Does The Use of Puppets Benefit Singing PDF

Title of project:
Does the use of puppets benefit singing
among a group of 3 4 year old children?
Name: Diana Geak Lai Lim-Kemper
Student No: 11761780
Year of submission: July 2013
Research in Professional Practice submitted in part fulfilment of the
award of MA Education (Early Years) at Birmingham City University.
Word count: 10,506

Table of Contents
1.0. Abstract ................................................................................................... 1

2.0. Introduction ............................................................................................ 2
3.0. Review of Relevant Literature ............................................................... 5
3.1. Puppetry in music education ................................................................................ 5
3.2. Puppetry in education (in general) ....................................................................... 6
3.3. Student attention and involvement with the use of puppetry in the classroom .... 8
4.0. Research Design: Methodology.......................................................... 12
4.1. Research Strategy ............................................................................................. 12
4.2. Data Collection Instruments ............................................................................... 13
4.3. Reliability ............................................................................................................ 13
4.4. Methods ............................................................................................................. 14
4.5. Ethics ................................................................................................................ 18
4.6. Issues Encountered ........................................................................................... 21
4.7. Research Objective ........................................................................................... 23
5.0. The Investigation: Adult-led group work ........................................... 25
5.1. Analysis of data and Discussion of results ........................................................ 28
5.2. Case Studies ...................................................................................................... 36
5.2.1. Analysis of data and Discussion of results ................................................. 38
5.3. Free-play observation involving puppetry and music ......................................... 41
5.3.1. Analysis of data and Discussion of results ................................................. 43
6.0. Conclusion ............................................................................................ 45
7.0. References ............................................................................................ 48
8.0. Appendices:
Appendix 1 Letter seeking permission from the Head Teacher ................. 53
Appendix 2 Letter seeking permission from the Homeroom Teacher ......... 55
Appendix 3 Consent Letter to Childrens Parents ....................................... 57
Appendix 4: Observational grid 5: Rhythm perception & Voice development
skills (without puppets) ................................................................................... 59
Appendix 8: Observational grid 9: Listening skills (with puppets) .................. 61
Appendix 9: Observational grid 10: Listening skills (with puppets) ................ 61
Appendix 10: Observational grid 11: Listening skills (with puppets) ............. 62
Appendix 11: Observational grid 12: Listening skills (with puppets) ............. 62
Appendix 12: Observational grid 13: Listening skills (without puppets) ........ 63
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Appendix 16: Observational grid 17: Participation & Involvement

(with puppets) ................................................................................................ 65
(with puppets) ................................................................................................ 65
(with puppets) ................................................................................................ 66
(with puppets) ................................................................................................ 66
(without puppets) ........................................................................................... 67
(without puppets) ........................................................................................... 67
(without puppets) ........................................................................................... 68
(without puppets) ........................................................................................... 68
Appendix 24: Observational grid 25: Behaviour condition
(with puppets) ................................................................................................ 69
(with puppets) ................................................................................................ 69
(with puppets) ................................................................................................ 70
(with puppets) ................................................................................................ 70
(without puppets) ........................................................................................... 71
(without puppets) ........................................................................................... 71
(without puppets) ........................................................................................... 72
(without puppets) ........................................................................................... 72
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List of Figures
Figure 1: Timetable for adult-led group work (Week 02 & Week 03) ........................ 25
Figure 2: Observational grid 1: Rhythm perception & Voice development skills

(with puppets) ............................................................................................................ 28

(with puppets) ............................................................................................................ 29

(with puppets) ............................................................................................................ 29

(with puppets) ............................................................................................................ 30
Figure 6: Rhythm perception & Voice development skills ......................................... 31
Figure 7: Listening skills ............................................................................................ 32
Figure 8: Participation & Involvement ....................................................................... 34
Figure 9: Behaviour condition ................................................................................... 35
Figure 10: Timetable and data collected for case studies (Week 03) ....................... 38
Figure 11: Timetable for free-play observations (Week 03 & Week 04) .................. 41
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Acknowledgements
First of all, I would like to thank my supervisors for their guidance, constructive advice
and support during the process of my research work and writing. Secondly, I would
like to express my gratitude to the parents of the children for granting me permission
to use their children for my study. I also thank all the participants, especially the
children from Early Learning 1 and the homeroom teacher, who worked with me to
make my research possible. Without their help, I could not have gathered all the
essential data needed to develop my study. I also thank my colleagues from the
Early Learning Centre for their support throughout my study and process of my
research work. To my school director (my employer), I would also like to express my
gratitude. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to grow professionally. I also thank
my friend Doerthe for patiently going through my writing and making improvisation.
Your help is greatly appreciated. To my friends at CREC, I am glad to have met a
group of wonderful people. Thank you for the friendship and support that we give one
another. Last but not least, I would like to thank my husband who supported me
throughout my research work by providing me the encouragement and strength to
carry on, especially during stressful times.
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1.0. Abstract
This article is about singing with puppets and without puppets among a group
of 3 to 4 year old pre-school children, from at least ten different nationalities.
The article also describes the ways in which the puppets were used in the
pre-school music classes. During the study, the children are observed as they
work and play imaginatively in both a structured and unstructured way.
Results from the three different studies, using three different research
methods indicated that singing with puppets had both positive and negative
effects on childrens singing and voice development, listening skills, level of
participation and involvement and their behaviour condition. The article
concludes with implications for the researchers professional practice and
reflections for improving future researches in this area.
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2.0. Introduction
Children are active learners and for most of us who work with young children,
we are aware that children develop at their own pace, due to the many
different factors that influence their growth, development and learning. In
music learning too, each individual child learns at his or her own pace.
Through my music teaching experiences with groups of young children in an
international school environment, I have observed and followed their
individual pace of development through some of the following music learning
outcomes:
To be able to sing familiar songs individually and with others and to be
able to recall a simple tune.
To be able to play simple rhythms with a steady beat individually and
with others and to be able to recognise and explore ways in which
sounds can be made, changed and organised.
To be able to play a simple rhythmic pattern with teacher guidance
using body percussion or classroom instruments.
To be able to understand that music is used for a variety of different
purposes.
These learning outcomes, when put together, create a significant milestone in
the musical development of young children, which according to Suthers
(1996) is finding and using their singing voices.
Working with very young children from various nationalities is a challenge and
this challenges me to search for ways to bring together a group of very young
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and enthusiastic learners in a musical way. My search brought me to the idea
of exploring singing with the help of puppets, since puppets have been uniting
people of the world though a language unique to puppetry, consisting of more
than words (Burn, 1989). This language conveys feelings, ideals and passions
with a combination of gestures and words.
My research focussed on singing with the help of puppets among a group of
3 4 year old children in nursery education. The research was initially
targeted at two groups of children, seven in each group, altogether six girls
and eight boys, from ten different nationalities. Fifty per cent of these children
have very little or no English. The study explored puppet-assisted singing in
three different situations:
i. Adult-led group work: Singing with puppets and singing without
puppets.
ii. Four case studies (one to one work), using puppets for observing voice
development.
iii. An observation study during self-initiated play, with the inclusion of
puppets as one of the free play items.
My daily involvement with these young learners was the reason why I thought
this study was worth exploring. These young learners appear to me to be
active learners who learn through playing with objects and people. Puppets
are not real people. They are a representation of an idea by an inanimate
object and young children are often attracted to puppets. According to
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OHare (2005), they have power and magic to enhance and stimulate
learning. Therefore, in this study, it is also in my intention to find out if puppet
assisted singing could be a way to facilitate and enhance early vocal
development and realise potential musical skills.
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3.0. Review of Relevant Literature
Before launching into this study, I found it necessary to understand the
concept of puppetry and its role within the classroom setting. Although,
research has been conducted on the many and varied benefits of using
puppets to enhance lessons with pre-school and elementary age school
children, there is, however, still a shortage of literature within music education.
Therefore, I have expanded the scope of this literature review into three
different areas.
3.1. Puppetry in music education
Suthers (1996) in her paper on Using puppetry to help toddlers find their
singing voices described a range of music experiences and strategies
involving puppetry that were designed and trialled with toddlers attending a
day-care centre. Her previous observation on young children indicated that
they responded positively to puppetry as a medium for teaching and learning.
In her previous teaching with toddlers, she used oven-mitt animal puppets and
found that in the context of songs, rhymes and stories, they appeared to
encourage the children to make animal sounds and other vocal responses.
She also observed that toddlers enjoyed playing with puppets and could
manage simple manipulative techniques. In her research, she designed and
implemented three types of music and puppetry experiences for the toddlers.
The first experience was the sociable music experiences using puppetry.
Here, toddlers gathered around her, as she utilised a specially designed
puppet as a puppeteacher (Hunt and Renfro, 1982). The toddlers imitated

