Curated OER
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.
Curated OER
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...
Curated OER
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...
Orlando Shakes
A Christmas Carol: Study Guide
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens has delighted readers for generations. An in-depth study guide gives an overview of an adaptation of the classic story for the stage. Along with summaries of the plot and key characters, theater...
Curated OER
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...
Curated OER
Reader's Theater, Rehearsal
Students rehearse a play. In this Reader's Theater lesson, students practice reading a play, Master Man: A Tall Tale of Nigeria by Aaron Shepard. Students discuss fluency, intonation, and volume when presenting.
Manchester University
Events leading to the American Revolution
The Stamp Act, Paul Revere's ride, and the Boston Tea Party pushed American colonists to the tipping point that led to the American Revolution. Fifth graders research the key figures of the war, study the Declaration of Independence, and...
Curated OER
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.
Curated OER
Water Cycle Voice Thread
Learners understand the water cycle through a role playing activity. In this water cycle lesson, students become familiar with the water cycle through a play about the water cycle. Learners illustrate their parts and create a VoiceThread...
Orlando Shakes
Comedy of Errors
To err is human ... and also leads to some hilarious situations. A script introduces readers to Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors, a play full of slapstick humor and other funny elements. Although lacking in activities, the text works well...
Curated OER
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...
Curated OER
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...
Curated OER
Starting Stone Soup
Second graders complete activities using the story Stone Soup. In this reading fluency lesson, 2nd graders read a fluency page that reviews the vocabulary in the book. Students then participate in readers theater to promote reading...
Curated OER
Connections Between Texts-Maya Lin and Jane Jacobs
Students discuss New York City architectural developments. In this architectural history instructional activity, students create Reader's Theater scripts based on imaginary conversations between two women who contributed to New...
Curated OER
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...
Curated OER
Lon Chaney: Three Faces of Lon Chaney
Young scholars 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...
Curated OER
Its All In The Delivery
Young scholars 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...
Curated OER
Lights, Camera, Action!
Students participate in an alternative reading assessment using a video camera and script. In this alternative reading activity, students work as a group to perform their reading story. students memorize their lines and film their play.
Civil War Trust
Civil War Play
Raise the curtain to a class play that depicts the Civil War through both factual information and literary devices. The performance showcases the Battle of Antietam (Battle of Sharpsburg) and brings attention to women's roles,...
Curated OER
Monster and Myths: Scripts
Learners explore characteristics of the myth genre. In this myth lesson, students become familiar with various myths and the cultures they were derived from. Learners compare in a graphic organizer. Students write...
Curated OER
We Tell Stories
Young readers bring characters to life by working in small groups to script and perform stories that contain a community concept. Detailed questions and activities are outlined for the class. Consider having your groups create...
Curated OER
Dive into Reading During National Book Month!
Cultivate a passion for literature with fun, easy to incorporate reading activities.
Curated OER
Thanks Be To You
Students research U.S. history by completing a worksheet activity in class. In this historical figure lesson, students identify the contributions and risks taken by the former African-American leader Martin Luther King Jr. Students read...