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DLTK's Crafts for Kids
Paper Bag Puppet - Clown Craft

Sometimes when I go to put together a new craft my brain goes into overdrive and I can think of a million different combinations for doing it.  This was one of those times.  I've tried to give just a few of the alternatives I thought of.

Clown craft for the circus

MATERIALS NEEDED:

bulleta paper lunch bag (if you use a white bag, you'd get a white clown face) 
bulleta printer, 
bulletsome crayons, 
bulletscissors 
bulletglue. 
bulletpaper - I always prefer to use a heavy paper (like construction paper)
bulletOPTIONAL:  (the options make the craft a bit harder, so keep that in mind)
bulletbig wiggly eyes
bulletred wool 
bulletlarge red pom pom
bullet3 large coloured pom poms (whatever colour you like) or 3 big buttons
bulletbig circle stickers or bingo dauber.

PRINT THE TEMPLATE:

bulletYou can either print just template #1, template #1 & #2 or all three templates.
bulletThe more children you have per adult and the younger the children are, the simpler (less templates) you want the craft to be.
bulletIf you aren't sure how many templates you should use, print all 3, but hide #2 and #3.  If the kids make it through #1 and are eager for more, bring out the others.  If they are tired of crafting, save them for another day.
  
bulletIf you are using the black and white templates:
bulletPrint template #1 on red construction paper
bulletPrint template #2 on another colour (green, orange or yellow)
bulletPrint template #3 on yet another colour
  
bulletColour (as required) and cut out the template pieces. 

GET FAMILIAR WITH YOUR PAPER BAG:

bulletI'm going to walk through this slowly, so bear with me.  Look at your paper bag. 
  
bulletIt should be closed and flat like a piece of paper.  Just like when they are brand new.
  
bulletOn one side, it's all smooth.  This will be the BACK of your puppet
bulletIt's important that all the kids get the back and front straight at the beginning!
  
bulletOn the other side there's a flippy tab (which is typically the bottom of the bag when you're carrying your lunch around...)
bulletThis flippy tab will be the clown's HEAD
  
bulletLift the flippy tab up a bit.  Underneath of the tab will be the clown's mouth,
bulletWhen the child put's his hand in the bag, he'll be able to make the clown talk.
  
bulletLook at the rest of the front of the bag.  (The 3/4 or so of the bag below the part with the flippy tab)  This will be the BODY.
  
bulletLook at the sides of the bag.  There should be a FLAP of paper. 
bulletWe'll be slipping the clown's arms (template 3) into this flap.
bulletIf the kids goof and glue the arms onto the front or back of the bag, it isn't a big deal.
  
bulletOK, now that we're comfy with our bags, let's craft!

TEMPLATE #1

bulletGlue the cheeks onto the HEAD.  The cheeks should end up looking like a continuation of the mouth.  (Don't be too worried about the exact location for really young children.  Just let them have fun).
  
bulletGlue the nose onto the HEAD above the mouth.  If you like, you can use a large red pom pom for the nose instead of the paper template piece.
  
bulletGlue the eyes onto the HEAD above the nose.  If you like, you can use wiggly eyes instead of the paper template pieces.
  
bulletGlue the hair onto the HEAD above the eyes (try not to cover up the eyes too much).  If you like, you can glue pieces of red wool onto the hair template piece to give it a different effect.
  
bulletYou can put big circle stickers or bingo dauber splats all over the BODY and BACK of the clown to decorate his costume.  Or just decorate with crayons.
  
bulletIf you are doing Template #2, decide now!  Do Template #2 before you do the mouth or buttons.
  
bulletGlue the mouth underneath the flippy tab, so that most of it shows when the tab is closed (on the template, I drew an arrow to give you an idea of how much should show). 
  
bulletGlue the buttons onto the BODY of the clown. 
bulletYou can use the template pieces or three coloured pom poms or three big buttons. 
bulletIf you use real buttons, you may need to put a bit of tape over top to hold them on better.


TEMPLATE #2

bulletGlue the ruffle onto the BODY, just below the HEAD (where the neck would be).
  
bulletNow you can do the Mouth and Buttons from Template #1
  
bulletGlue the hat onto the clown's hair.  You can glue a real pom pom onto the top of the hat if you like.

TEMPLATE #3

bulletGlue the arms into the FLAP
  
bulletClose the template window after printing to return to this screen.   
  
bulletSet page margins to zero if you have trouble fitting the template on one page (FILE, PAGE SETUP or FILE, PRINTER SETUP in most browsers). 

 

Template 1   (color)   or   (B&W)

Template 2   (color)   or   (B&W)

Template 3   (color)   or   (B&W)