Conclusions

"The common feature of puppets is to demand the following paradox: an object that is both and is not. Clearly what I see is a wolf, but it is not truly a wolf, because I see clearly that it is papier maché and cloth. This paradox must always be respected and maintained. Knowing how to endure a paradox without wanting to solve it at all costs is the basis of human intelligence; it is what makes the symbol, the metaphor, the hypothesis possible… ” (Mariano Dolci)

As I had proposed at the beginning, this license has helped me to structure my previous and acquired knowledge about puppets and their therapeutic function. Thanks to the review of existing documentary sources and the collection of the most suitable for the work I have been able to develop strategies and teaching resources for teachers.

Finally, there is a document in Catalan that deals with this topic and that can serve as a basis for further research. I hope to be able to translate this text into Spanish later.

I am aware that this is a start, it aims to be the first step of a long scale that we do not know where it will take us and that invites all educators and teachers who believe in the educational properties of puppets and their application to the school.

In this study I was able to confirm that currently in Catalonia and the rest of Spain, there is virtually no writing on the therapeutic applications of puppets. We are lagging behind other European countries on this issue. However, I have been able to verify that most education professionals in our country are very interested in these exercises, but the lack of resources (theoretical, practical and personal) gives up the realization of continuous programming to reinforce the learning of their students with puppets.

Abroad they have a lot of documentation and have formal and active associations that organize meetings for professionals in order to share their experiences and train educators.

If we talk about procedures, I have found that it is basic to define the adequacy of the techniques in reference to the disorders. To work on learning, each disability has a technique that is more favorable to him.

Some children with SEN may naturally and spontaneously prefer the puppet technique that works best for their disability, but sometimes teachers have to choose the technique because students are not in a position to choose.

For example, the deaf spontaneously grab the wire puppet. This one has the whole body, the expression is total and it is not just a talking puppet. In fact, the mouths of puppets are of little interest to the deaf, rather it is the expression. Maybe that’s why this interest in the thread puppet.

There are exposed puppets that are manipulated with a stick on the head and another on the arm. They coordinate movements well, because they can tilt the head, body, raise the arm, walk… They are important for a child who does not know his body well. It can contribute a lot in psychomotor skills.

It is important to find out if one puppet technique is better than another for children with disabilities and what the consequences are of changing the technique on general expression.

It is therefore essential that the educator knows the different types of puppet manipulation. It is also essential that you are aware of the problems that may occur in your environment (parents, family, classmates…), in order to carry out the activities effectively.

On the other hand there are a number of key and very interesting questions that concern the educator who works with puppets and that each professional must answer with their own experience. According to the documentation consulted we have different answers. 

The issue is unresolved, some prefer one thing or the other for technical, practical or material reasons. Each method has its advantages and disadvantages. Building allows for better self-projection, but there are places and times when construction is impossible to accomplish.

Depending on the goals set in the sessions can be beneficial or counterproductive.

Technically the therapist or teacher should help in the construction of the puppet, but in no case in the artistic part. It is important for the educator to set goals when it comes to construction. Do you want to leave the child or patient free to create their character? or conversely, Do you want to guide him so that he is interested in discovering, for example, body parts ?. All participation depends on the purpose of the activity.

If the activity and the number or characteristics of the participants allow it can facilitate the execution of the session. But if what is intended is the integration of all students into the group it is interesting to make heterogeneous groups.

Sometimes it is interesting for the teacher to participate in parallel in the activity he carries out with the student, as he can comment on the difficulties to solve them in real time and it is easier to guide him, because an image is worth more than one hundred words. But there are times when observation is more important in order to be able to redirect the sessions towards the stated objectives if necessary.

To give the student confidence at certain times it is good for the teacher to participate, but sometimes their emotional involvement can hurt the therapy.

The castle may be a defense mechanism for the patient and the therapist, but at the same time it also becomes a handicap in some circumstances due to the evolution of the therapy. Professionals must observe the variables that converge in the person subject to the therapy (disability, current state of the person, purpose of the session…) and decide whether or not to use the castle according to the technical knowledge and intuition of the moment.

No teacher has a single answer. Each situation requires taking one action or another depending on the circumstance, the objectives and the good judgment of the professional.

Most agree that it is good to set up a multidisciplinary team, where there are professionals who do not need to be educators but who master the art of puppetry, so that they can contribute everything that teachers lack.

The basis of any therapeutic intervention with puppets is simply the creation of an open protocol and subject to any change. The educator or therapist must adapt the session according to the patient or student, their internal state and the circumstances surrounding them at that time.

Another general opinion is that an activity with puppets must have a temporary dimension, it cannot last indefinitely.

The puppet is an interesting therapeutic support that unites "letting go" (improvisation)with the expression contained in an appropriate framework. It allows to play with simultaneous registers of the verbal and the nonverbal, with words and mime at the same time, in relation to each other.

This figure which is given life, is an external object that prolongs the body and facilitates communication, creates an atmosphere of security, has a strong power of motivation and is therefore used as a therapeutic support.

The obligatory protagonists in a work with puppets are: an object, a manipulator and a spectator.

One issue that often comes up in this work is the figure of the “double”. The role of the double is essential in puppet manipulations: the double is never identical, the puppet has a body where the movements are similar but not identical to those of the body itself. Here a distance is created that will allow a psychic evolution.

Another factor that favors the pedagogical function is that puppets have the power to trigger what we can today call “feedback”, a very important circumstance in any learning task.

This coming academic year 2007-08, I will coordinate a working group supported by the ICE of the University of Barcelona, to continue research on the theory and practice of the therapeutic and educational value of puppets in our classrooms. The group is made up of teachers, psychologists and speech therapy students.

Our intention is to continue looking for new forms of learning using puppets and to create specific activities for their application.

We also want to address the training part, organizing conferences and courses in Catalonia aimed at professionals in teaching and psychology, and taught by educators, psychologists, teachers… from around the world who are working on learning or doing therapy with puppets .

From here I encourage you to collaborate and send us any suggestions or experiences on the subject.