Readers Theater Readers’ Theater Reader’s Theater

By Spring Lin 10/06/2012

Broadway Show, 1990, Love Letters, active imagination and intellectual participation of the audience

One woman show, 1986, Shirley Valentine

Kids play house (make-believe, role play)

  1. Origin of RT
  1. 2500 years ago, Greece, group readings
  2. 1945, New York, the earliest use of the term, RT, in

Oedipus Rex.

  1. 1951, 4 actors, sat on stools, read Don Juan in Hell, memorized
  2. In the forties, radio plays, a form of RT.
  3. In the sixties, college – middle -- elementary schools

Staged plays are often limited by budget; RT is limited only by imagination.

  1. The Power of RT
  1. Vocabulary
  2. Increase comprehension & reading fluency (repetitive reading 20-30 times)
  3. Boost listening and speaking skills
  4. Enhance confidence
  5. Transform reluctant readers into book lovers
  6. Provide opportunities for cooperative learning
  7. Retention
  1. The Procedures of conducting RT
  1. Select the script: fun, fresh, and creative with natural dialogue
  2. Choose roles: The narrator is key and not too many lines for

each character

  1. Practice reading with feelings (facial expressions & Body gestures) plus error correction
  1. The Presentation of RT
  1. No memorization(?)
  2. No props
  3. No costumes
  4. No sets
  5. Read aloudwith dramatic voice (natural), vivid facial expressions, and body gestures
  6. Enable the audience to visualize the action and brings the text alive.
  1. Judge RTperformance with eyes closed, listen for clear and good pronunciation, intonation, fluency, etc.

Kids are not just reading a story, they are living it.

It’s the process that is important, not a finished product.

  1. Use RT in class
  1. T reads the scripts (from pictures books) and discusses the story with kids, and then kids read in unison.
  2. Kids read the script individually, round robin (no assigned parts yet).
  3. Kids choose the parts they want. If more than one kid wants the same part, draw lots.
  4. Practice and try out faces and actions.
  5. Perform
  6. Discuss the performance.

*Thanks for your listening.

Thanks for your attention.

Ways To Enhance Your English Abilities

Your English is your face to the world.

How do you look?

Do not trust these kinds of books:

It takes 10 minutes to understand ICRT.

It takes 3 days to be able to write English compositions.

It takes 5 days to master English grammar.

30 days to a more powerful vocabulary

(Learn Japanese lying down)

These books are more convincing:

There is no shortcut in English learning. (Lee Chia Tong)

40 famous people to teach you how to learn English

It takes 12 years to learn to read and write basic Chinese.

To master English, you need 2 Cs, 3 Ps, and memorize again.

(Carnegie Hall)

No one is born a tennis star. No one is born a good writer.

I learned the basic rules and movements and then hit the ball on the wall and then go out on the court and practice, and practice, and practice.

*I have teach English for six years.

*two boy*one of my student

  1. Vocabulary: What does it mean to know a word?
  2. Pronunciation ex. indict opposite comparable admirable chic chef Chicago hypothesis debris bow diligent

corps corpse rhetoric wilderness subpoena expertise

color collar snake snack shit sheet shirt short grammar

  1. Spelling ex. ghoti jeopardy posthumous righteous subtle

nowadays potato everyday receipt

spelling checker

  1. Meaning ex. run sow ground wound fell down felt

leg calf tender (bar tender) Underground

boot

d. Collocation ex. strong tea pay attention to make an effort

lack emphasize

e. Grammar ex luggage research brook

f. Parts of speech ex. courage courageous admire admirable

g. Synonym & antonym

h. Sentence-making ex. borrow lend bring take go come

  1. Do you know how English words are formed?
  2. Adding affixes
  3. Compounding: baby-sitter, cupcake,
  4. Blending: motel, medicare, modicon, smog, brunch
  5. Clipping: bike, dorm, lab, vet, gym, exam, ad, deli, limo, photo

Auto, bus, flu, fridge

  1. Coining: dink, ROM (read only memory), CAI, Radar (radio

Detecting and ranging), UFO (unidentified flying

Object), ASAP, BTW, TGIF

  1. Eponym: sandwich, masochist, sadist, boycott, china, laconic
  2. Onomatopoeia: buzz, rattle, splash, sizzle, tinkle
  1. What are the shortcuts in learning English voc.?
  2. Study Latin and Greek roots

97% of English words can be dissected.

