Using Reader's Theater to Increase Reading and Oral Fluency in the

EFL Classroom

Peg Reilly, English Language Fellow

Victoria Proaño, College Horizons Teacher

Ibarra, Ecuador

January 8, 2014

Reader’s Theater

OBJECTIVES

By the end of this Webinar, you will be able to:

• Define Reader’s Theater

• List several reasons to use Reader’s Theater

• Explain how to use Reader’s Theater

• Explain how Reader’s Theater increases reading and oral fluency

What is Reader’s Theater?

• Teacher selects a story for students to tell.

• Students practice and speak the dialog in the story.

• Students choose sound effects, props, and staging (where to stand).

• Chosen story:

• Engaging

• Fits proficiency level of students

• Not too long (no more than 5-10minutes, depending on age/level of students)

Examples of Reader’s Theater

• Thematic, based on time of year:

• Save the Turkey!

• A Charlie Brown Christmas

• Christmas around the World

• It’s One of Those Crazy Holidays

• A Baker’s Dozen

Why Use Reader’s Theater

• Students have fun with English

• Builds self-esteem and confidence

• Improves reading and pronunciation skills

• Universal themes easily understood, regardless of culture

Why Use Reader’s Theater

• Students use their imagination to portray their character (old, happy, silly, crazy, sad, serious)

• OK to use scripts—no need to memorize

• Team effort—students support each other

• Bottom line: IT’S REALLY FUN!

Procedure

• Assign roles before first reading.

• Go through text together.

• Work on pronunciation, pausing, intonation and emotion.

• Perform for an audience.

Selecting Text

• Select an authentic text.

• Divide text into number of parts for which you have readers.

• OR Choose from a ready-made Reader’s Theater script.

• Script should be engaging for your students.

• Slightly more advanced than your students’ reading levelAdapted from Taylor de Caballero, 2012

Reader’s Theater: It’s Just FUN!

• Final thoughts:

• Reader’s theaters can be used with any age group and proficiency level

• Choosing the right story is key (teacher’s role)

• Reduces anxiety for more timid students

• Students use their imaginations to bring stories to life

• “Students. . . recognize the words and their meaning and the meaning of a story.” (Hines, 2005)

References

• Hins, M. (2005). Story theater. English Teaching Forum,43(1), 24-29. Retrieved from http://americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource_files/05-43-1-e.pdf

• Shepard, Aaron. http://www.aaronshep.com/

• Taylor de Caballero, K. (2012). Introduction to readers theater for efl classrooms [Web]. Retrieved from http://api.ning.com/files/vn7M8FumlS8GJKAvhkEk*-*xEjGY3mlOPUD-4hEuXxwb9X6WbTf1g7L2mjNbnISoxDJQJPU6N0E4ZawHM3LsiNGkJCtu0hO1/ReadersTheater_Taylor.pdf