That’s the way to do it!

This term children at Pelham school took a project from start to finish, designing and making their own puppets and backdrop then performing a simple show.

The project started with some basic explorations into colour.

Veena took the children back to basics to look at colour mixing, pigments and shading. Some simple techniques were learnt or reinforced.

Simple exercises using plants, fruit and flowers to observe carefully were used to help them develop skills.

The children went on to look at different ways to use colour inspired by the work of Paul Klee. They began to work on different scales.

These experiments became the inspiration for a back drop and the decision was made to make puppets to perform in front of this new landscape.

Children experimented with different techniques for making simple puppets, using gloves, fabric and papier mache. They learnt to stitch, join and mould.

Individual city scenes made using cut and painted paper and were joined together by our wonderful volunteer students from Kingston University to create this amazing collaborative cityscape.

The children then began to create stories with their puppets and simply play with their creations. It was lovely to see children enjoying doing something productive with their art and working together to create stories and situations – and having so much fun with it.