Today is paper mache day with 30 children. I've been looking forward to this all week. Now that Edith is back, she's back! And all the health crisis are over, it's time to get those puppets started. Last night on the phone, E and I talked about how to joint marionette puppets and she said without much thinking, paperclips of course, "You just make the segments with paperclips and then you wire those together. It's going to be a very long morning. Most of the children won't want to joint their puppets, but for those who do, we'll make that possible.
First we'll have French toast because every Friday should start out with a leisurely breakfast
with music in a relaxed setting that encourages the creative flow. I like my French toast made from Texas toast or French bread. I've got both thanks to Ty's mom. I make our syrup myself - to taste for Miss Molly who is picky about syrup.
Then we'll have a little puppet show. We have some resident puppets we haven't dragged out in a very long time. We have Mr. Devilin. He's a 500 year old mouse who knows simply everyone. He's moves around by an imaginary a red sports car who is in love with Adelaide the rabbit. He thinks she's a mouse as well, but she's retired teaching rabbit who lives in a very proper setting he has trouble fitting into. Her best friend is a skunk named Latisha who is a very active nurse who can't stop trying to tame their rather disgusting charity named Teadore - he's a lizard who has no manners at all. Teadore loves spaghetti and chocolate sauce and has it in for Mr. Devilin because Mr. Devilin keeps trying to expose Teadore's best friend Cricket who pretends to be a frog because bugs simply don't come into the house. They are all rather shaky on their friendship with Jerome Prescott the white barn owl who visits occasionally for a little tea and cordiality.
I haven't brought out the puppets for a long time. It's a lot of work. The kids love to rush the puppets, and it takes all the magic away. Like Lamb Chop and Miss Sherry, there's a distance that's necessary to make it work. So I put them away a year or so ago to return magic and life to them, and now it's time to bring them out again.
Mary Jo Huff is an excellent puppeteer. She's as natural and funny with her puppets as she is with her friends. I envy her ability to bring nearly anything to life. Mary Jo is an exceptional story teller and travels the country telling children stories and bringing to life her wonderful puppets. So as her as our model, we'll add a new dimension to school.
So then we'll get into the paper mache to make every child a string or marionette puppet to take home. We make it with flour and water and newspaper. It's a matter of taking one huge sheet and molding it into something recognizable, adding layers and then and letting it dry. Then, next week we'll begin to add some new pieces like legs and arms one piece at a time, paint them and then hang the strings and the sticks.
The goal is to get the kids to like this messy art and see that with a little work one can take a little bit of nothing and create a treasured toy. I firmly believe that children should know "HOW" to do things.
For lunch it's pizza ( let us know if you want to join us) and if I have time I'll make a batch of fudge and some cookies for snack later.
Fridays are such deliciously fun days!
We're open Monday. Because of all the chaos lately, we will be trying for an International Feast day next Friday. We'll send a letter out about it.
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