Melissa & Doug Hand Puppets, Zoo Friends 4 Ea

Ages 2+. 4 soft & cuddly puppets. Sized for children and most adults. Elephant. Giraffe. Tiger. Monkey. Why use puppets with your child? Puppet play is a wonderful way to connect with your child! Acting out scenes, telling stories, practicing new vocabulary, and talking about emotions all tend to feel a little easier with cuddly animals to help. For shy children, speaking through a character can feel a little safer than claiming ideas and emotions as their own. Confident children may be more comfortable talking about feelings or trying out new perspectives when using puppets. And all children can benefit from this playful way to build vocabulary, dexterity, creativity, and imagination! This set includes four puppets to make it easy for children and caregivers to play together. We hope they'll become a part of your everyday playtime - a chance to talk together, laugh together, and share quality time, hand to hand. Extension Activities: Help the child identity each animal. Then make its animal sound together. Help the child describe the colors, patterns, and other details of each animal. Use the puppets to ask the child questions, and let the child ask questions of the puppet, too. For instance, the puppet might ask the child what it's like to be a kid, or ask about favorite snacks, games, or friends. Place one puppet on your hand and one on the child's hand. Use your puppets to ask the child's puppet questions. For instance, put the monkey puppet on and say, I get around quickly by swinging on trees. How do you get from place to place, Tiger? Use the animals to act out a people scene that's familiar to the child. For instance, you might have the elephant go to a friend's birthday party. Allow the child to Join in the scene or simply observe. Use the puppets to act out a challenging social scene, and encourage the child to help you resolve it. For instance, perhaps the giraffe wants to play with the monkey but doesn't know how to ask, or maybe the tiger is being too bossy and the other animals are upset. Encourage the child to make up a story his or her choosing and act it out as a puppet show. Optional: Add a stage for the big performance, make a poster with the name of the play, and collect tickets from the audience members. Melissa & Doug products meet or exceed US testing standards and pass our high quality requirements. We care about your comments. Please call us! 1-800-284-3948. www.MellisaAndDoug.com. Made in China.