Teacher Created Materials
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar
Bring Julius Caesar to life with a reader's theatre approach that engages the entire class. The opening exercises model the importance of reading with expression while choral reading exercises permit class members to practice their...
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Nasreddin Hodja - Turkish and Middle Eastern Folklore Philosopher
Third graders read a readers theater written by Nasreddin Hodja. In this Nasreddin Hodja lesson plan, 3rd graders learn about the philosopher and participate in one of his reader's theaters.
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Resolving Problems
Students participate or listen to a reader's theater skit from "A Pocket Full of Seeds." Students identify Nicole's problem and create a solution to the problem. Students may listen to a group of 5 read the skit, or may be divided into...
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Animal Farm - The Rest of the Story
Students participate in a reader's theater using farm animals in the novella Animal Farm. In this Animal Farm lesson plan, students evaluate interpretations using the text, personal experience, and historical events.
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Incorporating Literature into Social Studies Teaching and Learning
Students engage in a study of incorporating literature into the Social Studies classroom. They review a variety of literature sources and then create a bulletin board with the information. Then students practice using the Reader's...
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Reader's Theatre for 1st Grade
First graders participate in reader's theatre. In this drama instructional activity, 1st graders choose a Scholastic play and use stick masks to perform the story. The students are videotaped and analyze their performance
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Character Development Through Reader's Theater
Ninth graders study a piece of literature, adapt it into a script and perform the piece to the class. Students practice reading their scripts. They use Inspiration software to create a multimedia presentation.
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Readers Theatre: The Three Snow Bears
Students dramatize the story, Three Snow Bears by Jan Brett. In this readers theatre lesson, students read the story and then dramatize the events during readers theatre. There is an included script.
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Energy Play: Harry Spotter and the Chamber of Windy Myths
Students explore the concept of renewable energy. In this alternative energy lesson, students participate in a play that conveys information regarding wind energy. The script may be performed as a play with props or as a reader's theatre.
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"War of the Worlds": A Broadcast Re-Creation
Why did Orson Welles' 1938 Broadcast of a adaptation of H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds cause such a panic? To answer this question, class members listen to the original broadcast and research the panic that resulted. They then engage...
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The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Class
Students read the reader's theater play, 'The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash.' They practice reading for fluency and present the story through acting and oral reading. Some students read the script and others act it out. They switch...
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Reading the Play
Do figures of speech enhance a play or story? In small groups, learners locate and describe figures of speech they find while reading a reader's theater play. After making predictions, they describe how the figures of speech make the...
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Learning About Fiction Genres in the Elementary School Library
Teaching about fiction genres can be challenging. The lesson here, designed for library media specialists, offers a fun way to do it. In the lesson, learners visit the library and learn about the different types of fiction through book...
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Reader's Theater, Rehearsal
Students rehearse a play. In this Reader's Theater instructional activity, students practice reading a play, Master Man: A Tall Tale of Nigeria by Aaron Shepard. Students discuss fluency, intonation, and volume when presenting.
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Folktale Improvisation
Sixth graders present reader's theatre by improvising folktales from different countries. In groups, they produce an improvisation of a folktale story from an assigned reading of a folktale.
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Water Cycle Voice Thread
Students understand the water cycle through a role playing activity. In this water cycle instructional activity, students become familiar with the water cycle through a play about the water cycle. Students illustrate their parts and...
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"Giggle Poetry" Theater
Students read and perform "Giggle Poetry Theater." In small groups, they read the poems, collect props, rehearse, and present their poem to their classmates.
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It's About Us
Students understand ideas about civic life and government. In this census lesson, students participate in a First We Count Reader's Theater and answer reading questions about the script in order to gain a better understanding of the...
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Civil War Diaries
Fifth graders examine excerpts from a diary of a Confederate soldier and his experiences in a Union prison camp. After receiving character cards, they write diary entries from the perspectives of their Civil War identity. As an...
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Starting Stone Soup
Second graders complete activities using the story Stone Soup. In this reading fluency lesson plan, 2nd graders read a fluency page that reviews the vocabulary in the book. Students then participate in readers theater to promote reading...
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Connections Between Texts-Maya Lin and Jane Jacobs
Young scholars discuss New York City architectural developments. In this architectural history lesson, students create Reader's Theater scripts based on imaginary conversations between two women who contributed to New York City's...
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Kazan, Miller, and the McCarthy Era
Young scholars read The Crucible in order to investigate the McCarthy era and the Hollywood Blacklist. Students watch video clips of the McCarthy witch hunts and investigate the time period through online research. Young scholars...
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Lon Chaney: Three Faces of Lon Chaney
High schoolers watch the Lon Chaney episode of American Masters, read chapters from three original books on which Chaney's films were based, and use a reading strategy called Reader's Theater to adapt each chapter into a script. After...
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Its All In The Delivery
Students investigate the concept of different words and how they are used in specific texts. They develop scripts based upon readings and then design props and costumes to act out the new text. Students read to one another using the...