A spread of interesting objects adorned workstations at the ‘Building Puppets and Masks’
workshop session at the 41 st Sharjah International Book Fair. A pair of scissors, some glue,
paper cut-outs of black moustache, green eyes, pink circles, yellow triangles, feathers,
glitter, stickers, and so much more was laid out before participants commenced their activity.
There was enough material to inspire children to create whatever it is that takes their fancy.
Following a few easy instructions, the session begins and while some children eagerly start
decorating masks, others unleash their creativity by sticking human features onto hand
puppets.
Encouraging children to tell their own stories in their own style, using basic materials like
paper and cardboard, organisers from Teatro Verde, an Italian firm, designed the session to
allow creativity without enforcing too many rules on the little ones.
Italy is this year’s ‘Guest of Honour’ at the 12-day Sharjah International Book Fair. The
European nation is organising 17 activities as part of its cultural programme, which includes
tasty Cookery shows and a plethora of activities for children, in order to give visitors a
unique opportunity to learn about the culture of this fascinating country.