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K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

European Shadow Puppets

Students will work in cooperative groups first to read a fairy tale by a European author. Then they will make shadow puppets to use on an overhead projector. Finally, they will present their puppet shows to their class.

A lesson plan for grade 6 English Language Arts and Social Studies

By Marsha Paisley

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Learning outcomes

Students will learn about the culture of Europe as well as practicing both oral reading and listening skills. They will practice working effectively in groups. Critical thinking will be required in the design and construction of the puppets.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

1 Weeks

Materials/resources

  1. Patterns for basic puppet (students love to design their own but need guidance at first). I got mine from a class at ASU taught by Gail E. Haley. They are copyrighted so I cannot give you a copy here. See attachments for pictures of a sample puppets.
  2. Stiff paper for tracing.
  3. Craft wire for constructin puppets.
  4. Large envelopes for organizing supplies.
  5. Copies of different stories.

Technology resources

Overhead Projector

Pre-activities

Introduce students to various European children stories’ authors (e.g. Hans Christian Anderson, The Brothers Grimm).

Activities

  1. Teacher divides the class into small groups of three to five.
  2. Students read their group’s story within the group. The teacher may wish to assign the story to be read a certain way (e. g. all read silently, one person read the whole thing aloud to their group, students take turns within the group), or the teacher may allow students within the group to decide for themselves how to read.
  3. Students design/construct their shadow puppets using teacher provided patterns and/or designing their own. Craft wire can be used to hook arms and legs to bodies to make them move. Students can cut out silhouettes of props needed to tell the story. They can draw settings on overhead transparencies if needed.
  4. Groups present their story by each member retelling a part of it and students working the shadow puppets on the overhead. Students retell--no reading allowed.

Assessment

The teacher can judge each group’s presentation and have each student write a group evaluation for themselves and each other person in the group. Tell them the group evaluations will be kept confidential. I usually give two grades. Everyone in the group gets the same grade for the finished presentation and individuals get their own participation grade based on their groups’ evaluations.

Supplemental information

Attachments:

Related websites

http://www.elm.maine.edu/assessments/teacher/shadow/

This website is a good resource for shadow puppet plays.

Comments

I use lesser known stories by the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Anderson. I borrow books of European fairy tales from the library and choose ones I think the kids will like. Sometimes I use Russian fairy tales. It all depends on what I am doing in social studies at the time I want to teach this lesson.

North Carolina Curriculum Alignment

Social Studies (2003)

Grade 6

  • Goal 11: The learner will recognize the common characteristics of different cultures in South America and Europe.
    • Objective 11.01: Identify the concepts associated with culture such as language, religion, family, and ethnic identity, and analyze how they both link and separate societies.
    • Objective 11.02: Examine the basic needs and wants of all human beings and assess the influence of factors such as environment, values and beliefs in creating different cultural responses.

English Language Arts (2004)

Grade 6

  • Goal 1: The learner will use language to express individual perspectives drawn from personal or related experience.
    • Objective 1.01: Narrate an expressive account (e.g., fictional or autobiographical) which:
      • uses a coherent organizing structure appropriate to purpose, audience, and context.
      • tells a story or establishes the significance of an event or events.
      • uses remembered feelings and specific details.
      • uses a range of appropriate strategies (e.g., dialogue, suspense, movement, gestures, expressions).
    • Objective 1.03: Interact appropriately in group settings by:
      • listening attentively.
      • showing empathy.
      • contributing relevant comments connecting personal experiences to content.
      • monitoring own understanding of the discussion and seeking clarification as needed.
  • Goal 2: The learner will explore and analyze information from a variety of sources.
    • Objective 2.01: Explore informational materials that are read, heard, and/or viewed by:
      • monitoring comprehension for understand of what is read, heard, and/or viewed.
      • studying the characteristics of informational works.
      • restating and summarizing information.
      • determining the importance and accuracy of information.
      • making connections between works, self and related topics/information.
      • comparing and/or contrasting information.
      • drawing inferences and/or conclusions.
      • generating questions.
  • Goal 5: The learner will respond to various literary genres using interpretive and evaluative processes.
    • Objective 5.01: Increase fluency, comprehension, and insight through a meaningful and comprehensive literacy program by:
      • using effective reading strategies to match type of text.
      • reading self-selected literature and other materials of individual interest.
      • reading literature and other materials selected by the teacher.
      • discussing literature in teacher-student conferences and small group discussions.
      • taking an active role in whole class seminars.
      • discussing and analyzing the effects on texts of such literary devices as figurative language, dialogue, flashback and sarcasm.
      • interpreting text by explaining elements such as plot, theme, point of view, characterization, mood, and style.
      • investigating examples of distortion and stereotypes.
      • recognizing underlying messages in order to identify recurring theme(s) within and across works.
      • extending understanding by creating products for different purposes, different audiences and within various contexts.
      • exploring relationships between and among characters, ideas, concepts and/or experiences.