Puppet projects for Years 5, 6 & 7

If your school is looking for a unique creative challenge for your pupils, look no further! We offer year-long school projects aimed at children in Years 5, 6 & 7, in which each pupil in the class designs and builds a marionette puppet, culminating in a theatrical production at the end of the year. You'll receive all materials and equipment, including the stage, lighting and sound systems for the performances. We can also offer training and support so that one of your teachers or TAs can deliver the project in house, or we can provide you with an external YPPT project leader.

We sometimes run additional projects such as extra-curricular projects for all years in secondary schools, or summer camps, so get in touch if you think there's something else we could offer!

"I really liked learning how to do the lighting, because it was fun learning new skills." (Year 6 pupil, 2015)

Typical Schedule

​Our projects have two parts: making, and rehearsing/performing. We usually deliver the making phase in weekly sessions of around two hours each, lasting for about a term and a half (e.g. September-February). After that, rehearsals and performances are scheduled individually with each school. We are aware of other commitments such as SATs and writing moderation in Year 6, and work with each school to make sure that the scheduling is beneficial to everyone.

"My favourite part of the project was the rehearsals because we could see the play starting to come together and getting better." (Year Six pupil, 2015)

The performances

During the performance, the pupils cover all roles, from narrators and voices to puppeteers, stage managers, stage crew, lighting, sound and special effects. Each pupil has an individual and vital part, and adults are involved only in a supervising role for safety reasons. No part is more important than another, and most roles remain backstage, so the children learn to rely on each other and work as an incredibly close team. This is particularly beneficial to those children who would not be given large roles in a traditional end-of-year performance. You can learn more about the social benefits of the project here.

There are usually several performances at the end of the project so that all members of the school community, including younger children and parents, are able to attend. The YPPT films every production and publishes them to YouTube so that you can rewatch and share the performances with wider family and friends.

If it sounds like fun, get in touch to find out what we could bring to your school!