Stories to Use in Process Drama
(Compiled by Meighan Smith Meighan.smith@granite.k12.ut.us)
The following is a list of books that lend themselves to process drama techniques.
Most books can be adapted for any grade level unless otherwise noted
My Life with the Waveby Catherine Cowan (Author), Mark Buehner (Illustrator) "
Publisher: HarperTrophy
From School Library Journal
When a boy brings a wave home from vacation, he is crestfallen to discover that his new
friend's capricious nature. This story undulates with imagery-rich language and buoyant
paintings.
Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch
by Eileen Spinelli (Author), Paul Yalowitz (Illustrator)
Publisher: Aladdin (January 10, 2006)
From Publishers Weekly
This warmhearted tale examines the effect that love and tender regard can have on a
lackluster existence. Mr. Hatch is a drab, predictable gentleman who leads a painfully
ordered and uninteresting life, his dreary routine at the shoelace factory barely broken by
the same joyless lunch day after day. One Valentine's Day a giant candy-filled heart is
delivered to Mr. Hatch with a note that reads, "Somebody loves you." Just the thought of
someone taking an interest in him completely changes the way Mr. Hatch interacts with his
neighbors and co-workers. The newly adorable gentleman becomes so much a part of
people's lives that when it is disclosed that the heart was delivered by mistake, his friends
and neighbors rally around him in a loving demonstration. With its carefully measured pace,
Spinelli's gentle prose is perfectly married to Yalowitz's ( Some of My Best Friends Are
Monsters ; The Spooky Eerie Night Noise ) contemporary-style colored pencil illustrations,
rendered with skill and sensitivity. Even the palette here changes with the story's mood,
from dull grays and tans to cheery pinks, oranges and blues.
The Knight and the Dragon
by Tomie dePaola (Author) "
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile; Reissue edition (February 2, 1998)
Book Description
What happens when a sheepish knight and a not-so-fierce dragon fight for the very first
time? Well, it's no ordinary battle since the knight has to go to the castle library to learn
about dragon-fighting and the dragon must dig through his ancestor's things to find out how
to fight a knight! Spontaneity of line and feeling are backed by zesty colors and a jovial,
tongue-in-cheek tone to which children can relate A top springtime choice. --Booklist
There's a swirl of good-humored life to the book. --The New York Times Book Review
A Rainbow of My Own – For grades K-2
by Don Freeman (Author)
Publisher: Puffin (December 14, 1978)
Book Description
After a rainstorm, a little boy imagines what he would do if he had his own rainbow to play
with. He imagines that he and his rainbow friend would hop and leap and slide together. He
imagines that his rainbow would make things like a hammock for him to swing in and that
they would play hide and seek together. When he returns home he finds that the sun
shining through the water in his goldfish bowl has made him a rainbow of his very own on
his bedroom wall.
Night of the Gargoyles – For grades 4-6
by Eve Bunting (Author), David Wiesner (Illustrator)
Publisher: Clarion Books; Reprint edition (August 23, 1999)
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3-What child hasn't looked at a sculpture or creatures carved in stone
and wondered what would happen if they came to life? Bunting's canny phrasing and
Wiesner's ominous black-and-white illustrations answer the question perfectly. When night
comes, the gargoyles on a museum building come alive. They "gargoyle-hunch" with friends
around a fountain, "rumble-laugh" at the night watchman, and resume their stone facades
with empty eyes unblinking when morning arrives. If anyone could bring gargoyles to life
pictorially, it's Wiesner. High-rise angles and perspectives are peopled with pigeons and
squirrels; light is played against dark, forming menacing shadows; spreads and panels zoom
in on narrow and wide-angle views; all creating a delicously eerie, spooky scenario. The
brief text cunningly induces liveliness and wit with well-honed word choices: "they grunt of
what they've seen...they grump of summer passing...they boom those gargoyle laughs that
rumble thick because there is no space inside their solid stone for laughs to somersault."
This is not for very young children, but it's sure to have enormous appeal for older
audiences. From stony-eyed stares to their merry scorn of humans, it's gargoyle
gleefulness.
