Three little kittens–with sock and glove puppets

Today I posted the three little kittens as a puppet play on my YouTube Channel. In case you’re not familiar with this nursery rhyme, here are the words (as I know them):

Three Little Kittens

Once three little kittens, they lost their mittens,

and they began to cry:

“Oh, mother dear, see here, see here,

Our mittens we have lost!”

“What lost your mittens, you naughty kittens,

now you shall have no pie.”

Meow, meow, meow, meow.

 

The three little kittens, they found their mittens,

and they began to cry:

“Oh, mother dear, see here, see here,

our mittens we have found!”

“What found your mittens, you darling kittens,

now you may have some pie.”

Meow, meow, meow, meow.

 

The three little kittens put on their mittens

and soon ate up the pie.

“Oh, mother dear, see here, see here,

our mittens we have soiled!”

“What soiled your mittens, you naughty kittens”

And they began to sigh,

“Meow, meow, meow, meow.”

 

The three little kittens, they washed their mittens

and hung them up to dry.

“Oh, mother dear, see here, see here,

our mittens we have washed.”

“What washed your mittens, you darling kittens!

But I smell a rat close by!”

Meow, meow, meow, meow.

The puppet play

This is a very silly poem–and it has both kittens and mittens in it. Probably why I like it so much. A while back, I made a glove puppet for the three little kittens.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Both are pretty rough and simple–on purpose. But I love making puppets with stuff that I have lying around–although I did buy socks for the 60 or so families in my classes. I certainly didn’t have that many loose socks around!

My hope in making this video was not only that people would hopefully enjoy watching it, but that it would inspire people to make their own simple puppets.

Make some puppets

Many of us are stuck at home. These puppets are super easy to make from stuff you have at home–as long as you have a needle and thread–or you can use glue if you prefer. You’ll probably need a pair of scissors, too. Here are some of my favorite sock puppet tricks:

• if you’re using athletic socks, you can turn them inside out so the fuzzy side is out–that’s what I did for my cats
• if there’s a brand name on the end of the sock, you can just cut it off and sew the end shut
• You can also make more than one puppet from a sock, like I did with the three kittens–just make a cut or two and then sew it together.
• Use any fabric scraps you have around the house–or other unmatched socks or gloves–to make eyes, ears, nose, mouth, whatever you want to add to your puppet. You can give them clothes and hats, too. No need to worry about being silly when you already have a sock on your hand! You can use buttons, too–and anything else you can sew or glue on.
• Little ones will love making and playing with sock puppets. They might need help with cutting, sewing, or gluing–or not.

The same thing goes for making glove puppets. You can have a whole puppet show on one hand. I recently saw a springtime garden glove puppet–very sweet. You can use an old glove you have lying around–like I did. Or if you want it to look nicer, you can find some cotton gloves to use and even dye them if you want.

I’ve also posted a few sewing tutorials on YouTube and here, as well, if you need help getting started with sewing. Here are links to the first 2:

Sewing Basics 1: choosing the right needle

Sewing Basics 2: the running stitch

Poetry Friday

So this old classic is my offering for Poetry Friday. Molly over at Nix the Comfort Zone hosts this week. Check out her blog to see what she has to say about making bread in the time of quarantine and what other poets are writing about this week.

This week, my dad got back the diagnosis that he does have the coronavirus. He’s still at home–in independent living–with my mom. He’s feeling pretty crummy but holding steady.

I think that’s why I took comfort in sharing this childhood favorite. Plus, it feels good to offer something to support families who are struggling right now.

I hope that you and yours are well.

Thanks for stopping by!

xoxo