Local Artist Darrin Crow
Darrin Crow tells imaginative, engaging stories that keep audiences on the edge of their seats and stick with them long after the tale ends. He introduces students to the power of storytelling at the Arts Academy with classes in storytelling, puppetry, and improvisation. Catch up with Darrin on his website or YouTube Channel.
Envelope Puppets - Class 3 of 4
In this Puppet Parade class series you will learn to make puppets out of everyday items and experiment with telling jokes! The most unusual puppet we will make is the one in this class made from a common, everyday item- an envelope! They are so easy to make; it wouldn’t take much time to have a whole herd of envelope puppets running around the house. Then you just have to corral them and ask them to entertain your family with some timeless knock knock jokes!
Materials:
- Envelopes
- Glue sticks
- Scissors
- Crayons
- Tub O’ Stuff - odds and ends
- Masking tape
Directions:
- Smaller square envelopes are easier to use, so Darrin uses a greeting card envelope in his example.
- To refold the envelope put your hand inside of it to open it up, with your thumb along the bottom edge and your fingers along the top edge.
- Along the bottom edge of the envelops press your finger into the center of the crease, where the space between your thumb and the rest of your hand is.
- As you press the center bring the two points along the bottom edge toward eachother until they meet forming the upper and lower half of your puppet.
- Now you are ready to give your puppet some features: eyes, mouth, nose, hair, teeth, etc. Look through your Tub O’ Stuff to find things to embellish your puppet.
Have fun telling some knock knock jokes to your family. Be considerate of your audience and know when to knock it off! And don't forget to begin with the Storyteller's Pledge!
Additional Resources
If you run out of your own jokes, here are a few to share!
Knock Knock jokes have survived many generations. Big Band Orchestra leaders wove these jokes into their sets using them to engage audience participation. Here is an example from Fletcher Henderson from the 1930’s.
Additional Puppet Parade activities can be found here:
Share your work and stay connected!
We are curious to see your project! Upload photos in the comment section below. If you have trouble, or want to share a short video, email us at info@eiaaprogram.org. Leave your school name in the comment box and we will share images with your school!
We want to stay connected to our creative students when we get back to the new normal. While you are here, learn more about the Eastern Iowa Arts Academy. While we don't have much taking place in real space/time during the pandemic, we will get back to our regular live and in-person classes. When we do, we'd love to have you as a member!
