Fairbanks North Star Borough School District

Art Center Art Activity Kit

Puppets and Jim Henson

GRADE: 3 and up TIME: 2 sessions

Developed by Linda Pfisterer, Art Specialist

KIT INCLUDES: MATERIALS:

lesson plan construction paper of varied

book, Jim Henson, From colors and sizes:
Puppets to Muppets - 9 x 12 for the head LESSON DESCRIPTION:
transparencies, (11) - 6 x 9 for the body Students develop their very own
Henson and muppet - 4 1/2 x 6 for body parts puppet characters using ideas from
boards (2) - 3 x 4 1/2 for small parts puppeteer, Jim Henson. They learn
teaching step boards (2) - 2 x 5 white for eyes the difference between marionettes,
vocabulary board black markers puppets and muppets. Construction
DVD of puppet ideas glue paper is used to create a puppet with
scissors a moveable mouth.

VOCABULARY: ART ELEMENTS: ART PRINCIPLES: CONTENT CONNECTIONS:

Language arts:
Line Pattern * Retell a story using the puppets
marionette Shape/Form Rhythm/movement Write a puppet play with a friend
puppet Color Proportion/Scale * Perform the play for younger
muppet Value Balance groups of students.
puppeteer Texture Unity
Space/Perspective Emphasis THEMES: pretending
texture

OBJECTIVES AND ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:

1. Students will learn about Jim Henson, a puppeteer and creator .. of the muppets.
2. Students will learn the difference between a marionette, a puppet, and a muppet.
3. Students will practice folding skills as they make the puppet head with 3D parts.
4. Students will embellish their puppet character using color, line, shapes, and texture.

PREPARE:
1. Practice making a puppet form and develop it with detail using lines, shapes and texture to give
interest to the character of the puppet. Use your example to show how far they can develop their
character, but encourage them to use their own ideas to develop a different character, not copy
the one you have made.
2. Cut the construction paper of varied sizes and color as suggested above. Place them in small
boxes to allow them to choose colors and still keep the papers in order.
3. Set out black markers, scissors and glue.
ENGAGE AND EXPLORE:

Use the transparencies in the art kit as you follow this script. (If you dont have the kit, refer to the
book From Puppets to Muppets.)

1. Jim Henson was a famous puppeteer! A puppeteer is someone

who entertains with puppets or marionettes. Henson was
especially creative because he designed and made his own
puppet characters. He was also a writer because he decided
what they should say and wrote the stories he performed.

2. The characters Jim Henson created for television were

neither.puppets nor marionettes, yet they had elements of both.
Since they were part puppet and part marionette, Henson
called his characters muppets. Jim Henson and Kermit
Jeffstuff at Flickr

A marionette is a doll whose body parts move by pulling the long strings attached to its
body. Rather than using strings like a marionette, Henson used stiff thin wire to move the
arms and sometimes legs of his muppet characters. A puppet has no strings; the
puppeteers shows feelings by moving its body or by changing its tone of voice, yet the face
remains unchanged. Hensons muppets were made of soft foam, which allowed him to
change the muppets expression by pinching and stretching the face.

3. As Jim got very busy, he hired a Muppet builderDon Sahlinto help create more
characters.

4. Frank Oz joined the muppet team when he was only 21 years old. He created Miss Piggy
and was also her voice as he moved her in front of the camera.

5. As Jim Henson and the other performers created a scene for The Muppet Show, a TV
monitor helped them to see how the muppets appeared to the audience. The camera
showed only the puppets, cutting off the puppeteers below.

6. Jim Henson and Frank Oz perform the characters Bert and Ernie on the set of Sesame
Street. Notice that it took 2 puppeteers for Ernie. Frank Oz used an attached wire to
move Berts arms.

7. In one muppet movie, Frank Oz used the marionette strings to make Kermit the Frog ride a
bicycle. Another puppeteer controlled the moving bike. The puppeteers and the strings are
not seen in the movie.

8. Brian (Jims son) and Jim Henson performed for the movie Labyrinth. They looked down
at the TV monitor to help them move their characters.

9. All five of Jim Hensons children have worked with their dad in television and film. The top photo is
of his wife Jane who helped him with his muppet shows even before they were married. Two of his
daughters are shown in these pictures.

10. Jim Henson will always be remembered for moving puppetry into television and movies.
He was the voice and puppeteer for Kermit the Frog and Ernie.
 CREATE::

The puppet DVD in this kit is only meant as a motivation for the many possibilities for this style of puppet. To
save time, let them watch it while they eat lunch or snack. Then continue with the lesson.

1. Decide if you want your character to be a person or animal with human traits.
2. Choose a 9 x 12 color paper and use these steps to fold the head:

a. Vertical paper. d. Flip over so e. Fold in half.

Pinch the center b. Make the first vertical c. Overlap the second the open side is
at the top. fold 1/2 beyond the vertical fold by 1/2. Tape down.
center pinch mark. the top and bottom.

g. Flip over and h. Place your thumb in the bottom

f. Fold top half fold down other opening, and your fingers in the
down. side. top to move mouth. See below.

3. Create eyes and body parts in the style of Jim Henson.

b. Draw black pupil

a. Fold 3x5 with white spot. Cut
paper. Draw out. Fold tabs
eyes with tab.
c. Glue the tab to center area of d. Use the black marker to outline all body parts
the head. The eyes will stand up for a strong cartoon effect. Embellish with
in 3D fashion. Draw and tab the clothes, wings and beaks, or whatever you need
nose and tongue, add texture. to create a character.

4. Add more embellishment!

If your puppet is a bird, add a
beak and wings. Use markers
for feather texture and extra
detail. Add clothing with more
e. Insert hair and
colored paper. Outline each
glue to inside. Glue
the body to bottom f. Move the mouth piece for a cartoon effect.
opening. up and down. Name your puppet!
CLOSE:

FOLLOW-UP: Students could name their puppets and introduce them to the class. Students could retell a
story or write their own story to perform for younger students. Two students could team up and perform a dialog
about a specific topic. As a social studies assignment, students could give a puppet report about an event. They
could make a background and the teacher could videotape them, focusing in on the puppet, cutting off the
puppeteer. Puppets can be displayed on the bulletin board using the sheet provided at the end of the lesson plan.

ASSESSMENT:

Teacher administered assessment tool

Lesson___________________ Teacher______________________________
DN OK UP
. Grade___________Date_____________Number of Students_______________
Using the thumbs up, ok, and down technique, ask your students
the following questions and record their answers.
(K=knowledge, S=skills, C= creativity, A=attitude, E=engagement
1. Can you name one of the muppets Jim Henson created? (K)
2. Do you know the difference between a puppet and a marionette? (K)
3. Did you fold a puppet head with a moving mouth? (S,E)
4. Did you use tabs to give your puppet 3D eyes? (K,S,E)
5. Did you embellish your puppet character? (K,S,C,E)
6. Did you add an imaginative touch to your art? (C)
7. Did you actively listen and follow directions? (A)
8. Did you do your best during this lesson? (E)
Teacher self-critique
8. My teaching of this lesson:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
needed improvement was highly successful

9. What would I do differently next time?

ALIGNMENT:
Alignment of Standards: Alignment of GLE's:
Art: A1,2,3,4,5,7; C4,5; D6 L.A.: R2.4, R2.6
English: A,C

CREDITS:
Project ARTiculate is supported by the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District, the Alaska Arts
Education Consortium, and a U.S. Department of Education
Development and Dissemination Grant