Yee Haw! Cowboy and Cowgirl Puppets

Everyone needs their very own cowboy or cowgirl puppet for creating playtime at the rodeo! Your child can create their own puppet complete with a 10-gallon hat using a paper bag, construction paper, yarn and their most country-western imaginations for a hee-haw of a good time!

What You Need:

• Brown paper lunch bag
• Yarn for hair
• Brown construction paper for hat and hands
• Colored construction paper for arms
• Oil pastels
• White glue

What You Do:

1. Place a folded brown paper lunch bag in front of you, flat on a table. The “bottom” of the bag should be at the top. Set aside.
2. Draw out a 10-gallon hat from the brown construction paper. Measure it against the bag to make sure it is as large as you want it. Usually, a 10-gallon hat is a bit taller than most other hats.
3. Cut pieces of yarn as long as you want them for hair. If mom or dad helps, you can braid longer hair for the cowgirl, or use short choppy hair for the cowboy.
4. Flip the brown paper bag over, and glue the hair down one piece of yarn at a time using white glue. The hair should be glued about one inch from the top of the bag pointing upwards.
5. Glue the 10-gallon hat on top of the yarn. Flip the bag over and press firmly on the top of the bag helping to glue the bag, hair and the hat together. Set aside to dry.
6. Draw a giant “U” for the arms for your cowboy or cowgirl on the colored construction paper. Cut out the “U” making the arms as thick as you like for your puppet.
7. Turn the “U” upside down and glue it so the inside edge of the bottom of the “U” matches up with the bottom of the paper bag. Use white glue to attach the arms to the bag.
8. Cut out small hands from the brown construction paper and glue them behind the wrists.
9. Use colored oil pastels to draw in your cowboy or cowgirl’s face. The top lip should start just at the bottom fold of the brown paper bag, and the bottom lip should be drawn just under it on the flat part of the bag. When the bag is unfolded, the mouth should open for talking. Cowgirls can have long eyelashes and rosy cheeks. Cowboys often times have freckles.
10. Draw an outfit for your cowboy or cowgirl. Checkerboards and plaids are often favorite designs worn on ranches!
11. Open the mouth (or gently fold back the bottom of the bag so the “mouth” opens). Draw the inside of the mouth.

Now, it’s time to ride a horse to the rodeo and lasso some cattle! YEE HAW!