Jones Elementary School student Justin MacDougall plays with a puppet during a puppet show at the school last week.

From creation through performance, the entertaining art of puppetry was shared last week with students in the Early Childhood Center at the Jones Elementary School.

With a grant from the Stoughton Cultural Council, the school hired Puppeteer Judith O'Hare to host in-classroom workshops as well as a performance for the whole school.

In the classroom setting, O'Hare introduced a grandmother puppet to the children. She explained the puppet's character and then demonstrated how to use it. From a large bag of puppets, O'Hare offered each student one to explore and use. 

After playing with the puppets, the children watched a short toy theatre presentation by O'Hare. Small marionette-styled puppets were used in the production.

"The children appeared mesmerizedÖwith the hand puppets and the Ömarionettes," said Jones preschool teacher Nicole Sutka.

For many of the children, the puppets really came to life and represented a true character, said Sutka. "It was amazing to see such drama and creativity stimulated."

Read the complete article in the Stoughton Journal.