11 Fantastic Children's Book and Puppet Combinations

It’s not just fun – puppets that complement a storybook can enhance children’s learning experiences in your classroom by bringing a story to their visual lives. Education Consultant Jessica Palmer has paired timeless classic stories and new favorites with sparkly, cozy, and cute puppets that will help make sure your students learn the power of the fables you bring to their curriculum. How does this tie to music? Stories like Puff, the Magic Dragon have singalong earworms you can teach your kids!

#1 – Baby Dragon & Puff the Magic Dragon

Puff the Magic Dragon continues to be one of the most popular and recognizable folk songs from the twentieth century, written over 50 years ago by Peter Yarrow and Lenny Lipton. The song was made popular by the singing group Peter, Paul, and Mary. This illustrated children’s book pairs Yarrow and Lipton’s lyrics with imaginative paintings by Eric Puybaret. This hardcover book includes a CD with recordings of “Puff the Magic Dragon” as well as “Froggie Went A-Courtin'” and “Blue Tail Fly” by the voice/cello duo of Bethany Yarrow and Rufus Cappadocia. Bonus, the CD includes a bonus track of an instrumental version of “Puff” to sing to.

Bundle this book with our baby dragon puppet! This dragon is friendly and fun, and can’t wait to meet you! Our 11-inch puppet has incredible detail, including a green scaly body and tail, a fuzzy belly, and fabric wings. The moveable mouth and front feet allow it to come alive with motion!

#2 – Baby Monsters & Monster Boogie

Students will be ready to move and sing with children’s recording artist Laurie Berkner’s Monster Boogie! Playful illustrations by Ben Clanton shows children that not all monster are out to scare people. Some just like to boogie! With so much action and movement, our baby monster puppets are a perfect children’s book and puppet pair. They are as large as a melon, with a huge mouth so they can talk, shout, and sing! Plus, an air-filled squeaker in each gives them an optional squawky, “monster” voice. Available in a variety of colors – each one brings its own unique personality to your class.

#3 – Fluffy Cat and Jazz Cats

A rhythmic jazzy story in verse, Jazz Cats by David R. Davis tells about the escapades of some real cool cats that know how to entertain. Their jazz combo plays together in the streets of New Orleans. From the blow of the clarinet and trumpet to the pluck of the fiddle base and beating the trash can drums, these Dixie, dancin’, jazz cats know how to have fun. Vibrant illustrations by Chuck Galey highlight the details and bring these hip cats to life in such memorable surroundings as Preservation Hall, Cafe du Monde, and Jackson Square. Your students can experience the lively atmosphere, the easy-going people, and the rich heritage of the French Quarter, all from the perspective of a few swingin’ jazz cats. When you pair this fabulous fluffy kitty puppet with this children’s book, your students will imagine being in vibrant New Orleans. This kitty puppet has a movable mouth with a realistic-looking tongue. Her fur coat is super soft, and her long beautiful tail can move around. This children’s book and puppet duo will make your students purr with laughter.

#4 – Funky Chick & Chicken Little

You may already know the tale of a not-quite-so-bright little chicken whose encounter with an acorn and gravity convinces him the sky is falling, but you’ve never seen the story told this way. A brilliant collaboration brings us a bold and colorful retelling of the classic tale, as crazy-eyed Chicken and all his panicked friends run away from the sky and right into an eye-catching gatefold surprise in Chicken Little.

Whether you want to shake your tail feathers, dance the funky chicken, or tell the story of chicken little, this chicken puppet will enhance the story. This fuzzy white chicken has a brilliant red comb on top of its head and moveable wings. Bring this charming chicken puppet into your home or classroom today!

#5 – Narwhal & Wendell the Narwhal

Everyone in the ocean can make music except for Wendell the Narwhal. His big, pointy, horn doesn’t make any sound! As Wendell listens to the “pop pop pop” or “clappy clap clap” or even “whoosh”, he wonders how he can join in the music-making. Follow Wendell’s journey as he tries to find a way to fit with the symphony of sea creatures using his unique abilities.

The Narwhal puppet makes a fantastic conductor and is great at pointing to notes and rhythms on a whiteboard. Paired with Wendell the Narwhal, students will discover just how Wendell can participate in the sea symphony. At 20 inches in length, this big puppet will quickly become a class favorite!

