free puppet scripts Archives - Amazing Catechists

Free puppet ministry scripts by Lisa Mladnich are back! A few years ago, she released some of her scripts here on amazingcatechists.com. The scripts were then made available on catholicmom.com, but were lost during a re-design of that site.

Today, I am sharing lots of puppet ministry resources as well as the free puppet ministry scripts as PDFs! We are excited to make this fun and engaging resource available to catechists and families once again.

What is a puppet ministry?

In short, a puppet ministry is a joyful, playful, and effective way to teach children the Catholic faith – with puppet shows! Children of all ages love puppet shows (both watching and participating in them!), so this is a fun way to illustrate a number of catechetical topics for the children.

A puppet ministry could be just one or two volunteer catechists who pass on puppet scripts and ideas to other catechists for religious education classes. They could help organize puppet shows for the classes from time to time. Or, plan when all of the catechists could offer certain shows during class.

Alternatively, you could create a larger puppet ministry team made up of parish volunteers. Both adults and children could participate. Then, they could all come together and offer puppet shows in their parish and/or community! Imagine a Catholic puppet ministry that traveled to local libraries and/or schools to share our beautiful Catholic faith!

Or, if your parish has a mommy and me group, you could bring your puppet ministry to the little ones there!

A puppet ministry does not have to be complicated at all. If you get a bunch of people who are really interested you could even create a team of puppeteers to make puppets for the children (see below).

Puppet Ministry Resources and Supplies

Now, we will start by discussing what you will need for your puppet ministry. Again, keeping it simple is usually best! Here are some ideas.

Puppet Ministry Stage

For the puppet shows, you can make the stage as simple or as fancy as you would like! In fact, you don’t even need a stage at all.

The classroom as your stage

It is very effective to simply gather the children in a circle on a rug during your regular CCD class. This allows you to physically get on the children’s’ level and easily engage them in the puppet fun. Work your puppet shows into the lesson, and it will become something that the children look forward to every class.

Puppet ministry shows in your parish community

If there is interest and energy among your students and some dedicated volunteers, you could take your puppet ministry outside the classroom! Maybe you could perform a puppet show for each liturgical season. You could really be creative and go all out with a large puppet stage and elaborate puppets.

A parish puppet show could also be a great community service opportunity for the children and teens of your parish. You could charge money or ask for donations for the show. Then, have the children help you choose a cause or organization to donate the money from their puppet show.

Puppet Ministry Supplies

The only things you really need for your puppet show are 1. puppets and 2. the free puppet ministry scripts. You may wish to print your puppet scripts and keep them organized in a binder or folder with brads. We will talk more about creating and gathering puppets below.

You could also include simple props. For example, a stable and manger would be so sweet for a Nativity puppet show. Or, palm branches and pieces of various small pieces of fabric (to represent the people’s cloaks) to lay out would be perfect and simple for a Palm Sunday show.

Puppets for Church Ministry

Here are some ideas for the puppets that you can use for your shows:

any puppets you already have on hand
paper bag puppets (the children could also make their own!)
sock puppets (you can also DIY these)
finger puppets
popsicle stick puppets (just print or draw the pictures you need on study paper and attach to a popsicle stick)
felt hand puppets (DIY or purchase)
shadow puppets! You just need a flashlight and your hands or some simple silhouettes!
any puppets purchased from a site such as these or these, and how amazingly gorgeous are these? Puppet fundraiser, anyone??

How to Perform the Show

Before you begin, please read Lisa’s note on reverence here.

Lisa also gives the history of her puppet scripts and simple instructions for performing your puppet show in her Advent puppet script post here.

She says:

“Simply sit with the script pages laid out on a desk or story rug and gather the children around you, or hand out copies and use it as a skit for older students to act out together in front of the class.

Use a different “voice” for each of the two characters, moving the one that is speaking, to make it clear for the children.

Some of them are wacky and silly, while others are more reverent. Be sensitive to mood, and have fun!”

Free Puppet Ministry Scripts PDFs

Excited about starting a puppet ministry in your parish? Lisa has agreed to generously provide all of her puppet scripts for free! Browse the entire collection below, click to download, and enjoy! I have also provided the link to relevant articles available for certain puppet scripts.

A note from Lisa:

“Feel free to change the names, add or subtract from the content, and share my free script in any way that helps you catechize and enjoy the season with your family, your students, or your parish. I recommend it be used as a puppet show for little ones or a skit to be performed by your confident readers!

NOTE: The only thing I ask is that you not sell the scripts. I own the copyrights and I’d like to keep them free for everyone. If you charge for performances, that’s fine. I know your ministries can use all the help they can get!”

(If you do find the puppet scripts and other free resources on our site useful and would like to make a donation to help keep the site running, you can do so here.)