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the puppets actions and singing. To encourage the toddlers to make
appropriate animal sounds she used the animal oven-mitt puppets. The
second experience was the adult-child music play using puppetry. Here, she
worked with one or two children, each with one of the specially designed
puppets. The puppets would sing and interact together. The one-to-one
interaction gave the children the opportunity to explore their emerging singing
voice in a playful but guided context with her. Here, the children were also
empowered to direct much of the play. They chose songs, selected actions
and decided when the play had finished. The third experience was the free
play involving puppetry and music. Here, toddler-sized singing puppets and
oven-mitt puppets were made available for the children to use in free play.
Many toddlers sang, vocalised and used the puppets in dramatic play. From
her research, Suthers found that the toddlers responded positively to the
puppets in all types of activities and that the puppet was a powerful motivator
for the toddlers. In conclusion, Suthers project showed that puppetry could
be incorporated into a range of appropriate music experiences for toddlers
and that puppetry has the potential to be a powerful and empowering medium
for facilitating toddler vocal development.
3.2. Puppetry in education (in general)
The use of puppets in education is not exclusive of reading, theatre, and
language arts curriculum. OHare (2005) in her book on Puppetry in
Education (Chapter 1&13), wrote that puppetry in education is very different
from puppetry in theatre. OHare wrote that puppets have a special appeal
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and attraction for children. They have power and magic to enhance and
stimulate learning. Therefore, in educational purposes and for educators,
puppets are unique vehicles of expressions.
Latshaw (1978) in his book on Puppetry: The ultimate disguise expressed
that puppetry offers children the ultimate disguise, because it offers the
opportunity to communicate through an inanimate object. The puppet
becomes an extension of the child, yet separate from the child. Young
pre-school children usually use puppets as an extension of themselves.
However, their play with puppets should always be in the realm of creative
dramatics, because young children are not able to distinguish between the
imaginative fantasy and substantive reality. Therefore, extra care must be
taken as not to send children mixed signals that can lead to fantasy-reality
confusion (Sadeh, 2012).
This is again indicated in the research and discussion carried out by Peck
(2005) in Puppetry in education (Chapter 15), which explained about how
pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students see puppets as real characters,
even though they can see that the puppets are being manipulated. Taking this
fact into consideration, it is therefore important to use puppets that have
distinct characters and that can carry out certain roles. The characters must
have boundaries and act in predictable ways. For example, a little old lady
puppet should not turn into a monster one day! This, in my opinion, would
destroy the sense of basic trust that the young children have in the puppets.
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Peck also pointed out that, puppets should also be introduced in frameworks
that recognise shorter attention spans, due to the developmental needs of
pre-schoolers. At this level, puppets are important for just play. Therefore,
students should be taught how to treat the puppets nicely, as not to hurt the
feelings of the puppets as well as the feelings of other students. Through play
the child learns, practises skills and expresses feelings for which there are no
words and through play the child rehearses for life. Therefore, the role of play
in the process of growing is essential because it is the means by which the
child accomplishes his first great cultural and psychological achievements;
through play he expresses himself (Freud cited in Frazier & Renfro, 1987,
p.12). The above findings conclude that puppets do play an important role in
the development of young children.
3.3. Student attention and involvement with the use of puppetry in the
classroom
Puppets can become an integral part of the classroom environment. They can
be used to increase dialogue, modify inappropriate behaviour, as children
desire to please the puppet by following his/her/its requests (Hunt, 1982),
manage the classroom, or add an element of play to lessons.
Research conducted by Zuljevic (2005) found that teachers reported that the
use of puppets in the classroom increased student involvement, motivation,
and the development of students reading, oral language, and communication
skills. When a child speaks through the puppet, it is not the child who is
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perceived as making errors but the puppet and children find this liberating.
Hence, puppets can encourage students to experiment more with the
language and make a start when they may have otherwise remained silent.
On top of that, small children can often be heard rehearsing dialogues with
their toys. This shows that puppet also allows three-dimensional dialogue
modelling to take place in the classroom. Children experience learning
through getting visually, aurally and kinaesthetically involved in a subject.
zdeniz (2001) in his short article on Puppets in Primary, wrote that hands
on, is mind on. Puppets are bright and colourful, tactile and moving. They
engage the child as a whole person bringing in several of Gardner's (1983)
multiple intelligences such as the emotional, spatial, interpersonal and
intrapersonal, which increases the childrens interest in the lesson and leads
to deeper learning.
In 2004, Wallace and Mishina conducted a quantitative research on the
effectiveness of puppetry as a teaching tool. They focussed their study on the
relations between the use of puppetry in the classroom, and student attention
and involvement during the teaching-learning process. Attentiveness was
measured by the students level of paying attention and following the lesson,
whereas involvement was measured by the degree of participation in the
lesson and attendance to his/her own independent task. The study showed
that a great degree of success was experienced when teachers instructed the
class in the role of puppeteers and also vice versa, when students took on the
role of puppeteers. Firstly, the study showed that the use of puppets as a
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teaching tool in the classroom directly influences student attention. Secondly,
it indirectly influences student involvement through attention and finally, it
indirectly influences student involvement through attentiveness. During the
study, teachers thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to communicate with and
instruct students using the unique language of puppetry. With puppets in their
hands, they found themselves to be much more dramatic and entertaining
teachers. Therefore, in my opinion, puppets could also help music teachers
who are conscious about their singing voices to feel more comfortable, as
they manipulate the puppet and have the puppet to sing. In this research,
teachers found themselves having fun and students became more responsive
and motivated. This was mutually beneficial for both parties.
To conclude this section, the studies reviewed brought some very significant
findings for teachers. Puppetry seems to hold much power in raising student
interest, therefore increasing their attention and involvement in classroom
activities. In music education, puppets can support childrens learning in
singing, by taking up roles as puppeteachers. Children are encouraged by
the puppets to be engaged in the musical activities. Therefore, they imitate
both the actions and singing through the puppeteaching technique. As
discussed, puppetry could also be a great communication tool to be used
when addressing difficult individual students as well as whole-group needs. In
music education, puppets support and encourage children who are often shy
and quiet in the presence of other children to sing, by being an extension to
the child. The child forgets himself/herself and uses the opportunity offered by
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his/her much-loved puppet friend to sing through an inanimate object. In 450
B.C., Confucius once said, Tell me, and I will forget. Show me, and I may
remember. Involve me, and I will understand. I believe that this is true and
can be applied to puppetry in music education, because the use of puppetry in
conjunction with music activities amongst children appear to have encouraged
children to recall and reproduce known songs and in some cases, create their
own songs.
Above all, the studies found that puppetry was a medium to aid learning, play,
imagination, communication and cooperation. It also can have a huge effect
on oral development, special needs interaction and can bring even the
quietest people to become emotionally and physically involved. Puppets bring
a new dimension to teaching and are excellent teaching tools. However,
puppetry in music education remains an under-researched area. Apart from
Suthers study that showed some advantages of using puppetry in music
education, up to now not many studies have been conducted. Therefore,
based upon the findings from the very few previous studies, there is indeed
value to conduct my study in this area. I hope that my findings can contribute
to the research area of puppetry in music education.
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4.0. Research Design: Methodology
Methodology refers to the principles and values, philosophies and ideologies
that underpin your research (Clough and Nutbrown, 2002). It involves
identifying a theoretical approach to a research project. Research methods
are methods that one completes in order to collect and then analyse the data
(Walliman, 2001). This chapter focuses on the research structure and
questions and its objectives, which arose from the literature review. The
methods used to collect the relevant data, as well as the complications that
occurred during this research will be explained.
The child-centred research methodology that I adopted was qualitative in
nature, involving several small-scale group observations and case studies. It
is combined with quantitative research, through the use of counting and
comparing in data analysis.
4.1. Research Strategy
Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill (2009, pp. 600) defined research strategy as
the general plan of how the researcher will go about answering the research
questions. Saunders et al (2009) also mentioned that appropriate research
strategy has to be selected based on research questions and objectives, the
extent of existing knowledge on the subject area to be researched, the
amount of time and resources available, and the philosophical underpinnings
of the researcher.
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In this study, explanatory methods are used in order to reach a conclusion.
According to Hussey and Hussey (1997), explanatory strategies are studies
where existing theory is used to understand and explain what is happening.
Apart from the counting and comparing of information that were analysed
during the study, all the collected data is qualitative. In addition, the data has
been gathered from primary research, which will be mentioned later in the
chapter.
4.2. Data Collection Instruments
The data collection instruments that were used were observation (with and
without a camcorder) and pre-designed observational grids. Data collection
was based on field notes, video recordings and spontaneous oral interviews
with the children (students) on the use of the puppets in the lesson.
4.3. Reliability
To promote and increase reliability, the group of children was observed on
several occasions and four different children were interviewed in four case
studies. Some questions were posed in two different ways to check the
reliability of responses. To ensure further trustworthiness of the data
collection, all field notes were transferred immediately into a tabular form after
each observation, while memories and perceptions were still fresh in the
observers mind.
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4.4. Methods
The main focus of this research was singing with the help of puppets among a
group of 3 4 year old children in nursery education. Initially, the research
was planned to target at two groups of children, seven in each group,
altogether six girls and eight boys, from ten different nationalities. However, at
the time of conducting the observation for the adult-led group work, a
colleague fell ill and was away for quite some time. Therefore, plans had to be
modified and the adult-led group work had to be conducted with the whole
group of children. The modified method is explained in detail in section 5.0. As
a result from the modification, the control group (Group B Singing without
puppets) was lost. Some difficulties were faced while working with the whole
large group. Sorting out the data collected for data analysing was also a
challenge, as different children were absent on different days. There was a
fear that the research results were not as accurate as I had wanted them to
be. There were 15 children in the whole group, but as mentioned earlier, not
all 15 were present at one time. On some days there were just 12, 13 or 14 of
them. The homeroom teacher assisted in data collection. Fifty per cent of
these children have very little or no English. Participant observations, case
studies, structured observations and direct observations were the main
research methods used in this study. Observations were conducted in at least
three different situations, using different research methods:
i. In the adult-led group work, I was the participant observer singing with
a group of children i.e. singing with puppets on four different occasions
and singing without puppets on four other occasions. In this situation,
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I had the advantage of being a participant observer because of the
large amount of time that I spent with these children. According to
Denscombe (2003), the researcher is an insider because he or she
fully participates in the event that is being studied. In this case, I am an
insider involved in their singing and musical activities, as well as in
most other activities experienced by them throughout their day in the
nursery. The only disadvantage that I encountered being a participant
observer was the inflexibility in data collection. Being a full and active
participant, I had difficulties in taking down notes. Therefore, I
depended on the help of the classroom teacher, who was the non-
participant observer, to assist in data collection. Observations were
based on a pre-designed observational grid, which is the main data
collection instrument used in this observation. The observational grid
was designed to assess the childrens singing i.e. how much they can
sing, their listening skills, level of participation and involvement and
finally their behaviour in the two singing conditions (with and without
puppets). The non-participant observer was provided with a
pre-designed observational grid to record data, without interacting with
the participants. Due to time constraints and shortage of manpower, I
however, managed to conduct eight sessions of adult-led group work
i.e. four sessions with puppets and four without puppets.
ii. For the four case studies in observing voice development, my initial
plan was to select four most active children, based on the data
gathered from the adult-led group work. However, due to the many
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absentees, I decided to randomly choose four children who were eager
to come and sing with me, on a one to one basis, with and without
puppets. I saw an advantage in working with these volunteer children,
because by not being able to make my own choice of children (as
planned initially), I avoided the risk of predicting anticipated results.
These case studies involved structured, participant observation. There
are advantages on conducting these case studies, because case
studies are small and therefore, the boundaries and parameters of the
research project are fairly clear. I, as the researcher, can concentrate
and dedicate all my time and effort focusing upon a narrow and clearly
defined situation (Denscombe, 2003). The case studies that I planned
involved each child experimenting one singing activity that was
intended to last up to about 20 minutes per child. However, during the
pilot run, I realised that 20 minutes was far too long for one singing
activity. Therefore, I modified my plans by allowing the childs interest
to determine the time span. This is explained in detail in section 5.2.
A minimum of one to two songs were sung with each child, on two
different days i.e. one day with a puppet and on another day, without a
puppet. In both situations, the childs English language competence
was taken into consideration, when choosing songs. In both conditions
too (singing with and without puppets), different songs were sung and
taught. From the recorded reviews, information was transferred and
organised into a tabular form for effective data analysis. The only
disadvantage anticipated while conducting the case studies was the