80 % Latin and Greek, 15 % Anglo-Saxon, 5 % other languages

prefix + root + suffix

Ex: electrocardiograph

pandemonium

Ex: path-

sympathy apathy antipathy pathetic

pathology

ped-

pediatrician pedagogue pedagogy

podiatrist biped tripod

quadruped centipede millipede

pedestrian pedestal

phile-

Philosophy philately philharmonic bibliophile bibliography bibliomania biliophobia

bibliotherapy

philanthropist misanthrope

philogyny misogyny gyne(a)cology

misogamy bigamy polygamy polyglot

Ex: dem-

democracy demography epidemic endemic pandemic

demagogue

Ex: alcoholic workaholic chocoholic shopaholic netaholic vitaholic

Exceptions:

valuable invaluable priceless

flammable inflammable

loosen unloosen

artless artful artistic

disinterested dispassionate

impassive indifferent

estimable

Number:

uni mono

bi du di ambi amphi

tri

quadru tetra

penta quin

sex hexa

sept hept

octo

nona ennea

deca cent mille

nano multi poly

semi hemi demi pene

pan omni

b: Study Bible stories, myths, and anecdotes

Ex: boycott

Mainland China threatened to boycott McDonald’s products after the accidental bombing of the China embassy.

Ex: Achilles’ heel

George told me frankly that his Achilles’ heel is WOMEN.

Ex: sandwich sideburns maverick tantalizing

sadist masochist mecca meander

Caesarean decibel quixotic salary

laconic chauvinistic

c: Use mnemonics

Ex: spelling:

I before e, except for c.

principle principal

indispensible indispensable

stationary stationery

stalagmite stalactite

sound:

trouble carpenter negation loathe amble amorphous coma be contingent on

overt covert concave convex

copious coy crucible dawdle

docile erudite felony ichthyology

jingoism lament marrow munch

sullen tyro pedantic tirade wan

wanton lassitude rampant shoddy taciturn

panacea maudlin

meaning:

cloister teetotaler testy homely comely

nosegay preposterous putrid largess undermine

gingerly biannual biennial

d. Association or Clustering

Ex: conceal reveal

vice virtue

urban suburban suburbanite rural urbane

waterproof soundproof shockproof bulletproof

insectproof foolproof

extinct extant extent

habit inhabit cohabit habitat

tuition tip fee fare premium

sneeze snore cough hiccough belch fart

e: Onomotopeia

moo cuckoo bounce bump hum splash

growl swish quack quack tick tick ping pong clip clop

  1. What are the most often mispronounced words?

though thought thorough borough

bough tough hiccough

bomb comb tomb womb

south southern breathe breath

snack snake cup cop

color collar vest vast

mess mass economy colony

clothes creature comparable reparable

diligent indict minute (a.) pleasure pressure

rationale morale urbane humane

hypothesis personnel simile hyperbole

genre entrepreneur ensemble wilderness

southern debris colleague schedule

Chicago chic chef

colleague schedule documentary amateur

corps corpse façade machination

nuance subpoena thyme disparate

salmon calf salve concerto

zeal zealot reconcile prestige

expertise realm xenophobia content

  1. How many meanings of a word do you know of?

Ex: run down downtime felt tip stock scale bill beat flat flag pan limp appropriate nut

number pen leg love meet

land

  1. Do you use “very” often? What words can we substitute for it?

very beautiful – gorgeous

very old – aged

very lazy – indolent

very afraid – terrified, horrified, appalled

very tired – exhausted, fatigued

very stupid – idiotic, moronic, imbecilic

very unusual – rare

very funny – ludicrous

very painful – agonizing

very deep – profound

very proud – arrogant, haughty

very interested –extremely, keenly, deeply, particularly, mainly

  1. Do you use “Gender-Natural” language?

man, mankind – human beings, human race, human species, human, person, man and woman

