sock puppets

“The stockings were hung by the chimney with care…” but there’s more to do that that, how about some ways to have Christmas sock fun for kids? After all, stockings is a fancy word for socks.

Christmas math activities

Socks make great puppets. Any sock can be slipped over a hand and instantly becomes a character. All that’s needed is a voice, but you can add features, as long as it’s a sock you won’t need again. You can use buttons or fabric or even a felt marker to make a face. Scrounge in the craft drawer for a hat or clothing. From a kit she got a couple of years ago for Christmas, Big Sister made a sock snake puppet with a long pink tongue just right for tickling.

sock puppet fun

Several socks rolled up in a ball, with a white one on the outside, make a snowball that won’t melt. Little Sister loved throwing them in the hallway. We closed all the doors and she wore off a good chunk of energy with a pile of sock snowballs. These don’t have to be just the mismatched socks but, if you use good ones, make sure they get back in the right drawers.

physical activity for kids

One child can hide a sock and another one look for it. The one who hid the sock can give clues using the word Warmer when getting closer or Colder when farther away. If only this would work the rest of the time for missing socks.

sock hop fun with socks

Put on some lively music for dancing and have a Sock Hop. That’s an old-fashioned word for a dance. Bare floors can be a bit slippery. Carpets are softer for dancing and hopping but static electricity might spark the fun.

Christmas sock fun

A big friend, Grace, aka GracieFacieB, at AmazingGraceBarnett.com made these socks into wonderful snowmen. What a great Christmas decoration to keep or give away. Can you share some other ways to have Christmas sock fun for kids?

The play-of-the-day is making some ghost puppets for telling ghost stories; that should be easy, right? Like Halloween, there are some tricks to the craft.

Trick #1 is to find an old white or light grey sock. Usually, this wouldn’t be a problem at our house because there’s a bag of old and worn out socks or newer but only one-of-the-pair loners. But the bag had no white socks. We’d used some of them in the winter to make snowballs for throwing indoors. Maybe they melted? Then, we’d used some in the spring and summer to make Olaf the Snowman. That left only black socks, which would make bats and spiders, but not ghosts. To save the project, we temporarily used a good pair–of mine.

Trick #2 is where to put the eyes. To make the puppet talk, the heel part of the sock must be in the front. The puppet looks better with the heel hiding in the back, but I know from experience, that the thumb needs the space of the hell in order to make a mouth that moves. Also from experience, the eyes can’t be too low or they end up moving as part of the mouth. If they are too high, they look too far away from the mouth. It’s a good think these eyes were only getting attached with safety pins instead of being sewn or glue on because we had to try 4 or 5 times to get them in the right spot.

Trick #3 is optional. We used a bit of white yarn to tie around the top of the sock to make the pointy part of the head.

Now comes the treat part. Puppet play encourages lots of conversations. Kids can talk to their ghost by themselves, use them to tell a story, or talk to another puppet. Sometimes, kids will use different voices and carry both sides of the conversation.

Another treat is the opportunity for kids to imagine. Imagination is a skill that kids can develop by imagining. For kids that are hesitant, ask them questions like does their ghost have a name, what does it do, where does it go, and more. Usually, once they get started, kids will become more comfortable with imagining.

Puppets don’t have to stay in one place. They can move around, get some exercise, and maybe even go outside for a fresh air treat or maybe an adventure one!

Puppet play is full of both tricks and treats. Any ghost sock puppets at your house?

Stockings or Socks – Christmas Sock Fun for Kids

Old Socks Make Bootiful Ghost Puppets