Julie Cummins, New York Public Library
Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins
by Eric A. Kimmel (Author), Trina Schart Hyman (Illustrator)
Publisher: Holiday House (September 1994)
From Amazon.com
What are the poor villagers to do? The holiday-hating, hill-dwelling hobgoblins are bound
and determined to ruin yet another Hanukkah for them. Every year the beasties snuff out
the menorah candles, destroy the dreidels, and pitch the potato latkes on the floor. But
these wicked wet blankets never counted on someone as clever as Hershel of Ostropol
showing up. Using his wits and a few props--pickles, eggs, and a dreidel (a square-shaped
top with Hebrew letters on each side)--Hershel manages to outwit all the creepy critters and
break the spell. This fabulously creative adaptation of the ancient Hanukkah story in which
the Syrians forbade the Jews to worship as they wanted, keeps the spirit of the original
while adding a spine-tingling twist. Warmth and humor prevail, even in the midst of
hopeless-looking circumstances. Award-winning illustrator Trina Schart Hyman creates lively
and witty pictures that pair perfectly with Eric Kimmel's words to create this Caldecott Honor
Book.
Snowmen at Night
by Caralyn Buehner (Author), Mark Buehner (Illustrator)
Publisher: Dial (September 23, 2002)
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 1-A child wonders why a snowman looks droopy the morning after it was
made and decides that snowmen must be nocturnal. The bouncy, rhyming text describes
the imagined rumpus in which the snowmen have races, do tricks on skates, and bump into
one another like clowns. "They gather up their snowballs, the pitcher takes his aim,/and
underneath the moonlit sky they play a baseball game./No one knows just how it
started,/but soon it's quite a sight-/with snowmen throwing snowballs/in the world's best
snowball fight!" After a night of action, the tired snowmen return to their homes. The oilover-acrylic paintings capture the fun of the rollicking adventures and bring these round
creations to life. The illustrations convincingly depict their solid bodies in action, and the
moonlit snowy setting provides a sense of mystery. The imaginative description and lively
art could provide an entertaining read-aloud for bedtime sharing or winter storytimes.
The Snowy Day- For grades K-1
by Ezra Jack Keats (Author)
Publisher: Puffin; Reprint edition (October 28, 1976)
From Amazon.com
The Snowy Day, a 1963 Caldecott Medal winner, is the simple tale of a boy waking up to
discover that snow has fallen during the night. Keats's illustrations, using cut-outs, watercolors,
and collage, are strikingly beautiful in their understated color and composition. The tranquil
story mirrors the calm presence of the paintings, and both exude the silence of a freshly snowcovered landscape. The little boy celebrates the snow-draped city with a day of humble
adventures--experimenting with footprints, knocking snow from a tree, creating snow angels, and
trying to save a snowball for the next day. Awakening to a winter wonderland is an ageless, evermagical experience, and one made nearly visceral by Keats's gentle tribute.
Jamie O'Rourke and the Big Potato
by Tomie dePaola (Author)
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile; Reprint edition (January 27, 1997)
From Publishers Weekly
This inspired Irish folktale clearly illustrates that taking the easy way out of a situation is
sometimes more trouble than it's worth. Potato farmer Jamie O'Rourke, "the laziest man in
all of Ireland," is unfortunately not the brightest of men either. The prospect of a harsh and
foodless winter, due to meager crops, and the ceaseless nagging of his hardworking wife
impel Jamie to the church to pray for help. As Irish luck would have it, Jamie happens upon
and captures a leprechaun who cunningly offers magic potato seeds instead of the
traditional pot of gold. The resulting colossal spud feeds the O'Rourkes and the other
villagers far longer than anyone could have imagined. Although the comical tone works well
here, readers may be surprised that Jamie is rewarded for being lazy. Thatched-roof
cottages, stone hedges and sheep dot the green landscape, depicting rustic life on the
Emerald Isle. DePaola's distinctive homespun style and genial gentry round, child like faces
add plenty of zip to this silly story.
