Quest Kids’ Academy has had an amazing summer filled with so many fun programs. One of those programs was MicheLee Puppets, an organization that works to empower lives through the art of puppetry. Tracey Connor, Executive and Artistic Director of MicheLee Puppets was fundamental in making this partnership happen. Rollins College Health Communications Professor, Sarah Parsloe, and her student, Seth Juncewski, added an integrated research component to the project. With a partnership between Quest, MicheLee, and Rollins College, this program became truly special.
Our students at Quest Kids Academy (QKA) love puppetry. MicheLee’s approach allows students to be fully involved in the puppetry process. Students create the puppets themselves with guidance from Michelee team members and learn how to bring them to life with some basic movements. These exercises provide QKA students an effective space to practice skills that are necessary for life. In addition to life skills, it also offers an opportunity to foster emotional intelligence. “You basically place those into a puppet and they become separate from you. And that process of externalizing really heavy or difficult ideas or experiences — potentially traumatic experiences — allows you to look at them outside of you,” says Sarah Parsloe. Communication is a challenge for many QKA students and this program allowed them to practice articulating the emotions they feel.
Sarah and Seth are with the Student Faculty Collaborative Scholarship Program at Rollins College, which allowed them to select and research a topic of their choice. The research explored how puppets can be used as a tool to support communication and social skill development in individuals with developmental disabilities. “It is extremely beneficial as a teacher and therapist to see how the programming impacts our students,” says Melissa Lopez, Director of Quest Kids Academy. “We look for ways to encourage independence and MicheLee’s puppets help propel that,” says Frances Torres, QKA’s Director of Curriculum and Instruction. The experience for all parties has been overwhelmingly positive and beneficial for QKA students. Quest looks forward to more partnerships with both MicheLee and Rollins!We are grateful to MicheLee Puppet’s and Rollins College’s Sarah Parsloe and Seth Junceswki for their time and engagement this summer. These experiences provide lessons and experiences that will last a lifetime!