Finger Puppets for Education

Happy Education and Sharing Day! Each year this day is used to reflect on education for children that not only encompasses academic achievement but also character building and an opportunity to succeed. Today we’d like to share with you the story behind our finger puppets and the effects they have on education.

For the last 20 years our artists near Puno have been using their knitting income to support their children in school. Many villages lack a secondary school, so the families must send their children to school in the city of Puno during the week. For many single moms running a farm and taking care of their kids, knitting is a great way to earn extra money in order to give their kids the education they deserve. Our artists want to give their children more opportunities than they had growing up. We often see college students knitting during class breaks to pay for their own schooling. Our fair trade puppets have really helped the education of hundreds of children over the past 20 years.

In the US our puppets are used to educate kids and adults. Our puppets are a natural way to encourage children to play and interact with others and it is an easy way for kids to learn their animals. The Center for Nonviolent Communication has also used our puppets to teach adults how to resolve conflicts peacefully through better communication. Puppets encourage children of all ages to tell stories. Our puppet packs deliberately demand creativity and imagination with the different animals and characters and only a hint of a story as opposed to a complete story.