Need some ideas on how to help your children perform poetry in Reader’s Theater?
Looking at videos of others performing Reader’s Theater can sometimes be a springboard for ideas. They can provide you with some revelation on how to set up your stage or give you some thoughts on how your children might move during a performance.
I recently went to YouTube to look for some Reader’s Theater videos. I found some performances that were very simple and cute, and others that were more elaborate. I thought I’d share some of those with you here so that you can get some inspiration for helping your children perform Reader’s Theater (or choral reading as some call it).
Reader’s Theater and Other Choral Performances
Here is a group of young readers performing a piece about hopping and skipping. (Notice the bunny ears ๐ ) Keep an eye on the girl on the left in the white shirt. She does an excellent job of keeping her script down so that it doesn’t cover her face. All in all, I think this performance is just adorable.
http://youtu.be/f0mycsjaBLA
This next performance was done for a choral poetry contest. The script is memorized instead of read. (As you probably already know, Reader’s Theater scripts can be either read or recited.) Watch the girl in the yellow skirt at the beginning of the piece. She does an outstanding job of enunciating and projecting her voice. The choreography for this work was exceptional. I love how they move around the stage and use some interesting hand motions.
This piece was performed for a competition at a college. The performers do a wonderful job of reading with expression. I really liked the way the main character performed without a script. That’s one way you can potentially combine reading with memorization. You can have some of your performers read while others recite.
This last performance isn’t poetry, but I had to include it because it is performed by a homeschool group. ๐ I love the way the intensity increases for the words “Hundreds of cats. Thousands of cats. Millions, and billions, and trillions of cats.” I thought that “cats” on the right were a good way to include young performers.
I would love to see YOUR homeschool’s performances of Reader’s Theater poetry on YouTube. I’m thinking of posting more videos on this blog in the future. So if your homeschool family or co-op records a video of a Reader’s Theater poetry performance, please feel free to share it in the comment section below. I might put it in a post at a later date.
You may also might be interested in our Reader’s Theater products. Click on the links below to learn more about them.
Learn more about Reader’s Theater: Christian Poetry
Learn more about Reader’s Theater: Classic Poetry