TURN READING INTO MAGIC WITH "READERS' THEATER"

Dr. Wendy Ghiora - Posting #37 - January 24, 2010

What exactly is Readers’ Theater, you ask? It is an activity where students, while reading directly from scripts, can tell a story in a very entertaining form, without props, costumes, or sets. Students are not asked to memorize their lines; since they read from a text. They are definitely encouraged to “ham it up,” and use vocal expression, intonation, facial expression and gestures appropriate to their characters and their characters’ words. The performance that ensues becomes a “magical moment.”

Is Readers’ Theater a waste of time or is it productive; will it help students learn? Following are some arguments for the latter.

1.Fluency: Readers Theater provides repeated reading practice- an important factor in building fluency (prosody, word attack, comprehension and accuracy) Repeated reading practice also improves students’ confidence in, and enthusiasm for reading. Students are so thrilled at their newfound skill; they ask to perform for the younger students.

2.Self-Esteem: Readers’ Theater provides a wonderful opportunity for children who are used to feelings of failure, to provide outstanding entertainment for others.

3.Variety: The use of Readers Theatre can offer a different context in which students are exposed to texts focusing on poetry, science, social studies, or other content-related topics.

4.Comprehension: Readers Theatre is another way to enhance comprehension of text, as well as to create interest in and enthusiasm for learning. When text is read orally, within the context of an actual performance, meaning and understanding come alive in a new and “magical” way.

Here are some simple steps to use in order to bring the Magic of Readers’ Theater to your students:

Reader's Theater: A Quick Guide
Here is a suggested weekly plan to roll out your Readers Theater Program from Dr. Tim Rasinski, Professor of Reading at Kent State University

The Week Before: Before the week begins, choose a script or prepare one based on a text. Make copies for the group, two for each member.
Monday: On Monday, discuss the purpose and procedures for Reader’s Theater with the class/group. Assign students parts by having them volunteer or audition. Practice needs to be done aloud and also silently.
Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday: On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, have students practice their parts in class, on their own, in their groups and at home. This activity can also been done during center time or as part of an anchor activity.
Friday: Friday is performance day. Students can read/perform their scripts for an audience of classmates, parents, or even the principal. Remember, this is not a performance based on memorization. They are reading the script they have practiced over the week.

The Power of Reader's Theater
How can you magically make dramatic changes in kids' fluency, writing, listening, and social skills?
As you observe very young children at play, you’ll notice quite naturally, they invent characters, scenes, and stories, infusing their creations with expressive voices and invented dialogue. Settings are developed; dramatic conflicts arise and are solved. “Readers’ Theater” provides a similar experience.

Drama, as many teachers are discovering, is not only fun and natural for children, it also promotes self-confidence, motivation, and engagement. One form of drama, known as Reader's Theater, has been found to be particularly effective in building reading fluency. Called simply "RT" by many advocates, Reader's Theater can also boost listening and speaking skills and magically transform reluctant readers into book lovers.

Tim Rasinski, a professor at Kent State University, in Kent, Ohio, points out that "research has demonstrated that practiced reading or repeated reading does lead to significant gains in fluency, which is a key element in effective reading programs."

Building fluency is one of the five major dictates set up in Reading First, part of the No Child Left Behind Act. Put Reading First, a booklet published by the U.S. Department of Education et al (2001), states that "Readers' theatre provides readers with a legitimate reason to reread text and to practice fluency. [RT] also promotes cooperative interaction with peers and makes the reading task appealing."

How to get started
The best news about Reader's Theater is it does not require extensive preparation, fancy costumes, props, sets, or memorization. While staged plays might be limited by a school's budget or supplies, RT is limited only by one’s imagination, and determination to “make magic” happen in the classroom. It's also especially nice for the shy student or teacher, because you have a script in front of you — kind of nice to hide behind — and that gives you a sense of security.
Since kids need to understand and become comfortable with the format of a script, using a prepared script is the best way to start. Finding one is easy — there are numerous free scripts available online and in books. It’s best to start with short scripts — no more than two or three pages.

Most teachers find that even the most resistant readers practice their RT scripts as if they were doing a full-time job — and one that they love. "Most children have a desire to perform and express themselves orally," says Rasinski. RT gives them the opportunity to do so.

Mack Lewis, a third- and fourth-grade teacher from Central Point, Oregon, writes "Because we've inadvertently trained kids that books should only be read once...few second graders will read Stellaluna more than once or twice. Give kids a script and schedule a public performance, however, and they'll be more than happy to read and reread it 20 to 30 times. Twenty to 30 times!" Lewis, who has won national attention for his method of using drama to meet the standards in reading and history, explains that plays are the perfect format to teach repetitive reading. Kids don't resist it because they don't see it as a chore. Before they even know it, they gain mastery over the text. And their confidence grows immeasurably. He’s using the “magic” of Readers’ Theater to teach fluency.

Performing
The simplest way to perform Reader's Theater, explains teacher, Rick Swallow, is for the teacher to "assign parts and simply have the students stand in a straight line at the front of the room, facing the audience, parts in hand to read when it is their time." Some teachers like kids to stand as they read their parts. Music stands can be a nice addition, leaving kids' hands free to turn pages and gesticulate.

Once you have your makeshift stage set up, kids take turns reading their lines with as much creative expression as they can. It's that simple. However, kids need to be aware of one another and to listen respectfully.

RT and Emotional Needs
Another boon of RT is its ability to promote and develop interpersonal, social, and collaborative skills. Sometimes overcoming shyness and mastering reading can come together in one magical confluence. Another teacher, Ms. Stern remembers the moment it happened for one emotionally disturbed third grader, a nonreader who "would always sit on the periphery when the rest of the class did scripts on stage. He absolutely refused to participate."

By the next year, she recalls, the child had "edged in slightly toward the stage. He'd started to pay attention." Edging in closer all the while, the child finally reached fifth grade and, almost overnight, became "a full and active participant in the theater activities." More important, he had suddenly become a reader.

"This child looked up at me with a smile," recalls Stern. "He knew what he'd done, and he was so proud. He had broken the code to reading. Truly, this child had blossomed forth from nothing."

Conclusion
Students become excited and enthusiastic about reading when they are presented with the opportunity to participate in Readers Theatre. This activity affords students the opportunity to develop fluency and further enhance comprehension of what they are reading. It makes the reading experience “magical.”

Much of the data in this posting was culled from an article by Jennifer O. Prescott the managing editor of Instructor. The article was originally published in the January/February 2003 issue.