Shadow puppets

Materials You Need: Lamp/torch.   

What You Can Do Together: Follow a few steps to start the activity:  

1. Find a light-coloured piece of wall or hang a white sheet. Place a lamp in front of it or point a torch at it. 
2. Position your hands between the lamp and the wall and see what shapes your hands cast as shadows. Can you make a giant hand and a tiny hand using distance? Can you create a butterfly by linking your thumbs together? 
3. Experiment with shapes. The gaps between your fingers/hands will create white space among the shadow. See if you can make any of these shapes: Butterfly, cow, deer, dog, donkey and duck. 

There are many similarities between shadow play and cinema, as they both use light to project images on to a screen. Try using your voice, music, or even a splash of colour to give your shadow puppet story a cinematic feel. 

Have fun by giving your shadow puppets funny voices or making them have a fight or a kiss. 

What Your Child is Learning: This activity ignites the imagination as you create shadow characters with your hands. It teaches kids about shadows and light direction. Bring your characters to life with movement and tell a story.