The Great Fuzz Frenzy
by Janet Stevens (Author), Susan Stevens Crummel (Author)
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books (September 1, 2005)
From School Library Journal
It all begins innocently enough, when Violet the dog drops a fuzzy green tennis ball down a
prairie-dog hole on the title page. When it finally lands deep in the underground tunnels,
dozens of little dogs are gazing at it with trepidation. The biggest prairie dog of all, the bully
Big Bark, comes to take a look, but before he can get close enough, Pip Squeak runs up to
the ball and exclaims, ‘It's fuzzy!' ‘Oooooooh!' gasped the other dogs. Soon, they all
begin adorning themselves with pieces of lime-green fuzz, ignoring Big Bark's commands
that they stop this foolishness. Prairie dogs come from all over to help themselves until the
ball is plucked bare. War breaks out, leaving Pip Squeak feeling rather guilty for starting it
all. While the embattled dogs collapse in exhaustion, Big Bark steals all of the fuzz,
proclaiming himself king of the fuzz, which makes him an easy target for an eagle, who
swoops down and grabs him. Pip Squeak rallies the others to come to Big Bark's aid. The
marvelously rendered mixed-media illustrations, with vivid blues, earthy browns, and that
luminescent green, capture the true fuzzy nature and greenish glow of the ball.
The Magic Gourd (Aesop Prize (Awards))
by Baba Wague Diakite (Illustrator)
Publisher: Scholastic Press (February 1, 2003)
From School Library Journal
Diakite sets his story in his native Mali. After Dogo Zan the rabbit saves a chameleon from a
sticky situation, he is given a magic gourd that fills with whatever its owner wishes in
payment for his kindness. When the greedy king learns about its magic powers, he takes
the gourd by force. Using another gift from the chameleon, Dogo Zan recovers his treasure
and teaches a lesson in generosity as well. Diakit‚ illustrates this tale with paintings on
ceramic tiles, plates and bowls, and borders with designs from Bamana mud cloth patterns,
which are imbued with their own symbolism.
Miriam Lang Budin, Chappaqua Public Library, NY
The Magic Bean Tree: A Legend from Argentina
by Nancy Van Laan (Author), Beatriz Vidal (Illustrator)
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin; Library Binding edition (March 30, 1998)
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 5AThis pourquoi tale from the Quechua people of Argentina tells of the
first tree in the world, a carob. When drought comes to the pampas, a young boy named
Topec goes in search of rain. The carob tree tells him that he must send away the Great
Bird of the Underworld that roosts in its highest branches. Topec brings his people to make
noise; the animals join in the racket, and the bird flies away allowing the gods to hear the
people's prayers and send rain. As a reward, the carob sheds beans, which provide food for
everyone; soon carob trees spread throughout Argentina. The theme of a small or weak
animal or child who saves the people is eternally satisfying, and children can easily identify
with the hero, although Topec's task is less arduous than some. Vidal's stylized paintings
are dramatic and.APam Gosner, formerly at Maplewood Memorial Library, NJ
Music For Process Drama
The following is a list of music CD’s that can be used to enhance process drama. As a
general rule, music with no words works best.
Cousteau's Dream ~Various Artists
Original Release Date: August 22, 2000
Label: Real Music
Evening Angels~ Kurt Bestor
Original Release Date: November 17, 1994
Label: River Records UK
Planet Drum~ Mickey Hart
Original Release Date: December 1991
Label: Rykodisc
August End~ Jon Schmidt
Original Release Date: December 2, 2003
Label: JS Productions
Crumb & The Pirates ~ Tristan Moore
Release Date:2001
Sense Pass King ~ Tristan Moore
Release Date: 2001
Pockets ~ Tristan Moore
Release Date: 2006
Tristan Moore is the composer for Children’s Dance Theatre in Salt Lake City. His CD’s can
be purchased at www.tristanmoore.com
Audio ~ Blue man Group
Original Release Date: December 7, 1999
Label: Virgin Records Us
Top 20 Greatest Classics ~ Various Composers
Original Release Date: January 1, 2000
Label: Platinum Disc
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring ~Howard Shore
Original Release Date: November 20, 2001
Label: Reprise / Wea
The Memory of Trees ~ Enya
Original Release Date: December 5, 1995
Label: © 1995 Warner Music UK Ltd. / Reprise Records