man-made – artificial, synthetic

workman – worker

chairman -- chair

anchorman – anchor

policeman – police officer

fireman – firefighter

salesman – sales

spokesman – spokesperson, representative

steward, stewardess – male, female, flight attendant

congressman – member of congress

housewife – homemaker

waiter – food server

President Bush and Mrs. Jones – President Bush and Prime Minister Jones

Mrs. Miss – Ms.

My mom is a woman doctor.

My sister is a lady lawyer..

My brother is a male nurse.

Listening: Why can’t I understand a sentence?

Why can’t I understand what other people are talking about?

  1. Vocabulary: casino, pro choice, pro life, corporal punishment, capital

punishment, euthanasia, circumcision

  1. Phrases: knock out, knock down, knock up, knock off on the blink

make a racket make a din

  1. Idioms: She has a big sweet tooth.

She has a lead foot.

My legs arefalling asleep.

Holy Cow!

Break a leg!

Fingers crossed.

I’m going to see a man about his horse.

No money, no honey.

It cost an arm and a leg.

May I have a rain check?

Let’s play it by ear.

Break a leg!

I have butterflies in my stomach.

Beats me.

Over my dead body.

Cheers!

You rock!

He ticked me off!

We hit if off from the word GO.

You look like a million dollars!

  1. Slang: bad, cool, rock, in
  2. Structure: I would’ve bought a Mercedes Benz had I had two million

dollars last year.

Little do I know the importance of vocabulary until today.

  1. Background knowledge: The following talk is on meteorology.
  2. Speed
  3. Accent
  4. Intonation ex. A: I saw a car accident on my way here.

B: What?

ex. Great!

  1. Linking soundselision: Turkish eye wrap up wind up rip off

fish and chips last year I want to leave

Which church should Don’s sister get married in?

If anybody phones after 3, tell them I went out with the boss.

Jack can never repeat these sentences smoothly.

  1. Content words and functions words: I went to the store to buy a

carton of milk.

  1. Your own pronunciation: comparable, indict, chic, rapport, genre,

graduate, recreation, intimate, appropriate,

aged, learned, illustrate, southern, wilderness

garage, schedule, advertisement, kilometer

  1. Speaking

Familiarize yourself with daily expressions.

ex. Dig in.

Bon appetite!

Bon Voyage!

Your call.

See you in a bit.

Give it a shot. You’ve got nothing to lose.

You can say that again.

I can’t agree with you more.

I can’t agree with you less.

It’s not the end of the world.

There is plentyof fish in the sea.

May I have a rain check?

Let’s play it by ear.

It cost me an arm and a leg!

Most common errors made by Chinese speakers in English:

*My alarm clock did not ring.

*I’ll tell you a good news.

*Because I wanted to know my Ss’ English proficiency, so I designed this test.

*Although I am poor, but I am happy.

*Relax yourself!

*Could you repeat again?

*Can anyone tell me where does he live?

*Let’s discuss about the movie we saw yesterday.

*The author mentioned about this point.

*In my opinion, I think English is very important.

Because I love him, ….

This is also one of the most difficult sentence pattern to Chinese Ss.

Give Ss some unfinished sentences starting with BECAUSE.

Because I love him, …

Because I want to be as famous as Jan Min Won, …

Because I don’t have a car, ….

Because I have studied hard, …

Because I was lucky, …

Ask Ss to finish the sentences without using so, therefore, thus, and hence.

Although I am poor, …

Give Ss some sentences starting with ALTHOUGH.

Although I am poor, …

Although I am a child, …

Although I don’t speak good English, …

Although I can’t swim, …

Although I don’t have a pet dog, …

Although I am not good at English, …

Although he doe not love me, …

Ask Ss to finish the sentences without using but, however, nevertheless, and nonetheless.

Reading: Whatever interest you is good.

