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Reading your favorite fall-themed picture book line by line can become an interactive storytelling adventure all its own with these finger puppet reading buddies!
here’s what we’re making
here’s what you’ll need
let’s get started!
Instructions: 1. Using scissors, cut the fingers off of the gloves. (Optional: If you’d like to change the color of your scarecrow finger puppet use watered down acyclic paint and paint the entire finger. Let it dry.)
2. Have a grownup hot glue googly eyes onto the cut finger. (You can use any finger you want! For this example we’ll be using the index finger, but a pinky scarecrow might be fun, too.)
3. With markers or acrylic paint, draw a scarecrow mouth and nose.
4. Using fabric or some ribbon, make a collar for your scarecrow’s neck. Again, have a grownup attach the collar with hot glue at the base of the finger puppet. Have fun with it, decorate your puppet however you wish! (Some other fun ideas: bow tie, paint or draw a pearl necklace…)
5. Next, cut 6 small pieces of string (roughly 0.5″ each) and ask your grownup to put a dot of hot glue above the scarecrow’s eyes. Place 3 pieces of string onto the dot of glue. Put one more dot of glue on the left and one on the right. I put 2 pieces of string on the left and 1 on the right.
6. (Making the Hat) Put the scarecrow finger puppet on and place your finger straight down onto a piece of card-stock. Ask a friend or a grownup to trace the tip of your finger with a pencil . . . but make the tracing slightly bigger than your finger. You want the hat to be snug once you put it on the top of the scarecrow’s head.
7. Then cut around the traced circle creating the rim of the hat. Don’t try and make it perfect! It’s better if you don’t.
8. Cut out the inner circle.
9. Cut out a bunch of small rectangles from any magazine (solid colors with some text would be best) or you can paint a piece of card-stock. Any color will do, but oranges, reds, and yellow ochres are very “in” right now.
10. Cut 3 slits into the small rectangles, but don’t cut all the way through. We want to feather out the individual strips. Bend them, crinkle them, make them look like strands of a straw hat.
11. Start gluing the strands, and make sure you make enough to cover the top and bottom of the rim of the hat.
12. Slide the hat onto the scarecrow’s head just above the hairline, and add any final touches. For a more permanent fix, ask your grownup to hot glue the hat on the top of the scarecrow’s head.
Voila!
we’re all done!
That’s it! Now take your new reading friend and read a book together! We suggest THE SCARECROW, written by Beth Ferry and illustrated by The Fan Brothers.
Whatever finger puppet character you decide to create, all of us here at ALL THE WONDERS would love to see it! Snap a picture of your finger puppet reading your favorite line of your favorite picture book, or posing in front of your favorite picture! Send us your photos on social media, or email them to us at here@allthewonders.com.
Or use the hashtag #ATWFingerPuppets to share with your followers and we’ll retweet/share them!
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