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use of the camcorder. There was a risk that the children may not
behave in their usual manner whilst aware of being watched, hence
causing the observer effect (Dewey, 2007). This could lead to
interference in activity participation. Therefore, in order to overcome
this observer effect, I was well prepared to switch back to the
unobtrusive measure (Webb, Campbell, Stanley & Sechrest, 1966) in
which the subject is not aware of being observed or tested. This meant
switching back to just taking down field notes. However, I was fortunate
not to have encountered this problem. The children were quite natural
with the camcorder set up in a corner. In order not to miss out on any
important facts, information gathered from the recorded reviews were
again transferred into a tabular format for data analysis.
iii. My last observation was an observation study during self-initiated play
with the inclusion of puppets as free play items. Section 5.3. describes
the free-play observation involving puppetry and music in detail, which
involved direct, non-participant and structured observation. Since I did
not have much time for my study and observations, carrying out
structured observations was the best way for me to stay focused on
looking for the answers to the specific research questions that I have.
In structured observations, I also needed to know what was significant
and important for my study. However, it is imperative to keep overall
research questions in mind when carrying out observations (Clough
and Nutbrown, 2002). In this situation, my intention was to focus on the
group of children during self-initiated play in at least two sessions and
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trying to capture singing and musical activities, using a handheld
camcorder. Just like the other observations, all gathered information
from the recorded reviews were transferred and organised into a
tabular form for data analysis. Observer effect (using the handheld
camcorder) was anticipated but, however, not encountered.
4.5. Ethics
Ethical considerations must take priority when dealing with any research,
because ethical lapses in research can significantly harm human and animal
subjects, students and the public. According to Resnik (2011), ethical
standards promote the aims of research, such as knowledge, truth and
avoidance of error. They promote the values that are essential to collaborative
work, such as trust, accountability, mutual respect and fairness. Many of the
ethical norms help to ensure that researchers can be held accountable to the
public. Ethical norms in research also help to build public support for
research. Many of the norms of research promote a variety of other important
moral and social values, such as social responsibility, human rights, animal
welfare, compliance with the law and health and safety. I referred to the set of
ethical guidelines for educational researchers provided by The British
Educational Research Association (BERA, 2004) and identified some of the
following relevant points to be complied in my research:
i. Informed consent: Since the children are very young, consent was
gained on behalf of them by agreement with parents. However, I also
asked the children if they would let me watch them with their friends
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and the teachers, take photos, write stories about them in my notebook
and record our discussions. Having taken into account that fifty
per cent of these children do not speak English as their first language,
but a majority of them has a good understanding of German, I therefore
also sought their consent, by speaking to them in German. To be sure
that the children understood my intentions, I also spoke to their parents
and requested for them to explain to their children in their mother
tongues at home.
ii. Voluntary participation: Participation and involvement in research
should be voluntary. Therefore, since the teacher/researcher is in a
position of power over children as participants in research, it is
essential that children feel free and are able to withdraw from
participating, whenever they feel uncomfortable. Whenever I saw a
disengaged child, I stopped what I was engaged in for a few minutes
and gave my attention to the child. It was essential for the child to know
that I cared, in order for me to encourage him/her into participating.
iii. Minimising harm: Young children are vulnerable, as they may not be
able to distinguish between the teacher and researcher roles.
Therefore, extra care must be taken as not to disrupt the normal
environment of teaching and relationships during the research process.
In this case, research was conducted during the normal play and
learning (during music class) context of early childhood settings, rather
than by means of an unfamiliar procedure such as testing, which could
potentially create harm, in the form of stress and anxiety. On top of
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that, the inclusion of some extra activities (for example, using puppets
for the research) only enhanced and did not disrupt with the childrens
normal teaching and learning experiences. To ensure that all children
received the same potential benefit, equal opportunities were given to
every child. Every child was given the opportunity and choice to play
with the carefully selected box of puppets during their free-play time.
For the individual case studies that were conducted in four 5 - 10
minutes sessions, extra care was also taken in data collection. Firstly,
the place and process of conducting the case study was negotiated
with the child involved. The process and direction of the case study
developed, based upon the childs responses and interests. Therefore,
open questions were used, rather than concentrating solely on
researcher-generated questions or hypothesis. This again was put into
practice in order to avoid creating extra harm to the child.
Before conducting my research, permission from the Head Teacher /
Facilitator of the Early Learning Centre in which the research took place
needed to be gained. I forwarded her a letter which outlined the research
topic and reason for the research (Appendix 1) and she gave consent. I then
asked the homeroom teacher for her cooperation in allowing the research to
take place in her classroom and her assistance in data collection. I also
provided her with information about the nature and purposes of my
observation, through a signed consent form (Appendix 2). Cooperation was
essential in order for the research to take place (Bell, 1999). I also gained
consent from the parents of the children by handing them each a consent
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letter explaining issues of confidentiality and that participation is voluntary
(Appendix 3). Whenever they had questions and concerns, I personally
attended to them and debriefed them about their childrens involvement in my
study. I also explained that a report on the findings would be made available
upon completion of the research and that there is also a possibility to present
my findings (what I did and what happened) to parents and other adults /
colleagues. This presentation can take place during a parents evening or an
in-service day.
4.6. Issues Encountered
Whilst undertaking this research, issues relating to diversity and equality were
anticipated and I attempted to address these issues to the best that I could.
i. I took into account the childrens cultural diversity and remained flexible
in my methods of capturing the childrens responses. I anticipated
facing problems with filming, due to cultural issues. However, I was
happy to know that this was not an issue. The only problem that I
sometimes encountered was some children staring and making silly
faces in front of the camera, while a few shied away from the camera.
ii. This research involved using puppets. I reviewed some literature on
puppets and children and anticipated some problems. Some children
may be afraid of puppets, as some puppets may arouse negative
emotions. Bromfield (1995) emphasised the important issue of
considering the puppets appearance. Therefore, for my study, I used
puppets that are pleasing to the eye and soft to touch. Such puppets
21
facilitate self-expression and provide greater opportunity for
expression. I also gave the children the opportunity to choose the
puppets that we used in the one to one sessions. I provided the
children with a feeling of control over the process. Most of them were
comfortable with the puppets of their choice. Therefore, it was not
difficult to get them to respond to the study. However, on the other
hand, I also encountered two children (one boy and one girl) who
showed signs of disagreeing and discomfort in the presence of
puppets. I respected their choice to withdraw from the activity and
allowed them to sit back and watch. However, they did not withdraw
completely. After some time, they came back and participated.
iii. Not all the young children in this research have the same level of
understanding and using English. Therefore, it was important for me to
keep the English language as simple as possible, by using short and
clear sentences. On the other hand, a majority of these children has a
good understanding of German. Therefore, when needed, explanations
were reinforced in German. However, I would like to quote what
Halsey, C. (n.d.) wrote in her online Health article. The words that you
speak often carry less weight than the non-verbal parts of your
communication. Its worth considering the impression you give through
your facial expressions and body language. This, in my opinion, was
important for my study. There are moments in my study when I noticed
signs of unhappiness for an activity to continue and unwillingness to
participate. Whenever I saw a child making a facial expression, then
22
walks away and cries, I would stop and end my activity. The impression
that I received from the child through his/her facial expression and
body language was very clear. The right not to participate at that
particular time and occasion was respected. Therefore, in trying to
tackle encountered problems, I had to be flexible in making changes.
For example, I conducted my adult-led group work in the afternoons,
instead of some mornings (as planned), since I saw quite a number of
sleepyheads and latecomers in the mornings. The children showed
less interest when they were sleepy and latecomers interfered with the
on-going activity. It was important for me that I saw the children giving
consent to the activity, by their level of interest.
4.7. Research objective
In all three different situations, my primary interest was to look for information
relating to musical skills such as rhythm perception, voice development and
listening skills. I was also investigating on behavioural issues such as the
level of participation, involvement and behaviour condition of the children. My
secondary intention was to look very briefly into the effects that puppets have
on adults (teachers). As I worked with the group of children in the two
different conditions (singing with puppets and without puppets), my intention
was to explore several questions. In both conditions, I paid attention to the
childrens rhythm perception and voice development skills by observing if they
were able to pick up the words of the song or the melody of the song
effectively. I also noticed that peer group learning played a role in the children
23
picking up songs and melody effectively. The second area that I intended to
explore was the childrens listening skills. I wanted to find out how good the
children were at listening to and following instructions. Thirdly, what was their
level of participation and involvement like? Our daily music classes usually
last between 20 30 minutes and therefore, it was interesting for me to see if
most of the children were staying and singing in the group for that period of
time, in both conditions, in the adult-led group activity. Finally, my last area of
investigation was on behaviour condition. In both conditions, I wanted to look
at the childrens behaviour level. Do they need frequent guidance from the
teacher or are they usually self-controlled?
24
5.0. The Investigation: Adult-led group work
My first investigation was the adult-led group work. As mentioned earlier (in
chapter 4.4. Methods), modifications were made due to shortage of
manpower, at the time of running the observation sessions. Instead of
conducting my research work on two separate groups (one using puppets and
the other without using puppets), I had to modify my research plan. For this
investigation, I worked with one group of 3 4 year old children, four sessions
using puppets and four sessions without using puppets. Below is a table to
illustrate when, how and with how many children the adult-led group work was
conducted. For data analysing purposes, only children who have attended all
four sessions were included in the observational grids.
Figure 1: Timetable for adult-led group work (Week 02 & Week 03)
Week 02 Week 03
Monday Thursday Monday Thursday
Time: 12:30 1:00 pm
Activity: Singing with puppets (Mr Monkey) Activity: Singing with puppets (Miss Greenie)
Total children: 11
Week 02 Week 03
Tuesday Friday Tuesday Friday
Time: 12:30 1:00 pm
Activity: Singing without puppets
Total children: 11
Vignette 1 (Monday, 04.03.13) Singing with puppets (Mr Monkey)
The children are sitting in a semi circle facing me in one corner of the
classroom. Mr Monkey, a mini beanbag soft toy monkey, is sitting beside me.
The children are excited. They are shouting out hello and waving to
25
Mr Monkey. I ask them to sit down. Mr Monkey is in my hands and he starts to
wave his hand at the children, as he sings a simple echo song Say hello. The
children wave back and sing hello. They continue to sing as Mr Monkey
moves around the circle and greets each child. Most of them hug and kiss
Mr Monkey. After greeting the children, Mr Monkey returns to his chair and
continues to sing and demonstrates the actions to the song, such as clap
your hands and pat your knees. At the end of the song, the children shout out
hello to Mr Monkey again. Mr Monkey continues to introduce another song to
them. He demonstrates the appropriate actions as he sings Open, shut them,
open, shut them, give a little clap, clap, clap, put them on your head and so
on. The children continue to sing and imitate Mr Monkey for about 10 minutes,
until Mr Monkey is tired. He then sits down to watch the rest of the singing and
musical activities. At the end of the music class, most of the children say and
wave goodbye to Mr Monkey.
Mr Monkey made another appearance on Thursdays music class with the
same hello and goodbye routine. However, Mr Monkey did not come for
music class on Tuesday and Friday. Some children briefly asked about
Mr Monkey and wanted to know if he was sick or on holiday. On these two
days, the children and I performed the same hello and goodbye routine, but
without Mr Monkey. We sang without puppets.
26
Vignette 2 (Monday, 11.03.13) Singing with puppets (Miss Greenie)
The children are sitting in a semi circle facing me in one corner of the
classroom. I am wearing Miss Greenie, a green caterpillar hand puppet on my
right hand. The children are excited. They ask for her name. I ask them to sit
down and tell them that Miss Greenie is a friend of Mr Monkey and would like
to sing with us. Miss Greenie starts to sing Good morning and the children
join in to sing. They continue to sing as Miss Greenie moves around the circle
and greets them. Most of them hug and kiss Miss Greenie. After greeting the
children, Miss Greenie returns to her chair and continues to sing.
Miss Greenie introduces Eency weency spider to the children. She
demonstrates the actions of the spider going up and down. The children
continue to sing and imitate Miss Greenie for about 10 minutes. Miss Greenie
becomes tired and wants to sit down to watch the rest of the singing and
musical activities. At the end of the music class, most of the children say and
wave goodbye to Miss Greenie and ask if she would come again.
Miss Greenie made another appearance on Thursdays music class with the
same good morning and goodbye routine. However, Miss Greenie did not
visit the class on Tuesday and Friday. Some children asked about her again
and wanted to know if Miss Greenie was away visiting Mr Monkey and if they
would visit the class together the next time. On these two days, the children
and I performed the same good morning and goodbye routine, without any
puppets.
27
5.1. Analysis of data and Discussion of results
For this adult-led group work, I adopted a 5-point system to measure my
results, based on the data collected using the pre-designed observational
grid. Below are examples of the grid used for observing rhythm perception
and voice development skills, with puppets on four different days.
(with puppets)
Research Question: Who is picking up the songs / melody?
Observation conducted on: Monday, 04.03.13, from 12:30 1:00 pm.
1 2 3 4 5
Can sing all
Students No singing Partly singing
songs
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
Total students 2 9
28
(with puppets)
Observation conducted on: Thursday, 07.03.13, from 12:30 1:00 pm.
1 2 3 4 5
Can sing all
songs
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
Total students 1 5 5
(with puppets)
1 2 3 4 5
Can sing all
songs
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
Total students 1 3 6 1
29
(with puppets)
1 2 3 4 5
Can sing all
songs
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
Total students Can sing all

