Kid’s Craft: DIY Puppet Theater with Crayola

Updated on May 23, 2023

Disclosure: I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for #CollectiveBias and its advertiser.

We have been very blessed this year to have a mild winter here in Arizona. However, this last weekend it was very gloomy, cold, and rainy. It was the perfect time to do a little indoor crafting. And I am excited to say that what we created will be perfect for spring break next week to keep the kids busy and entertained!

I went to Walmart last week to pick up some supplies for the kids to get crafty with. I stocked up on Crayola crayons, washable paints, and sidewalk chalk. Look at all the fun possibilities!

First up, I will show you how to build your own puppet theater. This is a job for an adult only as you will be using an x-acto knife to cut. You can do these steps ahead of time before you are ready to craft with the kids.

How to Build a Puppet Theater

Supplies needed:

• (2) Foam core boards
• Craft knife (for adult use only)
• Ruler/straight edge
• Tape
• Dowel rod
• (2) Cup hooks
• Fabric
• Stapler and staples

Step One: Begin by cutting one of your foam core boards in half length-wise.

Step Two: On the other full sheet of foam core board cut out an opening in the top portion of the board using a craft knife, creating a little window.

Step Three: Tape each of the two pieces you cut in step one to either side of the large foam core board. Duck tape or packing tape works well for this.

Here is what the finished puppet theater will look like:

Step Four: Using a non-fraying fabric, cut out panels to fit your window.

Note: A good rule of thumb is that the length of fabric should be about twice that of your window. The height of the fabric should be as tall as the window opening plus a couple of inches. Cut this larger piece in half to create two window curtain panels.

Staple a “hem” along the top edge of the fabric to create a curtain rod pocket for the dowel rod to slide through.

Step Five: Attach cup hooks to either side of the top of the foam core board window.

(Please note: These will poke through to the front a little. You could attach a decorative foam shape piece to the front to cover the pokey edge. Or, you can do like I did and use the edges poking out to attach a banner with twine!)

Step Six: Place your curtain panels onto the dowel rod and hang on the cup hooks. Tie the curtains back with some string or twine if you like.

Now onto the really fun part! Help your kids decorate the puppet theater however you like. We started by covering the floor with plastic and I let the kids go crazy with the washable paints. I gave each child a side to paint and I helped with the middle to create our #ColorfulCreations.

I love these paints so much. Why have I never used these before? They washed off hands and out of the paint brushes so easily! (Note: Washable Paint is not for use as body/face paint.)

While your puppet theater dries, have your children make some puppets and props for the puppet show.

We made some paper bag puppets using crayons and scraps of paper. We also made stick puppets using popsicle sticks with paper cut outs glued to the tops. We used our crayons to decorate our paper cut outs as well.

You gotta have at least one puppet with giant googly eyes!

We also created a little pennant banner out of construction paper and crayons. I cut out the triangle shapes and we colored them. I hung them to the front of the theater with some twine and mini clothespins.

I helped write out the information for the show on a small chalkboard using the sidewalk chalk!

Let your child’s imagination go wild creating new puppet shows for you! Honestly, it is pretty funny seeing what they come up with.

I love that this puppet theater will fold down fairly flat when we are not using it. Plus, we can have a lot more fun over spring break creating new and unique puppets for the show!

Find out more about Crayola #ColorfulCreations and products:

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