“Caterpillars and Butterflies”
An integrated performance and workshop experience bringing Eric Carle’s classic transformation themes to life through puppetry, sound, shadow, and craft.
The Experience
Through many years of experience in creating work specifically for Early Years, and training play enablers and educators across the UK, DNA developed this integrated concept of performance and workshop.
Children interact directly with the story told in performance and create their own retelling using sound, shadow, shape, colour, and craft. The group is invited right into the world of the caterpillar, experiencing its birth, life, appetite, and miraculous metamorphosis into a butterfly.
Children count along, sing playful rhymes, explore fruits and textures, and develop confidence in their speaking and listening skills.
Early Learning Focus
The session is purposefully structured to nurture early development areas:
- Personal, Social & Emotional Development: Sharing space, turn-taking, and building confidence.
- Communication, Language & Literacy: Responding to storytelling, rhythm, and expressive dialogue.
- Mathematical Development: Counting foods, sequencing life cycles, and matching colours.
- Understanding the World: Discovering natural growth, insects, and seasonal cycles.
- Physical & Creative Development: Crafting puppets, fine motor manipulation, and expressive movement.
Session Details
Duration: 1 hour (with a pause halfway)
Group Size: Maximum 15–20 children
Adults: Early years staff and parents actively participate or observe child-led choices.
Bespoke Resource: Caterpillars & Cocoons Play Kit
We also craft bespoke, tactile museum and nursery play kits based on this popular theme.