Puppets are Fun!

Official Description: Attendees will learn to make different kinds of puppets including hand puppets, finger puppets, marionnettes, and giant puppets (“Gigantes”) with different degrees of difficulty. At the same time they will explore basic puppetry techniques and games in order to create and perform their very own stories. Finally, they will be provided with a variety of resources and puppet patterns to replicate with their students from pre-K to high schoolers.

Layman's Description: Learn to make many different kinds of puppets and how to perform with them. Awesomeness for all grade-levels!!!

DO Conference Hype: “Sunny day, sweepin’ the clouds away - On my way to where the air is sweet. Can you tell me how to get, how to get to the DO CONFERENCE?!?” lol. In all seriousness, as educators we know that puppets change the dynamic of the classroom by giving more possibilities for creativity, collaboration, critical thinking, and curiosity. In this workshop you will learn how to help students with expression and understanding of emotions, and put students in the role of creator. As a participant, you will experience how puppets encourage deeper relationships and bolster learners’ self-confidence, social interaction, and communication skills. Of course, don’t just take our word for it, here are a couple testimonials from the puppets themselves:

“BEAT DRUMS!” - Animal
”Waka! Waka!” - Fozie Bear
”Scram!” - Oscar the Grouch
”For moi?” - Miss Piggy

Presenter: Nelly Pilares has experience as an educator, professional actress, puppeteer, and visual artist for more than 15 years in Peru, Chile, and Bolivia, as well as the states of Washington, Iowa, and Minnesota. She has taught Art, Theater, and Spanish language/culture at the elementary, middle, high school, and college levels. She has been part of the organization of national and international theater festivals in Peru, and has organized community events and educational projects with Hispanic and non-Hispanic communities in the USA. She is passionate about teaching arts, puppets, theater, cultures, and languages. Nelly is the co-founder and Artistic Director at Teatro Popular, a bilingual theater company in Walla Walla.