Have you ever tried DIY puppet making? Many of us buy our children lots of toys, which can be rather expensive. But the truth is, some of the best toys are handmade and free or very cheap. Take puppets, for instance. A child can get hours of play out of making a puppet and playing with it by telling stories, singing songs, and using their imaginations to develop their own scenarios.
And DIY puppets are easy to make at home!
We've compiled a list of 30+ puppet crafts for kids that'll keep your kids entertained for ages. You'll find paper bag puppets, stick puppets, finger puppets, hand puppets, and more! Whether your child is into Baby Yoda, mermaids, pirates, or giraffes, you'll find a cute puppet to make in the list below.
DIY Puppet Making
Paper Bag Puppets
Mermaid Paper Bag Puppet
Our Mermaid Paper Bag Puppet is perfect for fans of the Little Mermaid. It's also a great activity to do as part of an under-the-sea theme, even though mermaids are fictitious. Kids can use these cute mermaids to re-enact their favorite mermaid stories or scenes from the popular film. Of course, they can make up their own mermaid stories as well!
Pirate Paper Bag Puppet
Yo-ho-ho, mateys! Your kids will adore these cute Pirate Paper Bag Puppets with their cool swords and pirate hats. Follow the printable template to make the boy, girl, or both pirates. You could even mix and match the pieces and dress them in your favorite colors instead of the ones shown here.
Owl Paper Bag Puppet
Whooooo wouldn't love a cute Owl Paper Bag Puppet? It's so bright, colorful, and fun! Use the printable owl template to create these colorful creatures in no time. A white version of this craft would make a perfect snowy owl, too.
Bear Paper Bag Puppet
If you are looking for a simple, but fun paper bag puppet craft then you are going to love this paper bag bear craft puppet. The texture on the bear is made using a fork and brown paint and we have a template available for the simple shapes used to make the bear's features.
Lion and Tiger Paper Bag Puppet
Use our template to make a lion paper bag puppet or a tiger paper bag puppet. The same template can be used for both puppet crafts. Each of these paper bag puppets is made from coloured construction paper.
Monkey Paper Bag Puppet
Use our template to make a monkey paper bag puppet. The same template can also be used to make our paper bag zebra craft.
Zebra Paper Bag Puppet
Use our template to make a zebra paper bag puppet. The same template is used for our monkey puppet craft. Each of these paper bag puppets is made from coloured construction paper.
Baby Yoda Paper Bag Puppet
Baby Yoda has been all the rage in the Star Wars universe for over a year now. If your kids are obsessed with Grogu, make this totally adorable Baby Yoda Paper Bag Puppet from Simple Everyday Mom. It's super easy to make using the printable template.
Dad Paper Bag Puppets
Whether you want to make a cute craft for Father's Day or your little one wants to be just like Daddy, these Paper Bag Dad Puppets from Our Kid Things will bring big smiles to all who play with them. Customize the hair, shirt, and tie colors to make the puppet look just like Dad!
Horton Hears a Who Paper Bag Puppet Craft
Horton is a favorite Dr. Seuss character, and now your kids can enjoy playing with him for hours. This Horton Hears a Who Puppet by Simple Everyday Mom is the perfect craft to accompany the book or the movie.
Stick Puppets
Very Hungry Caterpillar Stick Puppet
You only need paper, popsicle sticks, scissors, and glue to make The Very Hungry Caterpillar Puppet. It looks just like the character from Eric Carle's popular book. It's easy to get all the shapes just right with the printable template. Kids will love these brightly colored puppets during storytime.
Frog Stick Puppet
You'll have loads of fun singing the 5 Little Speckled Frogs nursery rhyme while playing with our Frog Puppet Craft. Use the template, paper, and craft sticks to pull these cute little frogs together in no time. This would also be an excellent craft to make for a frog-themed unit or study on amphibians.
Superhero Stick Puppets
Your little superhero will love these Free Printable Superhero Puppets. They'll provide hours of fun as kids fly them around in their hands. We've included Batman, Superman, Captain America, Iron Man, and others. Create your own superhero puppet show to perform for the family!
Jellyfish Stick Puppets
Look how colorful these Jellyfish Puppets are! They're made with cupcake liners and various colored streamers to make them extra bright and fun. You can make these puppets in just a few minutes, so they're ready to play with quickly!
Bird Stick Puppets
Save your bottle caps to make these brightly-colored Bird Puppets! In addition to the bottle caps, you'll need feathers, googly eyes, paper, and glue. Make your birds as simple or as ornate as you'd like.
Crab Stick Puppets
These Crab Puppets by Kids' Craft Room are so fun! Make them after a day at the beach where you can observe crabs in real life. Use the popsicle stick to make your crab puppet walk sideways, just like a real crab.
Alien Stick Puppets
These cute Alien Stick Puppets are made with paper, glue, and a bit of imagination! Your kids will have so much fun flying around the aliens and the UFO while pretending they're on space adventures.
Outer Space Planet Stick Puppets
These Outer Space Planet Puppets are actually bookmarks, but they'll go nicely with the alien stick puppets mentioned above. Make Earth, the sun, Saturn, and any other planets you'd like.