No singing Partly singing
(across 4 songs
days) 1 2 6 24 11
The overall information gathered from grids 1 - 4 recorded that across the four
days, only one child did not do any singing. Two children sang very little while
six others sang partly. Twenty-four children sang most of the time and eleven
children demonstrated the ability to sing all the songs taught, in the presence
of a puppet. The same counting system was applied to singing without
puppets. The grids are shown in Appendix 4 7. The results from singing in
the two different conditions can be seen and compared in the chart below
(Figure 6).
30
Figure 6 - Rhythm perception & Voice development skills
30
25
20
15 Singing with puppets

Singing without puppets
10
0
No singing Partly Can sing all
singing songs
The chart shows an increasing number of children singing in the first four
categories, in both singing conditions. However, the number decreases in the
last category, indicating that not all children were able to sing all the songs
taught, in both singing conditions. The fourth category - the category between
partly singing and can sing all songs is the most obvious in the chart. This
category has the most children singing, in both conditions. However, the
number of children who sang with puppets was more than the number of
children who sang without puppets, in this category. This suggests that the
children responded to the puppets in Vignette 1 and 2, rather than to the
teacher, although they could see that the teacher was the one manipulating
the puppets. In both vignettes, Mr Monkey and Miss Greenie played the role
as puppeteachers (Hunt and Renfro, 1982) and the childrens enthusiasm
was reflected in their response, as they imitated the actions of the puppets
31
and singing during the music classes. Children who did not do any singing
and those who sang partly would also say hello or good morning in
response to Mr Monkey or Miss Greenie. The last category in the chart
indicates that a fair number of children could sing all songs taught, in both
conditions. In this category too, the number of children who could sing all the
songs with the help of the puppets was slightly more than the number of
children who could sing all the songs without the puppets. The same counting
system was used in the other areas of observation (in both conditions, with
and without puppets). The results are shown in Figure 7 9.
Figure 7 Listening skills
25
20
15
Singing with puppets

