Literacy through Reader’s Theater

I have always been interested in drama and thought about minoring in and teaching it, but it is not considered a “teachable minor” for the state of
Michigan.  However, there are ways to incorporate dramatic activities into a classroom.  We have already discovered some of these in the Wilhelm text and know it is an important component to becoming engaged readers.  This could mean having students act out characters or scenes to bring them alive and incorporate their own interpretation.

 

But there is also a series devoted to drama in the classroom with a focus on literacy called “Reader’s Theater.”  It’s not traditional drama where students must memorize the script and stage cues, extensively rehearse, or come up with costumes and props.  In short, it’s all the fun dialogue and interaction that occurs in theater, without the stress of preparation. Also, teachers have a wide range of script subjects, not just English.  When I was in high school, we performed one in my history class about the Civil Rights Movement. 

 

This technique seems to be a good approach because it causes the actors and the audience to use their imagination while listening to an oral reading.  This same strategy of imagining is used when reading silently, which will help students on an individual level. It also makes participants pay attention while reading to look for action or emotional cues in the text.

 

To convert this into writing practice as well, one site I found suggest having students read a sample Reader’s Theater script focusing on the form.  Then, the students could use a piece of literature read in class or one of their choice to make into a RT script to then present. Gregory Brown, teacher at

North
Drive
Elementary School, found a way to differentiate in RT. He wrote the script his class used and has each character represent a different reading level.

‘You can assign the parts without them actually knowing what they’re getting as far as reading level,’ he said. 

 

The biggest benefit of that, he said, is to give students a bit of confidence.

Practicing oral reading is one way to become a better, and this allows him to personalize each student’s RT experience. Brown also states that although students can invite people to watch, it is not ultimately about the audience, but rather the reader.

 

Teacher publishes new “reading script”

Goldsboro News-Argus

Febuary 26, 2007

 

Reader’s Theatre Basics