The following excerpt is from the Power of Puppets book by Kent and Mary Lou Cummins:

We had a fascinating example of the power of puppets during our first week of the first year of The Magic Camp. Blair was a severly hyperactive kid, unable to sit still for even a minute to watch a magic show. He would jump over the chairs and run from one side of the room to the other, literally bouncing off the walls!

As much as we might have wanted to keep him, the other children (and their parents) complained that their own camp experience was being ruined. We explained the situation to Blair's mom, and after only two days, she came to pick him up early. While waiting, my mom was teaching the kids how to make sock puppets. Somehow, with a lot of help, Blair also made a simple puppet.

It came time for the kids to line up and one by one get up onto the stage, letting their puppet introduce itself. Blair had trouble waiting his turn, but was finally allowed on stage...where an amazing transformation took place. His puppet was not hyperactive! In fact, it was remarkably interesting and articulate. The room quieted down, as campers and staff listened to this puppet and his perspective on life.

When Blair's mother arrived, we told her the story. We refunded her tuition, but Blair got to keep the puppet. I'm pleased to tell you that I saw him at a school show five years later, and he was a self-assured and self-controlled young man. The credit goes to his mom, of course, and the teachers who helped him along the way. But one of those teachers was a sock with two eyes and a mouth.