10
0
Not Sometimes Always
listening at listening listening
all
The first four categories in Figure 7 show an increasing number of children
improving in listening skills in both singing conditions. However, the number
decreases in the last category. The fourth category the category between
sometime listening and always listening is the most obvious of all, because
32
it has the most children listening, in both conditions. However, just like the
third category sometimes listening, this fourth category also indicates that the
number of children listening without puppets was higher than the number of
children listening with puppets. This suggests that puppets had an influence
on the childrens behaviour, such as their listening skills. Children were
excited about the puppets and became distracted. They did not pay attention
or listen to the puppet, because they were too busy focusing on the puppets
movements and appearance. For young children, the bright colours and
textures of the puppets are effective in stimulating attention span and eye
tracking skills. Therefore, in this case, most of the children were better
listeners without the puppets. However, in the second and last category, we
see the opposite result. In these two categories, the number of children
listening in the presence of the puppets was higher, in comparison to without
the puppets. The individual grids for this observation can be seen in Appendix
8 15.
33
Figure 8 - Participation & Involvement
30
25
20
15
5 Singing without puppets
From the information gathered in Appendix 16 23, Figure 8 was generated
to show the childrens level of participation and involvement. The chart shows
a constant increment in the childrens involvement when singing without
puppets, starting from sometimes involved to always involved. When
singing with puppets, there is also an increment in the number of children
from not involved to being usually involved. This result agreed with the
findings of Wallace and Mishina (2004) in their research on the use of puppets
as a teaching tool in the classroom. Their research discovered that the use of
puppets in the classroom indirectly influences student involvement through
student attention. However, on the contrary, the chart also shows that more
children were always involved when singing without puppets, rather than with
puppets. This, in my opinion suggests that many of the children were aware
that the puppets were additional tools to their singing activity and that their
34
singing activity was still the priority, whether it was singing with or without the
puppets. It was also interesting to note that the numbers of children who are
sometimes involved were the same in both singing conditions.
Figure 9 - Behaviour condition
25
20
15

5
0
Needs Usually self Always
frequent controlled high level
guidance of self
from control
teacher
Figure 9 illustrates the childrens level of self-control. When singing with
puppets, the chart shows that most of the children were usually and mostly
self-controlled (category 4), in comparison to singing without puppets. This
suggests that puppets had an effect on childrens behaviour and self-control is
part of childrens behaviour. Burn (1989) wrote that puppetry cannot only help
to improve communication skills and overcome language barriers, it also
teaches self-control. However, on the other hand, category five in the graph
shows that many children had always high level of self-control when singing
without puppets, in comparison to singing with puppets. This suggests that
puppets not only had a positive effect on children, they also had a negative
35
effect on children. Puppets could cause over excitement or fear in children,
thus making them react negatively or loose control of themselves. The
individual grids can be seen in Appendix 24 31.
5.2. Case studies
My second investigation was the four individual case studies, the adult-child
music play. As mentioned earlier (in chapter 4.4. Methods), modifications
were made after conducting a pilot run. Instead of conducting a singing
activity for 20 minutes, I allowed the childs interest to determine the time
span. The adult guided the play, while the child was given the power to direct
the play through song selection and actions accompanying the song and
finally, determining the length of the play. For this investigation, I worked with
four children on two different days, one day using puppets and another day
without puppets.
Vignette 3 (Tuesday, 12.03.13) Singing without puppets
I asked MV if she would like to come along with me to sing some songs and if
I could videotape her while she was singing. She agreed. So, we went to our
little Early Learning office, where we both could sit down on the carpet
together, facing each other. I asked MV if she would like to sing a song or two
for me. She agreed and was eager to sing The Finger Family song, also
known as Daddy finger. Her voice was loud and clear. She could sing the
whole song all by herself. The melody of the song became more accurate as
she sung on. She was focussed on pointing up the correct finger to show the
36
various family members, as she sang. Gradually, she swayed her body from
left to right, moving to the rhythm and speed of her singing. When the song
ended, she said that she was tired for another song. So, I stopped the
videotaping and asked MV if she wanted to watch the recording. She was
very excited as she watched herself singing on the camera.
The same routine was conducted in the other case studies with the other
three children. They chose the songs that they wanted to sing and after that, I
suggested another song. At the end of the session, they were given the
opportunity to watch themselves singing on the camera.
Vignette 4 (Wednesday, 13.03.13) Singing with puppets
MV and I went to our little Early Learning office again and sat on the carpet. I
asked her to pick a puppet from my puppet box, but MV told me that she
would like to use her own hand puppet monkey that shes brought along with
her. She told me that the monkeys name is Roland Monkey. I asked her if I
could hold Roland Monkey while she sang to him and she said yes. I asked
her what songs she would like to sing and she said Twinkle, twinkle little star.
She sang with enthusiasm and swayed her body from left to right again,
moving to the rhythm and speed of her singing. Her eyes are always focussed
on Roland Monkeys actions. When the song ended, Roland Monkey praised
her and clapped his hands for her good singing. MV was happy. Roland
Monkey asked her if she would sing another song and she said, No, Im tired
now. Roland Monkey persuaded her and she agreed to sing Open shut
37
them. Roland Monkey performed the actions together with MV. Sometimes,
MV forgot the words and Roland Monkey helped her to pick up the song and
pitch again. When the song ended, I asked her if she would like to hold
Roland Monkey. MV hugged and kissed Roland Monkey and they watched
the recording on the camera together.
I repeated the same process with the other three children. I asked them if they
would like to come and sing with some of our little puppet friends. I also gave
them the opportunity to choose a puppet that they want to sing for. I
manipulated the puppet, as they sang.
5.2.1. Analysis of data and Discussion of results
Below is a table to illustrate when, how and with whom I conducted the case
studies:
Figure 10: Timetable and data collected for case studies (Week 03)
Singing without puppets Singing with puppets

Case study with:
Tuesday Wednesday
LD 2 songs (01:47 minutes) 3 songs (04:55 minutes)
MV 1 song (01:25 minutes) 2 songs (03:36 minutes)
DD 3 songs (03:29 minutes) 3 songs (02:52 minutes)
SL 3 songs (02:33 minutes) 4 songs (03:29 minutes)
In Figure 10, one can see that out of the four children, three children (i.e. LD,
MV and SL) sang an extra song each, in the presence of the puppet. In the
presence of the puppet, the children had an entire playful interaction with the
teacher / researcher. The children had the opportunity to choose and recall
songs that they were familiar with, practise singing those songs to someone
38
else (the puppets) and also develop their listening skills, through listening to
themselves and correcting themselves, with the guidance of the puppets /
adult.
The data also shows that the children spent more time in the one to one
singing activity with a puppet, rather than without. This suggests that the
puppet had an effect on childrens one to one singing activity. The children
enjoyed singing with the puppet and this enjoyment was expressed verbally
through singing, bearing in mind that the puppet becomes an extension of the
child, yet separate from the child (Latshaw, 1978). As confirmed by Suthers
(1996), the one-to-one interaction also gave the children the opportunity to
explore their emerging singing voice in a playful but guided context with the
puppet / teacher.
However, on the other hand, Figure 10 points out one child (DD) who sang
the same number of songs in both conditions. DD also stayed shorter for the
activity with a puppet, compared to without a puppet. I reviewed both of DDs
recordings again and saw that he was rather distracted by the presence of
Mr Hippo (whom hed chosen for himself). Although DD sang three songs, his
interest was usually lost halfway through the songs. He had to be reminded to
stay focussed and DD was better focussed when there were no puppets. This,
in my opinion, probably came from DDs short attention span. Peck (2005)
reminded us that puppets should also be introduced in frameworks that
recognise shorter attention spans, due to the developmental needs of
39
pre-schoolers.
Furthermore, this study also suggests that peer group learning played a role
in childrens performance, including singing. To confirm this, I used DDs
results (as observed in Figure 2 - 5 and Appendix 4 31) as an example. In
the adult-led group work (in both conditions), DDs results indicated that he
usually could sing all the songs, possessed good listening skills, was always
involved and was usually self-controlled. However, in this case study, the
opposite was observed. This probably suggests that some children (like DD)
depended on their peer group in order to be able to perform. DDs peer group
probably made him feel safe and comfortable. The classroom peer group
provides a uniquely ripe context in which children learn, practice, and refine
the give and take that is essential to competent social interaction (Hartup &
Moore, 1991).
In both singing conditions (with and without puppets), it was observed that
most of the children sometimes sang parts of the songs and left some parts
out and the melody may also change a little. This suggests that children from
this age group maybe imitating short songs or melodies, but not always
accurately. Children sometimes change the melody to accommodate to their
voice range. Margr van Gestel (2008) confirmed this in her workshop on
Educating the voice of young children.
40
5.3. Free-play observation involving puppetry and music
My third and final investigation was the free-play observations with the
inclusion of puppets as play items. The carefully selected puppets were made
available for the children to use in free play. For this investigation, I observed
the children during their free-play time on two different days, with and without
background music. Below is a table to show the place and time the
observations took place and the types of activity initiated by the children.
Figure 11: Timetable for free-play observations (Week 03 & Week 04)
Friday, 8:15 8:30 am Monday, 12:30 12:45 pm Wednesday, 8:00 8:30 am

