Students explore Chinese shadow puppets, woodworking techniques and the elements of design to create their own shadow puppets.
Woodworking Techniques, Studies of Asia, Elements of Design, Shadow Puppets, Technology.
Australian Curriculum Design and Technologies
Years 7 and 8 Achievement Standard
By the end of Year 8, students explain factors that influence the design of products, services and environments to meet present and future needs. Theyexplain the contribution of design and technology innovations and enterprise to society. Students explain how the features of technologies impact on designed solutions and influence design decisions for each of the prescribed technologies contexts.
Students create designed solutions for each of the prescribed technologies contexts based on an evaluation of needs or opportunities. They develop criteria for success, including sustainability considerations, and use these to judge the suitability of their ideas and designed solutions and processes. They create and adapt design ideas, make considered decisions and communicate to different audiences using appropriate technical terms and a range of technologies and graphical representation techniques. Students apply project management skills to document and use project plans to manage production processes. They independently and safely produce effective designed solutions for the intended purpose.
Design and Technologies: Knowledge and Understanding
Investigate the ways in which products, services and environments evolve locally, regionally and globally and how competing factors including social, ethical and sustainability considerations are prioritised in the development of technologies and designed solutions for preferred futures (ACTDEK029)
Analyse ways to produce designed solutions through selecting and combining characteristics and properties of materials, systems, components, tools and equipment (ACTDEK034)
Design and Technologies: Processes and Production Skills
Critique needs or opportunities for designing and investigate, analyse and select from a range of materials, components, tools, equipment and processes to develop design ideas (ACTDEP035)
Generate, develop, test and communicate design ideas, plans and processes for various audiences using appropriate technical terms and technologies including graphical representation techniques (ACTDEP036)
Select and justify choices of materials, components, tools, equipment and techniques to effectively and safely make designed solutions (ACTDEP037)
Independently develop criteria for success to evaluate design ideas, processes and solutions and their sustainability (ACTDEP038)
Use project management processes when working individually and collaboratively to coordinate production of designed solutions (ACTDEP039)
Learning Goal:To demonstrate what you know about puppets and about Chinese puppets.
Using the resources available, make a puppet.
Clip your puppet to the A3 piece of paper and answer the following questions:
1. Why did you make the kind of puppet you did?
2. Why did you use these particular colours and patterns? Is there any special meaning behind these?
3. Why did you use these particular materials?
4. Do you think it might be similar to a Chinese puppet?
Then answer these questions:
1. What do you know about Chinese puppets?
2. List all the things you know about China.
Comment: Do you think puppets are important in Chinese culture? Why/why not? Read other students' comments and comment on 1-2. Explain why you agree or disagree with them. Start with @Name so they know you are commenting on their comment.
Give the students a range of mediums i.e. textas, pencils, paper, bamboo, paddle pop sticks, glue, split pins etc. You will also need A3 paper and question sheet.
This activity will form the 'pre-data'. The questions are designed to elicit responses that show the students' understanding of Chinese puppetry and culture.
This will be used in an action research project which will focus on how learning about Chinese culture in a practical subject develops students' knowledge and understanding of China and how it impacts on their attitudes.
This activity will also show the students the connections between the cultural focus and the practical focus of studying woodwork.
This learning module was part of an action research project which is reported in the PPT.
Learning Goal: To collaborate and document all of the class' knowledge about puppets.
In a group and using an A-Z brainstorm, list anything you know about puppets. Include names, types of puppets, where they are seen, materials they are made from etc.
Comment: One person in your group should add one of your group's ideas in the comment box. Keeping addding ideas until you run out. Other members of the group should keep looking at the comment box to make sure that there is no repetition of ideas and giving advice to the recorder about what to add.
This brainstorm is designed to focus students on puppets, including what, when, where and how. Some students will have limited knowledge so the collaboration will support them.
This is a type of Round Robin activity, but with an innovation of documenting ideas in an online forum. Round Robin is an effective collaborative strategy to encourage students to generate a range of data in a short period of time.
Learning Goal: To find out about all the different puppets around the world.
You are going to watch some video clips of puppet shows from different countries and of different kinds of puppets. At the end of each clip you will be given some time to respond to the video clip of the puppet show you just saw.
In your response to each of the video clips you need to record:
Watch the puppet shows again. Does it change how you feel watching it a second time? Change your responses if you like.
Comment: Which clip did you enjoy the most? Explain why? Read other students' comment son comment on any that you found interesting. Explain why. Start with @Name so they know that you are commenting on their comment.
The purpose of this activity is to expand students' knowledge base of the different types of puppet shows and engage them in the learning module.
