Puppets and Soft Toys During a Music Time.

Using puppets and soft toys during a music time.

Have you wondered how you can make your music time more fun and engaging?  Do you have puppets and soft toys sitting in your cupboard? Well, puppets and soft toys can work wonders.  I have got some of the most reluctant children to join in by using puppets and soft toys!

How are you going to use them?

Songs and Rhymes

Puppets:

Using a single puppet:

Some song and rhymes only need one puppet.  The aim of the single puppet is to engage the children. For example, I use a gorilla puppet in 'Down in the Jungle';  I dance and sing with the children but the puppet's movements engage some of the children who usually would be reluctant to join in.

Puppets for everyone:

With the songs or rhymes where there is a movement, this can be enhanced by each child having a puppet.

One example is ‘On my foot there is a bee’. This will be discussed in the online training course Soft Toys, Scarves and Streamers.  Click here to read more about that: https://www.musicintheearlyyears.com/soft-toys-scarves-and-streamers 

Soft Toys

Like with using an individual puppet I use single soft toys to gain a reaction from the children.  For example in the rhyme 'Under Teddy’s Jumper',  I let the children push teddy’s tummy and either I make the squeak sound when it is pushed or, once the children are a little more confident, I encourage them to make the sound.

Listening activity

The children use the puppet to move to the music.  I have done this with birds, bees, Humpty Dumpty, We use the music to guide us on the musical story.

What can you use?

Anything! 

Have a look in the cupboard to see what you have then think which song, rhyme or listening activity could it link into.  If you don’t have fabric puppets make your own puppets: simply use pictures and put loops around the back for a finger puppet.  Maybe use soft toys instead.  You could always ask the children to bring in one from home!

Happy music making!