Students Activity Students Activity Students Activity
Without background music
Playing /
Playing with Making music
DE, SB, HR, acting with DE, DD KY MV
puppets with puppet
puppets
Singing with Playing with MV, HR, SB, Making music
SL, KL HR, MV
puppets puppets CR with puppets
With background music
MV, SL, HR,
HR, SB, DE, MV, HR, KL, Singing with
Singing with Singing with DD, KY, ML,
KL, CR, KY, KY, DD, EL, puppets and
puppets puppets CR, KL, SB,
SL, GW ML, DE, GW instruments
EL
Vignette 5 (Friday, 15.03.13) Free-play involving puppetry
Two boys, DE and SB picked a puppet each. DE picked a green hand puppet
caterpillar, called Miss Greenie. SB picked a brown bug called Mr Brownie. As
DE manipulated Miss Greenie with his hand, he changed his voice.
Miss Greenie in her slightly high-pitched voice said to Mr Brownie, Please sit
by me. Mr Brownie came and sat beside Miss Greenie. Both children
41
changed their voices, made animal sounds, as they manipulated the puppets.
They held the puppets facing each other and made them touch one another.
Miss Greenie said to Mr Brownie, Stop! Ouch! Later, SB switched to a
crocodile hand puppet. KY (the only girl) joined in with her Miss Mousie. As
Mr Crocodile opened his jaws and snapped at Miss Greenie and
Miss Mousie, Miss Greenie screamed, Ouch, ouch, ouch-y, ouch! Many
different sounds were made here. The children were laughing and having fun.
While the boys continued making animal sounds, in another corner of the
room, I heard someone singing Twinkle, twinkle little star. SL was singing
with Miss Butterfly, a soft toy puppet. KL joined in with her hand puppet
Mr Duck. The melody was correct, but the words were sometimes different.
The girls did not change their voices as they sang.
Vignette 6 (Wednesday, 20.03.13) Free-play involving puppetry and music
The children came were sitting on the carpet playing with and exploring
musical instruments. Later, I brought out the box of puppets. They came
forward and took a puppet each. Most of them started to play the instruments
with their puppet. HR played the bells with Mr Crocodile. Mr Crocodile had the
bells in between his jaws! CR was exploring the maracas and castanets with
her doll, Baby. She was very engrossed in trying to get Baby to hold the
instruments.
42
I switched on Eency weency spider as background music. Almost all the
children immediately gathered together and sang with their puppets in their
hands. Some continued to shake the bells and maracas. MV was sitting
somewhere behind, hitting the drum. She was rather accurate with her
drumbeats! The children were happy singing and making the actions with their
puppets.
5.3.1. Analysis of data and Discussion of results
The use of puppets in the childrens play prompted the two boys DE and SB
to change their voices and make animal sounds. DE is a very quiet boy. He
does not vocalise much. However, in this play episode, I observed him
vocalising his own created rhyme ouch, ouch, ouch-y, ouch. This suggests
that puppets allow children to take on a different role. By manipulating the
puppet, DE played the puppeteers role and provided the voice for the puppet.
He spoke freely and non-stop when he engaged his puppet in conversation.
Three-dimensional dialogue modelling was demonstrated here through the
puppet and DE. As experienced by Suthers (1996) in her previous teaching
with toddlers, oven-mitt animal puppets also encouraged the children to make
animal sounds and other vocal responses, in the context of songs, rhymes
and stories. The girls SL and KL on the other hand engaged themselves in
singing their versions of familiar songs to / with their puppets.
In the episode involving puppetry and music, most of the children managed
simple manipulative techniques with their puppets. HR manipulated the jaw /
43
mouth of Mr Crocodile, trying to make him grip the bells to make sounds.
Suthers (1996) through her research also confirmed that toddlers enjoyed
playing with puppets and manage simple manipulative techniques.
CR, another very quiet girl, held her Babys hands in hers, trying to make
sounds with the maracas and castanets together. I also observed CR
vocalising as she helped and gave instructions to Baby. As the background
music came on, most children sang along, even the very quiet ones. They all
manipulated their puppets and dolls. They were responsible for helping their
puppets to listen and participate. This suggests that puppets and dolls had an
effect on childrens personality. Shy and quiet children vocalised and sang
with confidence as their puppet character. Their own personality was
forgotten, because the puppet offered them the opportunity to communicate
through an inanimate object. The puppet became an extension of the child,
yet separate from the child (Latshaw, 1978).
44
6.0. Conclusion
In conclusion, I have found the findings from this study to be significant and
interesting for teachers. However, the findings are from a very small sample of
children and therefore they cannot be generalised beyond these sample
children. Nevertheless, the findings do suggest some very useful pedagogical
strategies with real implications for strategies to support childrens singing
development. The findings from the group work showed that puppets had a
positive effect as puppeteachers in encouraging children to sing. However,
on the other hand, the findings also found that most children are more
involved in participating, when singing without puppets. Further to this, the
findings also indicated that many children listened better when singing without
puppets. In the area of self-control, the findings showed that many children
always possessed a high level of self-control, when singing without puppets.
In the individual case studies, the findings showed that puppets mainly played
a positive role in the childrens singing. The children enjoyed the one to one
singing activity with a puppet, rather than without. In the free-play observation,
the puppets played an important and positive role in prompting quiet children
to find and use their singing voices for communication, by giving the children
an idea of their own power, which in turn stimulated their speech and the
ability to express their emotions.
From these findings, I believe that the disposition and personality of a child
played a role towards the effects that puppets have on him/her. Excitable
children might get too distracted in a group and on the other hand, shy
45
children may find confidence alone. Therefore, for my own professional
practice, it is always important for me to be sensitive to know, when and how
puppets can be integrated into my lessons, without having to distract too
many children and at the same time helping the shy ones to find their
confidence.
From these findings too, further research could be conducted to investigate
the cause of the positive and negative effects that puppets have on childrens
singing and musical development. It would be interesting to find out if the
appearances and types of puppets used (i.e. hand puppets, mouth puppets,
rod puppets and etc.) play a role in generating the positive and negative
effects and whether puppetry has more effect on younger or older children
(which age group). It would also be interesting to find out whether different
types of puppets trigger different emotions in children. Another fascinating
area to look into would be if puppets generate positive and negative effects at
different times of the day, such as at the start of the school day when most
children are still sleepy and calm, or after lunch when they are full and a little
tired or after outside recess playtime when they are all active and excited. As
mentioned earlier, the findings of this recent study is based only on a very
small sample of children, over a very short period of time. For the elaborate
research in the future, one should expand and work with larger groups of
children, including control groups and over a longer period of time with the
involvement of more non-participant observers, in order to capture accurate
results.
46
This recent study had some limitations and they lie mainly in three areas.
Firstly, the sample size was too large for one non-participant observer,
assisting in data collection. There were too many children in the group.
Therefore, some difficulties and inaccuracy in data collection were faced.
Secondly, a control group (another separate group singing without puppets)
failed. The control group was lost due to modifications made during the start
of my research work. Without a control group, the effects of puppetry on
childrens singing could not be measured accurately. Thirdly, the observation
time was too short. I had about four weeks to conduct my observations and
gather my data. I believe that my findings could have been more accurate, if I
had a longer period of time to conduct my observations. Therefore, for future
studies in this area, all these three points should be taken into consideration
and given more attention, in order to improve the validity of results, since
puppetry has proven to be an important tool for educators and could be
incorporated into a range of appropriate musical experiences for young
children.
47
7.0. References
BERA (2004). The British Educational Research Association.
Available at:
http://www.bera.ac.uk/publications/pdfs/ETHICAL/PDF
(Accessed February 22, 2013).
Bell, J. (1999) Doing Your Research Project (3rd Edition). Berkshire: Open
University Press
Bromfield, R. (1995). The use of puppets in play therapy. Child and
Adolescent Social Work Journal, 12(6), 435-444.
Burn, J. (1989) Express it with puppetry - an international language. In S.
Hoffman, and L. Lamme (Eds.), Learning from the inside out. Wheaton, MD:
Association for Childhood Education International.
Clough, P. and Nutbrown, C. (2002). A Students Guide to Methodology.
London: Sage Publications.
Denscombe, M. (2003), The Good Research Guide, Maidenhead: Open
University Press.
48
Dewey, R. (2007). Measurement and Observer Effects. In Chapter 01:
Psychology and Science from Psychology: An Introduction by Russ Dewey.
Available at:
http://www.intropsych.com/ch01_psychology_and_science/measurement_and
_obser ver_effects.html
Frazier, N & Renfro, N. (1987). Imagination: At play with puppets and creative
drama. Austin, TX: Nancy Renfro Studios.
Gardner, H. (1983/2003). Frames of mind. The theory of multiple
intelligences. New York: BasicBooks.
Halsey, C. (n.d). Health. Communicating with children.
Available at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/physical_health/child_development/primary_com
munication.shtml
Hartup, Willard W., & Moore, Shirley G. (1991). Early peer relations:
Developmental significance and prognostic implications. Early Childhood
Research Quarterly, 5(1), 1-7.
Hunt, T., and Renfro, N. (1982). Puppetry in early childhood education.
Austin, TX: Nancy Renfro Studios.
49
Hussey, J. and Hussey, R. (1997) Business Research: A practical guide for
undergraduate and postgraduate students. Basingstoke: Palgrave.
Latshaw, G. (1978). Puppetry: The ultimate disguise. New York: Richard
Rosen Press.
Margr van Gestel (2008). L. Suthers (Ed). Workshop: Educating the voice of
young children. Paper presented at the ISME Early Childhood Commission
Seminar: Music in the early years: Research, Theory and Practice.
O'Hare, J. & Bernier, M. (Eds.). (2005). Puppetry in education and
therapy: Unlocking doors to the mind and heart. Bloomington, Indiana:
AuthorHouse
zdeniz, D. (2001). Puppets in Primary. Humanising Language Teaching
Year 3; Issue 2; March 2001.
Available at: http://www.hltmag.co.uk/mar01/sart7.htm
(Accessed March 3, 2013).
Peck, S. (2005). Puppet power: A discussion of how puppetry supports and
enhances reading instruction. In O'Hare, J. & Bernier, M. (Eds.). (2005).
Puppetry in education and therapy: Unlocking doors to the mind and heart
(Chapter 15). Bloomington, Indiana: AuthorHouse.
50
Resnik, David B. (2011). What is Ethics in Research & Why is it Important?
Available at:
http://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/resources/bioethics/whatis/index.cfm
(Accessed April 2, 2013).
Sadeh, A. (2012). Fantasy-Reality Confusion a Primary Cause of Childhood
Nighttime Fears.
Available at: http://www.aftau.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=17431
Saunders, M., Lewis, P. & Thornhill, A. (2009). Research methods for
business students, 5th ed. Harlow: Pearson Education.
Suthers, L. (1996). Using puppetry to help toddlers find their singing voices.
Paper presented at the ISME Early Childhood Commission Seminar:
Universal and Particular Elements of Early Childhood Music Education.
Wallace, A. and Mishina, L. (2004). Relations between the use of puppetry in
the classroom, student attention and student involvement. Brooklyn College.
Walliman, N. (2001) Your Research Project: A Step-by-Step Guide for the
First-Time Researcher. London: Sage Publications.
51
Webb, E.J., Campbell, D.T. Schwartz, R.D. & Sechrest, L. (1966) Unobtrusive
measures.: Nonreactive research in the social sciences. Chicago: Rand
McNally.
Zuljevic, V. (2005). Puppets - A Great Addition to Everyday Teaching.
Thinking Classroom, Vol. 6, January 2005.
Available at: http://www.rwctic.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/tc-6-1.pdf
52
Appendix 1 Letter seeking permission from the Head Teacher to carry out
the research
Diana Lim-Kemper
Postgraduate Student
Birmingham City University
Birmingham.
05 February 2013
Dear Mrs Gienke, Early Learning Centre Facilitator,