#6 – Duckling & Mr. Duck Means Business

Mr. Duck lives alone on a pond, and he follows the same schedule every day. He lives a quiet, solitary life, and he is happiest that way. In the story, some unexpected visitors join him in the pond and ruffle Mr. Duck’s feathers. These new characters splash, play and make so much noise! Can Mr. Duck convince these visitors to leave his pond of tranquility? Mr. Duck Means Business, by Tammi Sauer and illustrated by Jeff Mack pairs beautifully with this adorable and fuzzy yellow ducklings puppet, with a movable beak and wings. He is sure to make anyone smile with his delightful yellow down and bright orange beak and webbed feet. This duckling is so amazing, it was awarded the 2012 CREATIVE CHILD AWARDS Seal of Excellence!

#7 – Elephant & Miss Mary Mack

This adaptation of the well-known children’s rhyme continues after the elephant jumps the fence! Children’s author Mary Ann Hoberman has extended the well-known story into hilarious tale children will want to read, sing, chant, and clap again and again. Nadine Westcott’s beautiful watercolor illustrations are a fun addition to this nonsense rhyme. Here is where our elephant puppet comes in! This 10″ plush grey elephant head puppet has a movable mouth, upturned trunk, small white horns, and floppy ears. Just imagine this elephant singing Miss Mary Mack with your students!

#8 – Frog & A Frog in the Bog

A Frog in the Bog by Karma Wilson is a perennial favorite in children’s literature! With watercolor artwork by Joan Rankin, this colorful, rhyming, rhythmic tale tells the story of a frog who keeps eating insects and grows bigger and bigger, until he realizes the log he is sitting on isn’t a log after all, but a hungry alligator! Children will enjoy the repetitive rhyming words as well as the creative way counting is introduced into the story, especially when you add this adorable 10″ frog puppet.

#9 – Kangaroo & Josephine Wants to Dance

Josephine Wants to Dance, by Jackie French and illustrated by Bruce Whatley, encourages all readers to never give up and to always dance to their own music. Josephine dreams of wearing a pink tutu and silk ballet shoes. But everyone reminds her that kangaroos don’t dance—they hop! Kangaroos don’t wear tutus, and they never wear ballet shoes! So Josephine sneaks into town, where the ballet rehearses and watches for hours as the dancers spin and swirl and pirouette and curtsy. But on the day of the ballet performance, the prima ballerina twists her ankle and a new dancer is needed for the lead role, a dancer who can jump higher than all the rest.

With its soft fur and ample pouch, this kangaroo puppet is ready to hop right into a good story! You may just be inspired to put together a pink tutu and ballet shoes!

#10 – Parrot & The Parrot Tick Tango

In this book, the parrot Tico Tango starts with a round, yellow mango. Unfortunately, this mango is not quite as yellow as his friend Marcello’s lemon. Selfishly, Tico Tango knew he had to have Marcello’s lemon, so he took it! The Parrot Tico Tango, by Anna Witte, is a cumulative rhyme in which a greedy parrot keeps taking colorful, tropical fruit from other creatures of the rainforest until he can hold no more! Petey, the puppet parrot, is going to make this children’s book come to life. Petey is a bright rainbow parrot that will catch your eye a mile away! It has a moveable mouth to help him sing or talk in any voice you can imagine. This parrot puppet is an excellent addition to any collection or classroom.

#11 – Fox & What Does the Fox Say?

Do you know what the fox says? Based on the hugely popular YouTube video with more than 200 million views, this picture book is packed full of foxy fun. The lyrics of Ylvis’s YouTube sensation “The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)” meet Svein Nyhus’s playful illustrations in this irresistibly entertaining read-aloud picture book. Pair this book with our red fox puppet, as a fantastic children’s book and puppet combo. Designed with realistic red fur, delicate whiskers, and moveable mouth and legs, this fox puppet will charm his way into your classroom or home. His pointed ears are indicative of fox’s excellent hearing. The long plush tail is fully moveable.

What are your favorite children’s book and puppet combinations?

We hope you enjoy these children’s book and puppet combinations for your music classroom. This blog only scratches the surface of the possibilities. You can explore more puppets here and more children’s books here. Let us know in the comments about your favorite children’s book and puppet pairings!

Katie Senn

Katie Senn is the Content and Community Engagement Manager for West Music. Her background is in music education, with an emphasis in orchestral directing and cello. She performs regularly around the midwest with her all-female folk band Awful Purdies. She serves her local community as a board member for the following organizations: Iowa City Music Auxilary, Kennedy Center’s Any Given Child, and her children’s before and afterschool program.

11 Fantastic Children’s Book and Puppet Combinations