Workshops
The development of puppetry workshops for different age groups and applications is an important part of Mock Turtle’s work. We offer lessons in puppetry that range from teacher in-services to early childhood programs; from the festival stage to our own theater at the IceHouse in Bethlehem.
Puppet-making Workshops
Mock Turtle has presented thousands of puppet-making sessions featuring extremely adaptable puppets we call “oakies.” Our oak tag puppets come in great variety to support different lessons and occasions. The workshop puppets we present include a fine menagerie of characters including lions, dragons, aliens, superheroes, presidents, explorers, eagles and holiday figures of all kinds.
Script-writing Workshops
Mock Turtle has a long history of providing standards-based curricular writing lessons. Our lessons focus on solid academic topics such as creative writing, environmental subjects and reading support. The script-writing sessions combine with the puppets to create fresh and surprising results.
Classroom Visits
A post-show tour of the classrooms with our marionettes greatly increases the participatory aspect of an assembly program. Mock Turtle’s fifteen minute classroom visits include short demonstrations of marionettes, a question/answer session and puppet hand shaking at the conclusion.
Teacher In-Services
“Tinker, Tailor, Puppet-maker received high marks (a teacher in-service) and the comments revealed how hungry educators and for the type of program you provided.” Allentown Art Museum
The biggest challenge in educational puppetry is to keep puppet lessons academically appropriate. Our highly participatory puppetry in-services teach strategies for producing great puppet-based lessons while still maintaining the school schedule. Our streamlined production methods and simplified scripts make it possible for any teacher to bring the magic of puppetry into the classroom.
Early Childhood Programs
Mock Turtle has an extensive track record in working with Kindergarten, Pre-school and First Grade students. In a program called “First Puppets” we have explored everything from the alphabet to the seasons: from numbers to letter sounds. And, our oak tag puppets make it possible for students as young as four years old to create a real working character.