Show a range of video clips of puppets. Choose images such as muppets, marionette, ventriloquist, shadow and hand puppets.
Some suggestions (you might add any more you can find that are relevant for your students):
Little Red Riding Hood Puppet Show
Richard Bradshaw - Shadow Puppeteer
Shadow Puppet Theatre by Richard Bradshaw Australia - super kangaroo
Muppet Show - Mahna Mahna...m HD 720p bacco... Original!
Traditional Puppet Theatre from Italy
Indian Shadow Puppet Animation - by Gul Ramani
National Marionette Theatre Presents Pinocchio!
At the end of each clip allow students to respond to the clip they just saw. Write the three things that need to be included in their response on the board for students to reference. Together with the class devise a series of 5 or so smiley faces to describe happy, sad, suprised, scared, angry etc.
Encourage students to try to guess where the puppet show originated from and to discuss their ideas with the class before explicitly telling them where the clip is from.
Once all puppet shows have been watched once and students have responded, watch clips again and allow students to adjust their response if desired.
At the end of watching the clips for a second time allow students to discuss their responses as a class.
Learning Goal:To understand what a puppet really is.
In groups of 3-4 together come up with an answer to "What is a puppet"?
You can look up information to support your definition.
Comment: One person in your group should write the definition in the coment box. Then all group members should read other groups' definitions and add ideas. Keep redefining until there is an agreed class definition.
Defining a Puppet
Divide class up into small groups. Provide each group with a piece of A3 paper and textas.
The task is for students to define what is a puppet by first brainstorming and then coming up with a sentence.
This activity will show where students' understanding is currently at.
Pin the posters around the room for students to reference throughout the unit. It will be revisited later in the unit to see how students' understanding has changed.
Learning Goal: To understand the cultural influences on puppet shows.
Thinking about the puppet show video clips we watched last lesson, what things do we need to add to our puppet and/or puppet show to be:
Work in pairs to add more ideas through discussion.
Comment: Share what you consider to be the most important idea from the discussion you had in a pair. Read what other students write and comment on any that you found interesting. Explain why. Start with @Name so they know you are commenting on their comment.
Students use their new knowledge gained from the puppet show video clips to consolidate their knowledge and theorize how puppet shows differ from culture to culture.
The comments are a way of having a class discussion.
Learning Goal: To understand the importance of shadow puppetry in China and its uses.
Watch Chinese Shadow Puppetry.
Record key ideas fro the video clip. The research other important information that you can find.
Comment: Write down any important information that you find. Include a link to the information. Take a link that another student's post. Then add a comment on what you found interesting. Start with @Name so they know you are commenting on their comment.
The Youtube video explores the uses of shadow puppetry in China e.g. as a way of passing on stories, entertainment, and a form of entertainment that crosses language barriers.
The objective of this activity is to enable students to draw out the importance of shadow puppetry in China and its uses.
Posting a link encourages students to be active knowledge makers, contributing information to the class community.
Learning Goal: To develop your understanding of the importance of Chinese puppetry.
Use a Think-Pair-Square to discuss why Chinese puppetry is important. Record the key ideas of the discussion in your book.
Comment: How is shadow puppetry important to Chinese history? Chinese people? You? Read other students' comments and comment on any that you think are interesting. Explain why.
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The aim of this activity is for students to analyse the importance of Chinese puppetry. Use a Think-Pair-Square to develop students' ideas through talk and to give them agency.
THINK-PAIR-SHARE
Attempt to tackle a new question or problem by silent thinking, comparison with another learner’s attempt to answer the same question, and share this dialogue with other learners.
Adaptations of this strategy include Think-Write-Pair Share and Timed-Pair-Share.
THINK-PAIR-SQUARE
Follow the same procedure as a Think-Pair-Share. After sharing in pairs, the pair of students find another pair and share their ideas with them before sharing with the whole class.
Learning Goal: To understand how you can use the elements of design to shape the character of your puppet.
Look at examples of Chinese puppets. Use a retrieval chart to explore the effects of the different elements of design and how it shapes the character of the puppet.
| Element | Example | Effects |
|---|---|---|
| Colour | ||
| Line | ||
| Shape | ||
| Tone/Value | ||
| Texture | ||
| Size | ||
| Space |
Comment: What elements do you think are most important in shaping character. Give reasons for your opinion. Comment on other students' comments that you think are interesting.
In this activity students have experience in analysing the effects of the elements of design.
This activity will help them to better understand the use of the elements of design in Chinese puppetry.
Firstly, the teacher leads/models an example with the class; then students work in small groups to complete the rest.
Learning Goal: To understand the function of the tools needed to make a puppet.
