Reader's Theatre

My 3rd and 4th graders dived into reading Brandon Brown quiere un perro and they are loving it! One student said "Señorita T, this is so cool, there are so many words in this book that I know!" It is so gratifying to see that those weeks of pre-teaching the vocabulary for the novel paid off!

If you read any of my previous posts about Brandon Brown quiere un perro then you have heard me rave about the teacher's guide. I used the teacher's guide script for the chapter 3 reader's theatre and my students had a great time acting it out! During reader's theatre all of the students have a copy of the script in front of them and actors (and narrator) are reading their lines of dialogue from the script (no need to memorize anything). Acting out the scene provides the readers the opportunity to associate meaning by working closely with the text; this correlates to gains in vocabulary, comprehension and retention. 
 
My reader's theatre was inspired by a workshop I attended this past summer at NTPRS by Carol Gaab. If you are ever at a workshop and Carol is presenting you must go and see her--she has so many great strategies to keeps students engaged while reading.
Here are some of Carol's ideas that I incorporated into my reader's theatre (thank you Carol!).

• Don't pick a text that is too easy
  Reader's theatre provides a great opportunity for the teacher to dig deeper into a section of the book that is difficult for the students. Choose a scene that has new words, is action packed, or is grammar-intensive. The section that my students acted out was grammar-intensive, so I was able to do some pop-up grammar with my students.  
• Re-enact a scene you've already read
  When you use a scene that your students are already familiar with they can focus on grammar or new vocabulary more easily. They also have an easier time conveying the emotions of the characters when they are familiar with the scene. 
• Prepare for the scene
  Make this experience engaging for your students by setting up the scene. Select the props and create a background for your students to act in. Make the book come alive!  
• Choose your actors
  Choose actors not distractors. On the same token, don't choose students that won't give you the energy that a reader's theatre requires. You want actors that can create comedic moments and are comfortable reading in front of the class. Sometimes if there is a hard line of dialogue I will stand behind my actors and say the line for them and they move their mouth as if they are talking (my students always think this is hilarious). 
• Coach your actors
  This is one aspect of teaching that requires you to invest some time but they payoff is huge! I always coach my students in English (using English allows me to quickly make clear and concise requests to my actors). I coach my actors in front of the entire class so that everyone can apply what I am saying to the next time they are chosen as an actor. Demand the energy that you want from your actors. If the script says that someone exclaims something make your actor repeat the line until you feel that they really have exclaimed it! This is great because it provides you with the opportunity to get extra repetitions of target structures, and if you make the coaching playful it is fun for the entire class to watch. If Brandon picks up the dog coach the actor on how to pick it up--ask for ideas from the audience. Does he pick it up my the ear or the tail? Again, this lets you get extra repetitions of target structures in a novel and compelling way. 
• The energy is on the students
  Make your students do the work! I am guilty of stepping in and trying to overcompensate when I don't see the energy that I want from my student actors. If you are also guilty of this you know how exhausted you end up feeling by the end of the day. Instead, step back and coach your student actors to give the energy. Describe, model and demand the energy that you want to see in class, but don't give it all yourself--let the students do the work! 

The park served as the setting for Chapter 3 reader's theatre of Brandon Brown quiere un perro

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