I am currently pursuing my MA in Early Years Music Education at Birmingham City
University, UK. As part of my 2nd year course assignment, I have to carry out a
research project, totalling 10000 words, which explores a pedagogical approach in
music education and collects information about the childrens participation. The
focus of my research is singing with the help / use of puppets among a group of 3 4
year old children in nursery education. The study will be written up and will include
background discussions of pedagogical approaches in music education and some
analysis of the childrens participation.
My proposed research questions are:

1. Does singing with puppets make a difference to childrens singing?
2. Does the use of puppets benefit singing among a group of 3 4 year old
children?
3. Do the children learn to pick up songs quicker with the use of puppets, in
comparison to singing without puppets?
The study will explore puppet-assisted singing in three different situations:

i. Adult-led group work: Singing with puppets with one group (Group A) and
singing without puppets with another group (Group B).
ii. Four case studies (one to one work), using puppets for observing voice
development.
iii. An observation study during self-initiated play, with the inclusion of puppets
as one of the free play items.
53
To collect information for my research, I would like to observe the children from Early
Learning 1 and therefore, seek your permission. I would like to make some
observations and collect information, when the children are attending music classes
and also during their free play time in the classroom.
I will keep you informed of how the research is going throughout the project and give
you a copy of my findings upon completion of the project. I would hope that the
project would be of value to the Early Learning Centre that you are facilitating. The
universitys tutors will read my study. The research will be kept confidential through
anonymising the name of the institution and the research participants.
I thank you for taking your time to read this letter and I hope that you will grant me
the permission to carry out my research work.
Yours sincerely,
(Diana Lim-Kemper)
Email: Diana.Lim-Kemper@mail.bcu.ac.uk
Consent:
By signing this form you indicate that you:
1. Acknowledge that the nature of this research and your involvement in the
project has been explained to you.
2. Understand that confidentiality will be maintained and no identifying
information will be released.
3. Understand that you may withdraw from this study at any time, without
comment or penalty.
4. Understand that your participation in the study is voluntarily.
Your name: .
Signature:
Date: .
54
Appendix 2 Letter seeking permission from the Homeroom Teacher to carry

out the research
Diana Lim-Kemper
Postgraduate Student
Birmingham City University
Birmingham.
05 February 2013
Dear Mrs Shekhar, Homeroom Teacher EL1,

I am currently pursuing my MA in Early Years Music Education at Birmingham City
University, UK. As part of my 2nd year course assignment, I have to carry out a
research project, totalling 10000 words, which explores a pedagogical approach in
music education and collects information about the childrens participation. The
focus of my research is singing with the help / use of puppets among a group of 3 4
year old children in nursery education. The study will be written up and will include
background discussions of pedagogical approaches in music education and some
analysis of the childrens participation.
My proposed research questions are:

4. Does singing with puppets make a difference to childrens singing?
5. Does the use of puppets benefit singing among a group of 3 4 year old
children?
6. Do the children learn to pick up songs quicker with the use of puppets, in
comparison to singing without puppets?
The study will explore puppet-assisted singing in three different situations:

iv. Adult-led group work: Singing with puppets with one group (Group A) and
singing without puppets with another group (Group B).
v. Four case studies (one to one work), using puppets for observing voice
development.
vi. An observation study during self-initiated play, with the inclusion of puppets
as one of the free play items.
55
To collect information for my research, I would like to observe the children from Early
Learning 1 and therefore, seek your permission. I would like to make some
observations and with your help, collect information, when the children are attending
music classes and also during their free play time in the classroom.
I will keep you informed of how the research is going throughout the project and give
you a copy of my findings upon completion of the project. I would hope that the
project would be of value to the Early Learning Centre. The universitys tutors will
read my study. The research will be kept confidential through anonymising the name
of the institution and the research participants.
I thank you for taking your time to read this letter and I hope that you will grant me
the permission to carry out my research work.
Yours sincerely,
(Diana Lim-Kemper)
Email: Diana.Lim-Kemper@mail.bcu.ac.uk
Consent:
By signing this form you indicate that you:
5. Acknowledge that the nature of this research and your involvement in the
project has been explained to you.
6. Understand that confidentiality will be maintained and no identifying
information will be released.
7. Understand that you may withdraw from this study at any time, without
comment or penalty.
8. Understand that your participation in the study is voluntarily.
Your name: .
Signature:
Date: .
56
Appendix 3 Consent Letter to Childrens Parents

