Have fun making your own articulating puppet figure using cardboard and split pins (paper fasteners), then enjoy playing with your puppet, making it move! You could even make up a story or drama for your puppet to feature in!

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Bat

Create your own articulating bat using cardboard! Just follow the simple instructions below:

MATERIALS: cardboard for your model (old cereal boxes are ideal), thick cardboard for template, (from a cardboard box), print out of template shapes, split pins (paper fasteners), blu tac, pencil, sticky tape, string, colouring pens (to decorate)

TOOLS: scissors, hole punch, 

ASSEMBLY:

1. Download and print the image here onto a full A4 sheet of paper.

2. Cut out the black and white numbered pieces and stick onto your thick cardboard. Then cut out the shapes- these will form your main templates for cutting out your cardboard puppet.

3. Use the template piecies to mark and cut your pieces of (thinner) cardboard.  Make sure you mark carefully where the split pins (paper fasteners) and hole punches need to go (see picture above). 

4. Colour in and decorate your cardboard pieces. 

5. Make holes for the split pins (paper fasteners) to go through with a pencil. (TOP TIP: Use a piece of blue tac behind the hole and press down carefully with the pencil to make a hole).

6. Next make larger holes with the hole punch, for the string to go through. 

7. Construct your puppet using split pins (paper fasteners) to join the pieces together. 

 8. To make your model move, thread string through the hole punched holes and tie your string in a knot (see picture below) with the long pieces of string hanging down (which you'll pull down to make your bat wings flap). 

9. Then get a smaller piece of string and tie it in a knot to the top of your other piece of string (see photo below). Stick it in place with sticky tape on the head (this is to keep the string in position, so when you pull the other string down, the wings flap).  

10. Now your bat puppet is complete and ready to play with! (TOP TIP: Don't pull the string too hard, or your wings will go too high and the bat puppet won't flap properly).

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Apple Man

Create your own articulating apple man using cardboard! Just follow the simple instructions below:

MATERIALS: cardboard for your model (old cereal boxes are ideal), thick cardboard for template, (from a cardboard box), print out of template shapes, split pins (paper fasteners), blu tac, pencil, colouring pens (to decorate)

TOOLS: scissors, hole punch

ASSEMBLY:

1. Download and print the image here onto a full A4 sheet of paper.

2. Cut out the black and white numbered pieces and stick onto your thick cardboard. Then cut out the shapes- these will form your main templates for cutting out your cardboard puppet.

3. Use the template piecies to mark and cut your pieces of (thinner) cardboard.  Make sure you mark carefully where the split pins (paper fasteners) need to go (see picture above). 

4. Colour in and decorate your cardboard pieces. 

5. Make holes for the split pins (paper fasteners) to go through with a pencil. (TOP TIP: Use a piece of blue tac behind the hole and press down carefully with the pencil to make a hole).

6. Construct your puppet using split pins (paper fasteners) to join the pieces together. 

7. Now your apple puppet is ready to play with!

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Pumpkin Man

Create your own articulating pumpkin using cardboard! Just follow the simple instructions below:

MATERIALS: cardboard for your model (old cereal boxes are ideal), thick cardboard for template, (from a cardboard box), print out of template shapes, split pins (paper fasteners), blu tac, pencil, colouring pens (to decorate)

TOOLS: scissors, hole punch

ASSEMBLY:

1. Download and print the image here onto a full A4 sheet of paper.

2. Cut out the black and white numbered pieces and stick onto your thick cardboard. Then cut out the shapes- these will form your main templates for cutting out your cardboard puppet.

3. Use the template piecies to mark and cut your pieces of (thinner) cardboard.  Make sure you mark carefully where the split pins (paper fasteners) need to go (see picture above). 

4. Colour in and decorate your cardboard pieces. 

5. Make holes for the split pins (paper fasteners) to go through with a pencil. (TOP TIP: Use a piece of blue tac behind the hole and press down carefully with the pencil to make a hole).

6. Construct your puppet using split pins (paper fasteners) to join the pieces together. 

7. Now your pumpkin puppet is ready to play with!