Star Wars Origami

Over the weekend (on May 4th, of course!), we offered Star Wars Origami for all ages.  This wasn't the first time we've offered this program, but it was the first time I've really felt like it went smoothly.  We had 64 people come through during the one-hour program (mostly school-age boys... a lot of grown-ups stayed, too, thankfully!); here's how we organized it:

• We advertised the program for all ages, and we included "drop in anytime" in the event listing so that patrons would know they didn't need to arrive at the very beginning or stay the entire time. 
• I set up a table with the following supplies, in this order, along with copies of Tom Angleberger's Origami Yoda books:
• Photocopies of the instructions for the Universal Puppet, C3-PO, R2-D2, and Yoda (all based on the Universal Puppet, all from Tom Angleberger's books)
• Photocopies of the instructions for the 5-fold Yoda and the Lightsaber, also from Tom Angleberger's books
• 8 1/2 x 11 paper in green (for Yoda), yellow (for C3-PO), and white.  The patterns we used all call for rectangular paper, which is really handy. 
• Crayons, colored pencils, and magic markers for adding details
• I set up an additional table with the following supplies:
• Star Wars stickers
• A very special R2-D2 stamp and an ink pad
• Drawing paper and colored pencils, crayons, and magic markers
• Copies of Star Wars Thumb Doodles, Star Wars Origami, Star Wars Folded Flyers, You Can Draw Star Wars, The Star Wars Craft Book, and Star Wars Mad Libs

Patrons came in and as I greeted them, I pointed out the items on tables and suggested that they start with the Universal Puppet.  The vast majority of participants stuck with the Universal Puppet and the creations that can be built off of that model, as well as the 5-fold Yoda and the Lightsaber.  A few ambitious souls tried some of the projects in the books on the second table.  Younger kids loved having the Thumb Doodles, and the Mad Libs were great for kids who needed something other than origami to keep them busy.  The stickers and R2-D2 stamp provided extra flair for anything and everything! 

The best part: all of our materials are safely packed away in one tub, ready to be pulled out for a future Star Wars Origami event!