Leprechaun Stick Puppets
When St. Patrick's Day rolls back around, make our adorable Leprechaun Puppets featuring a leprechaun, rainbow, pot of gold, and shamrock. All you need is craft paper, popsicle sticks, and a few other simple materials to put them together.
Chinese New Year Dragon Stick Puppet
Celebrate the next lunar new year with our bright red Chinese New Year Dragon Puppet. This craft is extra fun because kids get to color in the dragon's face and tail with crayons or markers before creating the accordion body. It's so much fun to make the dragon wave and dance around.
Paper Plate Dragon Stick Puppet
Here's another version of the Chinese New Year dragon: our Paper Plate Dragon Puppet. This one also has the folded paper accordion body to stretch out and compact the dragon while your child plays with it.
Easter Stick Puppets
Tell lovely stories about the Easter Bunny or an egg hunt with our cute Easter Stick Puppets. The templates feature a bunny, a chick, an egg, a flower, and a basket full of eggs.
Scarecrow Stick Puppets
These cute Scarecrow Stick Puppets are perfect for fall or Halloween. The template includes pieces for a scarecrow, crows, pumpkins, and a sunflower. They'll be so much fun paired with a scarecrow story, such as The Scarecrow's Hat, or The Lonely Scarecrow.
Leaf Stick Puppets
These Leaf Puppets are another great fall activity, especially when the leaves are most colorful and bright. Preserve them by laminating them or using contact paper. This also makes them sturdier for play. What will you turn your leaves into?
Paper Owl Stick Puppets
Spend some family time together making these Paper Owl Stick Puppets by Hello, Wonderful. You can make one for each family member, each using different colors. They're adorable for pretend play during the autumn months and would go along nicely with our owl paper bag puppets mentioned above.
Sheep Stick Puppets
Sheep are wonderful subjects for crafting in the spring, as that's when we celebrate Easter. This family of Sheep Puppets by Big Family Blessings is so charming! You have the dad with his bowtie, the mom with flowers in her hair, and the baby. Of course, you can mix and match pieces as needed to create your own family of sheep.
Halloween Stick Puppets
Are you a fan of Halloween? If you are you will love this set of Halloween stick puppets. Use our template to make a bat, ghost, or pumpkin stick puppet.
Finger Puppets
Bee Finger Puppets
These Bee Finger Puppets by A Dab of Glue Will Do will be all the buzz with your kids this spring or summer. Make this craft as part of a bee study unit or just for fun. Make several for each finger so you can fly a family of bees around on your hands!
Giraffe Finger Puppet
How sweet is this Giraffe Finger Puppet from I Heart Crafty Things? Make this cute puppet after a zoo visit or as a craft for a zoo-themed birthday party.
Turkey Finger Puppets DIY
Thanksgiving is a lot more fun with a colorful Turkey Finger Puppet from Artsy Momma. The leaf tail feathers are a brilliant idea, and you can use faux leaves or real ones if you can find some pretty ones while you're out and about. Try a similar craft by making a peacock instead when it's not autumn.
Printable Finger Puppet Crafts
If you want a super simple finger puppet craft then using our printable finger puppets is the way to go! We have a selection of finger puppet crafts available in the Messy Little Monster printable shop.Alphabet Occupation Finger Puppet Crafts
This set of printable occupation puppet crafts has 26 puppets for you to color and make. There are puppets to represent occupations from police officers to zoo keepers, one for each letter of the alphabet.
Farm Animal Finger Puppet Crafts
This set of farm animal puppet crafts has 10 cute farm animal puppets for you to color and make.
Nativity Finger Puppet Crafts
This set of nativity puppet crafts has 10 finger puppets for you to color and make. There are people and animal puppets included to recreate a nativity scene.
Rainforest Animal Finger Puppet Crafts
This set of rainforest animal finger puppet crafts has 10 finger puppets for you to color and make. There are a selection of animals that you would find in a rainforest.
How to make puppets
If that isn't enough DIY puppet craft ideas for you here are a few more puppet making ideas!
Christmas Spoon Puppets
Give the kids something inexpensive to play with this holiday season. These Santa and Rudolph Spoon Puppets will be a huge hit with the kids, and you can make them for almost no money at all, especially if you have some old wooden spoons you need to upcycle, anyway. They're sure to bring lots of holiday cheer to your kids!
No-Sew Shark Hand Puppet
Get ready for Shark Week with an easy peasy Shark Hand Puppet by Surviving a Teacher's Salary. It's amazing what you can make with felt and a glue gun. Move your thumb up and down to make the shark "chomp" with his big white teeth.
Paper Dog Hand Puppet
Puppies are the cutest, and if your kids love puppies, this Dog Hand Puppet by Red Ted Art will go over swimmingly. The moveable mouths make these puppets extra fun. Just look at the bright red tongue hanging out!
Pterodactyl String Puppets
Make these Pterodactyl Puppets fly around on the attached string! Aspiring paleontologists will love these flying dinosaur puppets, and so will parents since the dinos will entertain kids for hours. This project from The Craft Train would make an excellent mobile for a dinosaur-themed nursery as well.
Googly Eyed Hand Puppets
These retro Googly-Eyed Hand Puppets from Handmade Charlotte are sure to get lots of laughs from the kids. They're made with elastic, beads, and a bit of paint. It's amazing all the different "facial expressions" you can make just by changing your fingers' position.
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