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)
- Origin of RT
- 2500 years ago, Greece, group readings
- 1945, New York, the earliest use of the term, RT, in
Oedipus Rex.
- 1951, 4 actors, sat on stools, read Don Juan in Hell, memorized
- In the forties, radio plays, a form of RT.
- In the sixties, college – middle -- elementary schools
Staged plays are often limited by budget; RT is limited only by imagination.
- The Power of RT
- Vocabulary
- Increase comprehension & reading fluency (repetitive reading 20-30 times)
- Boost listening and speaking skills
- Enhance confidence
- Transform reluctant readers into book lovers
- Provide opportunities for cooperative learning
- Retention
- The Procedures of conducting RT
- Select the script: fun, fresh, and creative with natural dialogue
- Choose roles: The narrator is key and not too many lines for
each character
- Practice reading with feelings (facial expressions & Body gestures) plus error correction
- The Presentation of RT
- No memorization(?)
- No props
- No costumes
- No sets
- Read aloudwith dramatic voice (natural), vivid facial expressions, and body gestures
- Enable the audience to visualize the action and brings the text alive.
- 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.
- Use RT in class
- T reads the scripts (from pictures books) and discusses the story with kids, and then kids read in unison.
- Kids read the script individually, round robin (no assigned parts yet).
- Kids choose the parts they want. If more than one kid wants the same part, draw lots.
- Practice and try out faces and actions.
- Perform
- 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
- Vocabulary: What does it mean to know a word?
- 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
- Spelling ex. ghoti jeopardy posthumous righteous subtle
nowadays potato everyday receipt
spelling checker
- 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
- Do you know how English words are formed?
- Adding affixes
- Compounding: baby-sitter, cupcake,
- Blending: motel, medicare, modicon, smog, brunch
- Clipping: bike, dorm, lab, vet, gym, exam, ad, deli, limo, photo
Auto, bus, flu, fridge
- Coining: dink, ROM (read only memory), CAI, Radar (radio
Detecting and ranging), UFO (unidentified flying
Object), ASAP, BTW, TGIF
- Eponym: sandwich, masochist, sadist, boycott, china, laconic
- Onomatopoeia: buzz, rattle, splash, sizzle, tinkle
- What are the shortcuts in learning English voc.?
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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
- 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?
- Vocabulary: casino, pro choice, pro life, corporal punishment, capital
punishment, euthanasia, circumcision
- Phrases: knock out, knock down, knock up, knock off on the blink
make a racket make a din
- 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!
- Slang: bad, cool, rock, in
- 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.
- Background knowledge: The following talk is on meteorology.
- Speed
- Accent
- Intonation ex. A: I saw a car accident on my way here.
B: What?
ex. Great!
- 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.
- Content words and functions words: I went to the store to buy a
carton of milk.
- Your own pronunciation: comparable, indict, chic, rapport, genre,
graduate, recreation, intimate, appropriate,
aged, learned, illustrate, southern, wilderness
garage, schedule, advertisement, kilometer
- 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?
- I think I’ll go and lay down for a while.
- She performed really excellent.
- Did you finish the washing-up yet?
- If you’d have seen him, you’d have killed yourself laughing.
- There were less people there than I expected.
- She looks far more pretty without makeup.
- He’s like really stupid.
- Just a moment I’m now coming.
- I never expected to medal, so this is a real bonus.
- What an incredible run! He’s broke the record again!
Rules of thumb in games and activities:
- Give clear and concise instructions. Ex: Chinese whisper
- Give time limit.
- Always give examples first.
- Practice the new sentence pattern in chorus, in groups, in pairs, and individually, depending on the time one has.
- 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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