The Use and Development of Puppetry in the Elementary
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THE USEu AND DEVELOPMENT OF PUPPETRY IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS A Project Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School University of Southern California In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science in Education by Carole Ivey Hilton h v August 1967 UMI Number: EP52096 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI EP52096 Published by ProQuest LLC (2014). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code Que CT ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 6JL. This project report, written under the direction of the candidate’s adviser and approved by him, has been presented to and accepted by the faculty of the School of Education in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Education. Date. Adviser Dean TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF F I G U R E S ................................... iv Chapter I. THE PROBLEM AND DEFINITION OF TERMS . 1 The Problem The Importance of the Problem Delimitation Definition of Terms Organization of Remainder of the Study II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ............... 15 History Early Greek and Roman Puppetry The Hindu Tradition Books of Special Interest Educational and Therapeutic Interests Creative Dramatics III. HISTORY OF PUPPETRY ..........................45 Puppets of Hindu Tradition Indonesia China Japan Turkey Puppets of European Origin Greece and Rome Middle Ages Italy France Germany ii Chapter Page Austria Russia Czechoslovakia England America IV. CONSTRUCTION OF PUPPETS AND STAGES 99 Finger Puppets Stick Puppets Hand Puppets Marionettes Shadow Puppets Puppet Stages Shadow Theater V. THE USE OF PUPPETRY IN THE CLASSROOM 156 Motivating Aspects Exploration Activity Manipulation Creative Aspect Discovering Creative Potential Self-Satisfaction Social Aspect Implementation Language Arithmetic VI. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS . 184 BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................... 187 iii LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Finger Puppets (Type A) . 101 2. Finger Puppets (Type B) ....... 102 3. Stick Puppets (Paper Bag Type) ............. 106 4. Stick Puppets (Paper Plate Type) .... 10 8 5. Stick Puppets (Cut-out Type) . 109 6. Molded Head Type. .................... Ill 7. Glove Puppets (Cat or R a b b i t ) ................. 112 8. Glove Puppets (Spider) ................... 112 9. Sock Puppet .................................... 115 10. Stuffed Puppet .................... 115 11. Sock Puppet Construction ....... 116 12. Steps in Modeling Clay Face for Papier Mache 119 13. Hair Styles .................... 124 14. Undergarment for Papier Mache Puppet . 126 15. Construction for Hands, Legs, and Feet . 129 16. Trousers ....................................... 132 17. Finger Positions for Hand Puppets .... 134 18. Marionette ....................................137 19. Hand and Foot of Marionette.................... 139 iv Figure Page 20. Manipulation of Marionette .................... 141 21. Cut-out Shadow Puppet ...................... 146 22. Cut-out Shadow Puppet ...................... 147 23. Rod P u p p e t s ........................ 148 24. Stages ................................ 150 25. Stand for T h e a t e r .............................151 26. Stage Curtains ............................ 153 v CHAPTER I i THE PROBLEM AND DEFINITION OF TERMS | Educators throughout the United States are con fronted with the challenging problem of seeking new and effective methods of teaching today's children. Since 19 57 i"creativeI teaching" has become almost a theme song. The 1960 White House Conference Report urged that creative activities and personal participation by pupils be en- S couraged and that more emphasis be placed on providing I children with creative outlets, thus increasing their appreciation in the arts. The magnetism of this topic is evidenced by its appearance on the agenda for nearly every conference, work shop, or institute when educators meet to discuss their most pressing problems. It is a major topic in newspapers, magazines and books. The search for creative teaching techniques is the essence of good teaching. The creative ,teacher is a learner, willing to experiment and explore a iwide variety of resources and materials which will capti vate, enhance and sustain each child's interest, thus : 2 releasing the creative potential of each of her pupils. i i ' The Problem i The purpose of the study was to establish that | I:puppetry m the elementary classroom is^ an intrinsic• and extrinsic motivating agent and that its use is an important creative technique which is therapeutic, educational and entertaining. In tracing puppetry in civilizations of antiquity to the present day in different areas throughout the world, it was found that it has universal appeal to young and old. It is an art that has withstood social and cultural changes, decadence and subsequent revival con sistently, yet has retained its essential, individual traits. No other art offers such a variety of self-satis fying rewards for its creator,.manipulator and observer. No other art has such educational and therapeutic value | for people of all ages. No art has such high versatility, being used on all age levels, from a simple stick puppet I to a finished marionette production. No art can be so I easily integrated in all subjects of the curriculum, and [ i still be commanding and divertive. Surely such an art deserves recognition as an excellent teaching aid, and i should be a part of modern day curriculum. 