Parental Permission for Children to be Observed and Videoed Within the Early
Learning 1 Classroom.
Dear (name of parent),

My name is Mrs. Kemper and I am teaching music to your children in the Early
Learning Centre. I am also currently pursuing my MA in Early Years Music Education
at Birmingham City University, UK. As part of my 2nd year course assignment, I have
to carry out a research project, which explores a pedagogical approach in music
education and collects information about the childrens participation.
My research study will explore puppet-assisted singing. This is a relatively small but
important study, without any form of assessment involved. I am only hoping to
improve my teaching, make singing interesting for your children and be able to
enhance their musical creativity in within a supportive learning environment.
Request for your childs participation:
I would like to observe your child for my research and therefore, seek your
permission. I would like to make some observations and collect information, when
your child is attending his or her 30 minutes music classes (in a group, for at least 2
sessions) and also during his or her free play time in the classroom (when the
children are interacting with each other) for at least 2 sessions (approximately 20
minutes per session). The one to one work will be conducted once, for 15 - 20
minutes, but not every child will be involved in the one to one work. Video
observations may be carried out in some sessions to capture the teaching and
learning experiences that occur through music making with puppets. The observation
and video sessions will be conducted from end February to end March 2013. The
following page asks for your written consent to participate and outlines the ethical
responsibilities to you. Please feel free to contact me, should you have further
questions.
Thank you for your co-operation and support in this project.
Yours sincerely,
(Diana Lim-Kemper)
57
Consent Form
Participation is voluntary:
Participation in this project is voluntarily and you may choose that your child withdraw
at any time. A decision not to participate or to withdraw will have no impact upon you
or your child. Participation in the project does not involve any known risk.
Confidentiality of data:
Only the researcher will know the identities of the participants. All video recordings,
notes and data will be kept very securely. No identifying information about the
participants will be used in any published papers that may result from this research. If
I wish to use a segment of the video in which your child appears, I will seek a
separate specific permission.
Questions or concerns:
You are welcome to contact me regarding any questions or concerns that you may
have about this project. Please email me at: Diana.Lim-Kemper@mail.bcu.ac.uk
Consent:
By signing and returning this slip, you indicate that you:
1. Acknowledge that the nature of this research and your childs involvement in
the project that has been explained to you.
2. Understand that confidentiality will be maintained. Your child will not be
named and no identifying information will be released.
3. Understand that you may withdraw your child from this study at any time,
without comment or penalty.
4. Understand that your childs participation in the study is voluntarily.
Please read this letter with your child and discuss any questions that they may have.
I am happy for my child to participate in the research outlined

above.
Signature of Parent .. Date
58
Appendix 4: Observational grid 5: Rhythm perception & Voice development skills

(without puppets).
Observation conducted on: Tuesday, 05.03.13, from 12:30 1:00 pm.
1 2 3 4 5
Can sing all
songs
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /

(without puppets).
Observation conducted on: Friday, 08.03.13, from 12:30 1:00 pm.
1 2 3 4 5
Can sing all
songs
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /
Total students 3 3 5
59

(without puppets).
1 2 3 4 5
Can sing all
songs
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /

(without puppets).
1 2 3 4 5
Can sing all
songs
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /
Can sing all

Total students No singing Partly singing
songs
across 4 days
1 5 10 19 9
60
Appendix 8: Observational grid 9: Listening skills (with puppets).

Research Question: Who is listening and following instructions?
1 2 3 4 5
Not listening Sometimes Always
Students
at all listening listening
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
Total Students 2 2 5 2

1 2 3 4 5
Students
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
Total Students 1 6 4
61

1 2 3 4 5
Students
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /

1 2 3 4 5
Students
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /

Total students
across 4 days
6 7 18 13
62
Appendix 12: Observational grid 13: Listening skills (without puppets).

1 2 3 4 5
Students
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /

1 2 3 4 5
Students
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /
63

1 2 3 4 5
Students
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /

1 2 3 4 5
Students
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /

Total students
across 4 days
2 3 10 22 7
64
Appendix 16: Observational grid 17: Participation & Involvement (with puppets).
Research Question: Are the children involved for at least 20 minutes?
1 2 3 4 5
Occasionally Sometimes Usually Always
Students Not involved
involved involved involved involved
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
1 2 3 4 5
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
Total Students 2 9
65
1 2 3 4 5
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
1 2 3 4 5
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /

Total students Not involved
across 4 days
1 3 6 20 14
66
Appendix 20: Observational grid 21: Participation & Involvement (without puppets).
1 2 3 4 5
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /
1 2 3 4 5
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /
Total Students 3 8
67
1 2 3 4 5
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /
1 2 3 4 5
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /

Total students Not involved
across 4 days
0 0 6 14 24
68
Appendix 24: Observational grid 25: Behaviour condition (with puppets).

Research Question: Do the children have good control of themselves?
1 2 3 4 5
Needs Always high
frequent Usually self level of self
Students
guidance from controlled control
teacher
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
Total Students 1 1 1 6 2

1 2 3 4 5
Needs Always high
Students
teacher
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
69

1 2 3 4 5
Needs Always high
Students
teacher
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /

1 2 3 4 5
Needs Always high
Students
teacher
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. SL /
4. ML /
5. HR /
6. DE /
7. SP /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. CR /
Needs Always high

Total students
across 4 days
teacher
2 2 9 20 11
70
Appendix 28: Observational grid 29: Behaviour condition (without puppets).

1 2 3 4 5
Needs Always high
Students
teacher
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /

1 2 3 4 5
Needs Always high
Students
teacher
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /
71

1 2 3 4 5
Needs Always high
Students
teacher
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /

1 2 3 4 5
Needs Always high
Students
teacher
1. KY /
2. KL /
3. ML /
4. HR /
5. DE /
6. SP /
7. LD /
8. DD /
9. SB /
10. GW /
11. EL /
Needs Always high

Total students
across 4 days
teacher
2 1 6 14 21
72
73

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Title of project:

Does the use of puppets benefit singing

among a group of 3 4 year old children?

Name: Diana Geak Lai Lim-Kemper

Student No: 11761780

Year of submission: July 2013

Research in Professional Practice submitted in part fulfilment of the

award of MA Education (Early Years) at Birmingham City University.

Word count: 10,506

1.0. Abstract ................................................................................................... 1

Appendix 16: Observational grid 17: Participation & Involvement

Figure 2: Observational grid 1: Rhythm perception & Voice development skills

Figure 3: Observational grid 2: Rhythm perception & Voice development skills

Figure 4: Observational grid 3: Rhythm perception & Voice development skills

Figure 5: Observational grid 4: Rhythm perception & Voice development skills

Figure 6: Rhythm perception & Voice development skills ......................................... 31

Figure 7: Listening skills ............................................................................................ 32

Figure 8: Participation & Involvement ....................................................................... 34

Figure 9: Behaviour condition ................................................................................... 35

Your help is greatly appreciated. To my friends at CREC, I am glad to have met a

throughout my research work by providing me the encouragement and strength to

carry on, especially during stressful times.

of 3 to 4 year old pre-school children, from at least ten different nationalities.

work and play imaginatively in both a structured and unstructured way.

effects on childrens singing and voice development, listening skills, level of

participation and involvement and their behaviour condition. The article

concludes with implications for the researchers professional practice and

reflections for improving future researches in this area.

different factors that influence their growth, development and learning. In

Through my music teaching experiences with groups of young children in an

international school environment, I have observed and followed their

individual pace of development through some of the following music learning

To be able to sing familiar songs individually and with others and to be

able to recall a simple tune.

To be able to play simple rhythms with a steady beat individually and

with others and to be able to recognise and explore ways in which

sounds can be made, changed and organised.

To be able to play a simple rhythmic pattern with teacher guidance

using body percussion or classroom instruments.

To be able to understand that music is used for a variety of different

These learning outcomes, when put together, create a significant milestone in

the musical development of young children, which according to Suthers

(1996) is finding and using their singing voices.

and enthusiastic learners in a musical way. My search brought me to the idea

people of the world though a language unique to puppetry, consisting of more

with a combination of gestures and words.

My research focussed on singing with the help of puppets among a group of

3 4 year old children in nursery education. The research was initially

have very little or no English. The study explored puppet-assisted singing in

three different situations:

i. Adult-led group work: Singing with puppets and singing without

iii. An observation study during self-initiated play, with the inclusion of

puppets as one of the free play items.

this study was worth exploring. These young learners appear to me to be

are not real people. They are a representation of an idea by an inanimate

object and young children are often attracted to puppets. According to

learning. Therefore, in this study, it is also in my intention to find out if puppet

assisted singing could be a way to facilitate and enhance early vocal

development and realise potential musical skills.

3.0. Review of Relevant Literature

Before launching into this study, I found it necessary to understand the

puppets to enhance lessons with pre-school and elementary age school

3.1. Puppetry in music education