family members using a few basic household materials. If you want to go even further, think about these questions: 

• Can you make another character for your puppet to interact with? You could create another member of your family, or you can dream up a fictional character and create them from your imagination! 
• Once you have two puppets, what scene can you create between them? What story do you want to tell about these two characters?
• What other details can you add to your puppets? Can you give them any props, such as an umbrella or a suitcase? Or maybe an accessory, such as a hat or a necklace?
• Can you create an environment for your puppets? What is the setting where their scene takes place? Can you find objects in your home to create this setting?

Accessibility

Don’t forget that you can turn on “Closed Captioning” to view the YouTube video with English captions.

More about the Teaching Artist

Ayrin Gharibpour (she/her) is an Iranian artist from Tehran who holds a BFA in graphic design from the Art University of Tehran. She has worked as a freelance graphic designer, illustrator, and photographer. Her interest in theater, especially puppet theater art, stems from being born into a theatrical family. For the past eight years, Ayrin has worked as a teaching artist for children in grades K–6, focusing on using recycled objects to create puppets and perform puppet shows. Her mission in teaching is to demonstrate the use of materials to create a character while building confidence and cooperation. Explore more of her work at .

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