Writing: content, organization, structure (variety), diction, mechanics

(spelling, punctuation, capitalization, handwriting)

What is correct?

  1. I think I’ll go and lay down for a while.
  2. She performed really excellent.
  3. Did you finish the washing-up yet?
  4. If you’d have seen him, you’d have killed yourself laughing.
  5. There were less people there than I expected.
  6. She looks far more pretty without makeup.
  7. He’s like really stupid.
  8. Just a moment I’m now coming.
  9. I never expected to medal, so this is a real bonus.
  10. What an incredible run! He’s broke the record again!

Rules of thumb in games and activities:

  1. Give clear and concise instructions. Ex: Chinese whisper
  2. Give time limit.
  3. Always give examples first.
  4. Practice the new sentence pattern in chorus, in groups, in pairs, and individually, depending on the time one has.
  5. Rewards and penalties must be put into practice.

Classroom English

Give Ss as much English input as possible. Use classroom English.

Take your seat.

Who is missing today?

Take out your books and open them at page 10, Lesson 3.

Let’s start out lesson now!

Hurry up! Come on. Let’s get started. Let’s get a move on. Step on it!

Pass out the exercises.

Turn to the next page. Turn over.

Turn back to the previous page.

Stop writing, pens down.

Pass the answer sheet to the front.

It’s in the top right-hand corner.

Left column, second paragraph, the third line from the top, the fourth word from the right.

It’s about half way down.

It’s somewhere near the bottom of the page.

Read the text to yourself.

Let’s read the text aloud.

George, start reading from line 6. You go on, Bill.

Dylan, come out and write that sentence on the board.

Everybody, look at the board.

Now, do exercise 3A. Check your answers. Mark your own.

Change your paper with your neighbor.

Take off one point for every one wrong.

Copy this down in your notebooks.

Come out to the front and talk.

Let’s applaud the actors and actresses. Some applause for…

Is the volume all right? Can you hear at the back?

Let’s listen to the CD. All together, after the CD.

Now let’s play a guessing game.

Form two teams. Heads or tails? On your marks. Get Set. Go!

Can anyone guess what this is?

Two points for team A. Team A is the winner. It’s a tie.

Put your hand up if you know the answer.

Look at me. Pay attention now. Don’t sit there daydreaming.

Everyone listen. Stop talking now. Ssshhh! Not another word.

Sit up straight.

Speak up. I can’t hear you.

Use a complete sentence.

Try it again from the beginning.

Don’t whisper the answer.

Everyone, listen and repeat.

Everyone, say “think.”

Now just the boys.

Just the front row.

You have very good pronunciation.

You need more practice with these words.

That wasn’t very good.

Come on, you can do better than that.

What’s the Chinese word for “stinky bean curd”?

Say it in English, please.

No Chinese, please.

How do you spell the word?

You need a comma here. (period, colon, semicolon, dash, hyphen, question mark, exclamation mark, quotation marks, parenthesis, brackets, caret, apostrophe)

For your homework, do exercise 5.

I shall give you a test on it next week.

Study hard!

Good. Very good. That’s right. Well done. I like that. Marvelous. Terrific. Fantastic. Super. Superb. Incredible. You Rock. Wow!

Praises

Cheer up! 加油! (別灰心!)

Go! Go! Go! Go, Johnny, Go! 加油! 加油! 加油! Johnny 加油!

Pull devil, pull baker! / Pull dog, pull cat! 加油! 加油! (拔河 tug-of-war 時)

Have a try! (你)試試看!

Have a go! Give it a shot! Try again! You can do it if you try! Trust me, you can make it!

Go for it!!

(You're) doing fine!

(You're) wonderful!

(You're) marvelous.

(You're) terrific!

(You're) awesome!

(You're) excellent!

Far out! Super! Superb! Way to go! Cool! Awesome! Nice going! Good job! Well done!

Bitchen! Bitchin’!

That's my boy (girl)! / Atta boy! Atta girl! !

That'll do it!

Looking good!

You rock!

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