A den leader asked me recently about ideas for gathering activities. The main purpose of a gathering activity is to give the Cub Scouts something to do while everyone is arriving. If it happens to fulfill a requirement or fit in with something that we are doing, all the better. I don’t usually do games as gathering activities, since these tend to get the kids all wound up before the meetings even begin.
Paper bag puppets make a great gathering activity. If your meeting has a theme, you can encourage them to make puppets along that line, but anything is fine as long as their hands are busy cutting and pasting.
Paper Bag Puppets
- paper lunch bags
- construction paper
- fun foam
- other craft materials
- Place a paper bag with the fold side up on the table.
- The top of the mouth should be located on the bottom of the bag, where the bottom touches the side when folded. Mark the top of the mouth on the bag.
- The bottom of the mouth should be on the side of the bag, directly under the mouth. Mark the location of the bottom of the mouth.
- Mark where the eyes, nose, ears, etc will be on the bottom of the bag.
- Use the yarn, construction paper, fun foam, felt, markers, and other materials to decorate your puppet and add features. Don’t just decorate the face – add arms, clothes, or other features also!
- If you want to, decorate the part which is hidden when the bag is lying flat(between the bottom of the bag and the side of the bag) like the inside of the mouth.
- Place your hand in the paper bag and move the bottom of the bag away from the side to make the puppet “talk”.