Andrea Everman makes these shadow puppets from lasercut matboard. We just bought a few and they are pretty damn sturdy. The Owl is great, flapping his wing as you pull the attached. See more at owlyshadowpuppets.etsy.com.
"The puppets are all designed with moving parts, so the mermaid "swims", the T-rex "roars" and the Toothfairy "can fly". I now use a pop-fastener for the puppet joints which is made from recycled plastic-- this fastener is safer for children because it cannot come undone once the puppet is assembled.
Also, I have found that the multi-jointed puppets (Mermaid, seamonster, T-rex, and diplo) are the most satisfying for young performers. These designs are the most intuitive to operate with a stick in each hand." -Andrea
