Reader's Theatre
Rasineki, T. & Padak, N. (2000). Effective reading strategies: Teaching
children who find reading difficult (2% ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill
Reader's theatre is an effective pathway for building fluency and responding to
reading. In order for the actors to perform the story, they must be able to
‘comprehend it, and in order for the audience to enjoy it, they must comprehend
the performers’ actions, words, and facial expressions. Reader's theatre is much
like performing a play, except there are no costumes, props, or memorization of
lines.
To implement Reader's Theatre:
1. Scripts can either be found on the Internet or in books, or
students may write them themselves.
2. To write a script, the students read a particular selection,
determine speaking parts, and divide the text by those
speaking parts. They then write the script down. It may
help to let the students type their scripts on the computer
after they have finished their rough drafts.
3. Next, the students select speaking parts.
4, They stand up in front of the class, holding their scripts.
5. Only the person who is speaking at any given time faces the
audience. The other performers have their backs to the
onlookers.
6. After the performance, the actors take a bow.Michelle Halt
Reading 350.001
9-15-93
Reader's Theater
jsown Bear, What Do You
8
by: Bill Martin, Je. Pictures by: Eric Carle
Characters
Narrator Purple Cat
Brown Bear White Dog
Redbird Black Sheep
Yellow Duck Goldfish
Blue Horse Mother
Green Frog Children
‘The children are standing with their backs toward the audience. They could have
paper masks they have made. One by one they turn around--
Narrator: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, what do you see?
Brown Bear: I see a redbird looking at me
Narrator: Redbird, Redbird, what do you see?
Redbird: I see a Yellow Duck looking at me.
Narrator: Yellow Duck, Yellow Duck, what do you see?
‘Yellow Duck: I see a Blue Horse looking at me.
Narrator: Blue Horse, Blue Horse, what do you see?
Blue Horse: I see a Green Frog looking at me.
‘Narrator: Green Frog, Green Frog, what do you see?
Green Frog: I see a Purple Cat looking at me.Narrator: Purple Cat, Purple Cat, what do you see?
Purple Cat: I see a White Dog looking at me.
Narrator: White Dog, White Dog, what do you see?
White Dog: T see @ Black Sheep looking at me
Narrator: Black Sheep, Black Sheep, What do you see?
Black Sheep: I see a goldfish looking at me.
Narrator: Goldfish, Goldfish, what do you see?
Goldfish: I see a Mother looking at me.
Narrator: Mother, Mother, what do you see?
Mother: I see beautiful Children looking at me.
Narrator: Children, Children, what do you see?
Children (Everyone): We see a Brown Bear, a Redbird, a Yellow Duck, a Blue
Horse, a Green Frog, a Purple Cat, a White Dog, a Black Sheep, a
Goldfish, and a Mother looking at us. That's what we see
Adapted From:
Martin, Bill Jr. (1983). Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
New York: Henry Holt and Company.