Look at the tools that are needed for making puppets. Complete the table. First use your own words to describe the tool. Look up a dictionary if you need help. Then theorise what each process is used for.
Comment: Are there any other tools that you think would be useful when making puppets?
| Process |
Image (Describe) |
What is it used for? What does it do? |
| Chiselling | ||
| Drilling | ||
| Filing | ||
| Joining | ||
| Sanding |
Students are given five labels and five pictures. They theorise which process belongs to which picture and then what each process actually does.
The purpose of this activity is to focus on a range of woodwork processes and their functions. Students will use these processes in creating their shadow puppets.
Learning Goal: To understand what is important in the process of constructing a puppet.
Watch as the teacher demonstrates each process.
Comment: Look at the table you completed on the woodwork processes. Were you correct? What is one important thing you have learnt about how to construct a puppet?
Teacher demonstrates the following steps to construct a shadow puppet:
Learning Goal: To start your design project.
Brainstorm in your book what the character of your puppet is like. Is your puppet evil, rich, nice etc?
You will need to draw a 300mm x 45mm rectangle to work within.
Using all that you know about Chinese puppets design the shape of your puppet to reflect the character you have decided upon. Example: If your puppet's character is evil, it will have a long pointy nose and you will paint in mostly red.
Once you have drawn the shape into your book, use arrows around your puppet pointing to different parts and write the tools and techniques you will need to use to make your puppet.
Example: If you had a line pointing to the face, you will need to use a small chisel to carve out the nose and then a file to smooth edges.
Write the steps you need to make your puppet. Swap with a friend and see if you have missed anything.
Make your puppet. Write a report on your project:
Describe the steps you took to make your puppet and the tools you used.
Describe the elements of design, how you used them and what effects they have in creating the character of your puppet and its cultural significance.
What safety issues were important to address?
What problems did you encounter? How did you resolve them?
Include a photograph of your puppet and any images that illustrate the processes, tools and design.
Comment: What questions do you have about your design project. Post them here. Perhaps someone in your class can help you by answering.
Students to use all their knowledge about shadow puppets and woodworking processes to design their own puppet.
Encourage students to refer back to the images of puppets and the tables they have already completed on the significance of puppetry and the elements of design.
Students apply all the skills they have gained to create their own puppet. Through a Scholar project, they describe and evaluate their projects, giving and receiving feedback before submitting their projects for publication to their personal profiles.
Project Rubric
Learning Goal: To demonstrate your understanding of Chinese shadow puppetry through a puppet show.
In a group create a story using your puppet's character. Your story could use words or the story could be told with music.
Map out your story with your group in your book. Your performance needs to go for 30 seconds.
Perform to class or you can make a video and share it with your peers.
Comment: What do you think was the best part of your puppet show? What did other students do well? Comment on their performances by starting with @Name.
The purpose of this activity is for students to take their learning one step further by seeing how their puppet works in performance.
Encourage students to create a short script as they interact with other students. Some students may create a makeshift stage or this could be built as an extension activity.
Learning Goal: To reflect on your project.
Create an Update in which you reflect on your project. Here is what you should write about in the Update:
1. Do you think it is valuable to learn about other cultures in woodwork? Why/Why not?
2. Complete the chart on learning about other cultures. List all the plusses and minuses.
| + | - |
Now reflect on your own puppet by answering these questions:
1. Why did you make the kind of puppet you did?
2. Why did you use these particular colours and patterns? (Is there any special meaning behind these?)
3. Why did you use these particular materials?
4. Do you think it might be similar to a Chinese puppet?
Then these questions:
1. What do you know about Chinese puppets?
2. List all the things you know about China.
3. Do you think puppets are important in Chinese culture? Why/Why not?
Comment: What did you enjoy most in this project. Give reasons. Read other students' comments and comment on any that you agee with. Explain why.
Reflection and post data
Students reflect on the unit by answering a question and completing a plus and minus chart.
This activity will form the 'post-data'. The questions are designed to elicit responses that show how students valued the unit.
The reflection on their own puppet by students will add to the 'post-data' and should show evidence of learner transformation.
The original version of this learning module was designed by Keturah Gill and Kim Smith.
Title: (Source); Fig. 1: (Source); Fig. 2: (Source); Fig. 3: (Source); Fig. 4: (Source); Fig. 5: (Source); Fig. 6: (Source); Fig. 7: (Source); Fig. 8: Elements of Design (Source); Fig 9: Tools - Keteurah Gill; Fig. 10: Photograph by Keteurah Gill; Fig. 11: Photograph by Keteurah Gill; Fig. 12: (Source); Fig. 13: (Source).