I used a Mimio lesson to review the terms and their meanings. Necessary, but where's the fun in that? If you really want kids to be engaged and understand the text features of drama, let them jump right into the drama.
1. Real actors read through their scripts independently several times to understand the story. (I think their director usually isn't chopping paper for a project during this time, but whatever.)
2. Real actors have a couple of read throughs to practice as a cast.
3. Real actors block out their movements so they know where to wait, come on, stand while on stage, and exit.
4. Real actors practice multiple times to get everything just right.
5. Real actors make illustrated signs to hold up so everyone knows who they are in the story. Okay, maybe not, but it's easier than costumes.
6. Real actors perform for an audience (also known as our book buddies).
We had a blast! The kids loved it, I loved it, and they learned a lot. After our performances, I put our drama text features list up on my Mimio. They used their script to explain all the terms to their book buddies.
It's a little trickier to find reader's theater for the upper elementary set. Zoom on PBS Kids GO! has tons of fun scripts on their site.
I got the laptop cart on Friday after our performance, and the kids used this for their buddy reading time. It was a big hit. Most of them have an element of humor-just enough to grab on to your reluctant readers. This is a great link for student computers/iPads as a new choice for computer stations.
Hope your weekend is drama free!