Readers’ Theater
By: Brittany Donaldson
What Is Readers’ Theater?
• Program that promotes literacy.
• Benefits all but mostly struggling readers and
children who are English language learners.
• Specific goal is to help children become fluent
readers
• Designed to help children use all three cueing systems
while reading. (i.e. comprehension, graphophonetical
and syntatical.)
• Mostly focuses on comprehension, vocabulary, and word
recognition.
Process of Readers Theater
• In Readers Theater, a group of children are
given leveled scripts that they must read
repeatedly in order to gain an understanding
about fluency.
• Then, they present their scripts to the other
students in the classroom as a sort of “miniplay.” However, it is important to understand that
the presentations are not plays themselves.
• The hope is that the children will be so anxious
to perform in front of their peers, that through
repeated practice, they will try hard to learn their
scripts.
History of Reader’s Theater
• Originally developed for college students
taking a literature course. It was used to
develop comprehension.
• Educators and Specialist saw the program
as very successful and tried to integrate it
in High School, Junior High, Elementary,
and most recently Early Education.
• Today, it has a wide following and the
numbers suggest that it works well with all
ages, grade levels and abilities.
What is Fluency?
• According to Casey and Chamberlin,
Fluency is defined as the smoothness,
accuracy, rate, and efficacy of reading.
• An element of fluency is prosody which is
defined as the phrasing, intonation, pitch.
• These two areas combined help children
to read accuratly and with style.
• Demonstration
Why Readers Theater Works so
Well
• Addresses many types of intelligence and
learning styles at once.
• Gives something that children can relate
well to and gives them accountabilit.
• Promotes a fun way to learn literacy.
• Integrates art, imagination and creativity
into lessons.
• Gives children some freedom.
Readers Theater vs Plays
• Done regularly
• Small Audiences
• Uses no props,
costumes, sets
• Used mostly for academic
purposes focusing on
specific content areas.
• Think play rehersal
• Done once or twice a
year.
• Large Audiences
• Uses many props,
costumes, and elaborate
sets.
• Meant for entertainment
purposes only and can
integrate other mediums
of artistic expression.
• Think opening night.
Variations of Readers Theater
•
•
•
•
•
•
Content
Time
Direction
Ways that it can be done and for who
Other content areas
Where you see success
Readers Theater Example: Pre
Day-1 and Day 1: Chamberlin and
Casey.
• Pre-Day 1
• Teacher and/or students select story.
• Teacher and/or students prepare or write script.
• Day 1
• Teacher reads aloud the story.
Students read script independently, in small
groups, or as a whole class multiple times.
• Teacher and students discuss story.
• Students take home unmarked scripts for
practice.
Day Two,Three and Four
• Day 2, 3, and 4
• Students practice script in small and large
• groups, taking turns with different parts until later
• in the week when permanent parts are chosen.
• Students give each other compliments and
suggestions.
• Teachers provide mini-lessons or coaching
that explicitly teaches an aspect of fluency or
prosody.
• Students highlight parts for specific characters.
• Students select permanent parts.
• Students take highlighted scripts home for
practice.
Day Five
• Day 5
• Performance
• Options in a 5-Day Plan for
Readers’ Theater
Classroom Management
• Readers Theater can be very useful in
classroom management in many ways:
• Mini- Lessons : prepared in advanced and
address a specific area were children are
struggling.
• Guided Reading
• Read Alouds
• Centers
• Write Alouds
• Interactive and Independent Writing
Script Ideas
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Write your own
Use a book from Read- Alouds
Leveled Readers
Leveled Scripts (would have to purchase them)
Big Books
Rhymes
Poems
Songs
Script Ideas
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Around the Water Cycle from www.teachingheart.net/
readerstheater.htm
“Boa Constrictor” from Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel
Silverstein, 1974
Chicken Little retold by Jenny Giles (Rigby, 1997)
The Christmas Santa Almost Missed by Marian Frances
(Troll, 1970)
CLICK, CLACK, MOO: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin,
2000
“Code” from Lunch Money and Other Poems about School
by Carol Diggory Shields, 1995
“The Crocodile’s Toothache” from Where the Sidewalk
Ends by Shel Silverstein, 1974
Don’t Let Ted Have BUBBLE GUM! by Phyllis Sibbing, 1999
“A Faster Fox” from Fox Outfoxed by Edward Marshall,
Free Scripts: Internet
• http://www.aaronshep.com/rt/RTE03.html
Ways to be Creative
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Use Holiday Themes
Integrate Multicultural themes
Social Issues
World Issues
Fairy Tales
Tall Tales
Anything you want, be creative
What Researchers are Saying
•
•
•
•
•
•
Improves fluency
Helps ELL students
Combines Multiple Intelligence Theories
Helps in Special Education
Builds Character and self esteem
More Parental Involvement
Assesments
• There are many ways that you can do
phase three work with students in readers
thearter:
• Centers
• Guided reading
Example of Readers Theater In
Progress
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AMQD
QS48qE