3 I The Importance of the Problem I The complexities of our civilization increase with each generation; philosophies broaden, technologies accumu- !late and sociological problems intensify. Society has great need for creative people. Science and art depend on creativity because both rely on imagination to produce new ideas, products or inventions. Governments depend on I I creativity because of man's proven destructive potential of science. Business and technology are interested in icreativity to discover new ideas for productivity. Reli- i j gion seeks fresh creative approaches to moral problems I lbecause old meanings are not so durable and need replace- i ment or revitalization by new creations. But creativity is primarily a personal and individual process, not a social phenomenon.^ So it becomes the legitimate respons- 'ibility of the schools to discover, encourage and develop i creativity. 1 The importance to our country of the constant ,quest for ways to identify, encourage, develop creativity ^"Frank Barron, "Creativity: What Research Says About It," NEA Journal, L, (March, 1951), p. 17. j in all our students is attested by the fact that the j United States Senate approved the "National Arts and Cul tural Development Act" December 20, 196 3. The bill author ized an appropriation of $5,000,000 for the first year, j and $10,000,000 for each year thereafter. These sums are to be disbursed to non-profit professional groups to pro vide "productions which have substantial artistic and I cultural significance, giving emphasis to American Creativ- o ity." With this national concern and backing, a new emphasis on creative teaching has been stimulated. I i Many years of research has revealed that every child has some degree of creative potential which seeks i |expression. It is difficult to recognize this innate I I ability in a child. It can be, and is often stifled by peers and teachers. It should be encouraged not only for the sake of society, but also for the personal development and mental health of the individual. ! Most researchers attest that the creative potential is independent of the intelligence. The I.Q. has for many I iyears been overemphasized. In testing, the creative abil- 2Fred B. Dixon and Clarence H. Spain, "The Search for Creativity," The Clearing House (November, 1963), 166. 5 ity of children has not been taken into consideration. One seven-year-old Mongoloid pupil had the ability to pantomime his past experiences and future desires so skill fully that he communicated effectively with almost everyone he met. Creating puppets is an activity, in which each child has the opportunity to make an image, be it an animal or human, completely his own, prompted by his own imagina tion and inventiveness. The child with the low I.Q. can create a puppet successfully as can the gifted, and quite often more effectively. His creation is an entity in it self, unique, a figment, a thing to which he can add life. It is the bringing life to the puppet that flings each child into spontaneous and imaginative activity. Creativeness is personal. It happens only within the in dividual. As the puppet comes to life, it brings new life to its creator. The child is compelled to either talk to the puppet or talk for it. He taps his inner resources, interprets and relates facts, recalls certain apprecia tions, skills and attitudes which he has learned and de veloped in his everyday experiences. ^Rodney Tillman, "Creative Children: Their Rights and Our Responsibilities," Minnesota Journal of Education (November, 1964), p. 16. 6 The puppet quite often can encourage what the teacher sometimes cannot— facial, vocal and bodily expres sion. As the child brings life to his puppet, he unknow ingly is in a familiar world, that of make-believe. He is not conscious of creating a character, he is not repeating a prepared script. He is involved in unrehearsed, spon taneous and impromptu behavior. Older children in using their puppets quite likely are motivated by their produc tion and audience, but the young child does not need an audience for it may limit or inhibit his creativeness. Puppetry has its chief value in providing an oppor tunity for team work. The production of a puppet play is a cooperative venture.