DLTK's Holiday Crafts for Kids
Paper Bag Scarecrow Puppet
This is a fun and easy cut and paste paper craft that uses a paper bag as a base to make a scarecrow puppet suitable for farm or autumn themes. I've provided a template for you to make the puppet or you can get creative and cut your own pieces out of construction paper.
Materials:
- a paper lunch bag (white or brown will work),
- a printer,
- something to colour with,
- a black marker or pencil crayon,
- scissors,
- glue,
- paper
- Optional: light yellow or beige paint or paper to make the face a different colour than the body.
- Optional: big wiggly eyes.
Print the Template:
- Print out the template of choice (color or b&w)
- Colour (as required) and cut out the template pieces.
Get Familiar with your Paper Bag:
- I'm going to walk through this slowly. Look at your paper bag.
- It should be closed and flat like a piece of paper. Just like when they are brand new.
- On one side, it's all smooth. This will be the BACK of your puppet
- It's important that all the kids get the back and front straight at the beginning!
- On the other side there's a flippy tab (which is typically the bottom of the bag when you're carrying your lunch around...)
- This flippy tab will be the HEAD.
- Lift the flippy tab up a bit. Underneath of the tab will be the mouth,
- When the child puts her hand in the bag, she'll be able to make the puppet talk.
- Look at the rest of the front of the bag. (The 3/4 or so of the bag below the part with the flippy tab) This will be the BODY.
- Look at the sides of the bag. There should be a FLAP of paper.
- We'll be slipping the arms (template 2) into this flap.
- If the kids goof and glue the arms onto the front or back of the bag, it isn't a big deal.
- OK, now that we're comfy with our bags, let's craft!
ASSEMBLING YOUR PUPPET
- Cover the HEAD of the paper bag with beige paper (just glue it on and trim) or paint the HEAD beige and let dry.
- Glue the mouth underneath the flippy tab so you can see a tiny part of it sticking out when the flap is closed.
- Glue the nose and eyes onto the HEAD. If you like, you can use wiggly eyes instead of the paper template pieces.
- Glue the hair at the top of the HEAD.
- Glue the hat onto the HEAD just over the hair and then glue the hat brim over the hat.
- Glue the sunflower onto the hat brim.
- Use a black marker or pencil crayon to draw a mouth onto the HEAD.
Template 2: If working with preschoolers, you may want to just do template 1. The scarecrow will still have a cute face which is the important part! Template 2 includes the pieces to decorate the body (bow and buttons), the feet and the arms.
If you do use Template 2, assemble as follows: - Glue the bow onto the BODY just below the HEAD.
- Glue the buttons onto the BODY.
- Glue the feet onto the bottom of the BODY.
- Glue the arms into the FLAP.
- Glue the crow onto one of the arms or onto the top of the hat.
Printable Craft Templates:
- Close the template window after printing to return to this screen.
- Set page margins to zero if you have trouble fitting the template on one page (FILE, PAGE SETUP or FILE, PRINTER SETUP in most browsers).