Prepare your seventh through ninth graders for their first Shakespearean experience. This slide show provides a series of vocabulary words in context and a brief history of one of the world's most prolific playwrites, William...

Learners engage in the study of the social problems associated with the 1960's and 1970's. They explain how the government made attempts to solve the problem and evaluate the success. This is done through the writing of an essay using...

Students write a dramatic scene based on The Odyssey and perform it for the class. In this living literature lesson, students work in small groups to discuss the way the characters look, act, and sound. They then choose scenery and...

Learners explore the history of the circus in the United States. They explore the life of John Bill Ricketts, founder of the first circus. Students compare Ricketts' first circus to the modern circus.

Students take a closer look at Japanese drama. In this Japanese culture lesson, students study the attributes of Noh theater and compare it western theater. Students conduct independent research on the art form prior to acting out a Noh...

Students dramatize the story, Three Snow Bears by Jan Brett. In this readers theatre activity, students read the story and then dramatize the events during readers theatre. There is an included script.

Students act out and interpret the story for their peers. They study the simplest form of an organized reading to a more elaborate activity involving props, costumes, or a reinterpretation of the narrative into another art form.

Young scholars research the Depression Era and how it contributed to the formation of the Works Progress Administration. After research, they create a skit to illustrate life during the Depression and the role of the Works Progress...

Scholars become part of the cycle of matter with a reader's theater that showcases producers, consumers, decomposers, and the sun. A diagram and discussion concludes the learning experience and enhances comprehension. 

Even those experienced teachers of Hamlet can find much to like in a guide that offers many fresh ideas for activities. Class members may take on the role of FBI profilers that investigate Claudius and Hamlet as murderers, or...

What teenager can't relate to the drama of a love triangle? Scholars put their literary skills to use in a gripping role-play drama. William Shakespeare's Two Gentlemen of Verona unfolds as the classroom becomes a stage of...

Second graders create a Reader's Theater script. For this reader's theater lesson, 2nd graders create their own script of a story in groups. They make props and act them out on FlipVideo and voice thread. 

Students examine primary source manuscript fragments, discuss differences in performing a play without the entire script, and perform a scene from Twelfth Night with no preparation.

Students create puppets to teach concepts such as history and weather. In this Puppetmania lesson, students manipulate their puppets to show a range of emotions, facial expressions, and actions. Students design puppets and learn about...

Students examine the history of the Olympics and their athletes. In this interviewing skills lesson, students role play the parts of reporters and athletes as they conduct interviews based on research of the Olympic games and athletes.

Students engage in a lesson that is about searching the attributes of characterization. They practice some of the basic moves involved in acting out a certain character while focusing upon basic skits like "the freeze". The exercise...

Students describe and compare characters and situations in dramas from and about cultures and historical periods, illustrate in improvised or scripted scenes, and discuss how theater reflects a culture.

After reading Acts III and IV of Othello, give your class a fun, interactive, music-related activity. Begin by asking students about songs they have heard in movies or plays. Let them look up the lyrics online and ruminate about the...

Students write about main characters. In this dramatic writing lesson, students brainstorm character ideas. Students create actions and give the character a voice. Students act out the scene in groups and create a final draft.

Fourth graders act out and write original narratives. In this theater meets writing lesson, 4th graders work in groups to create original narratives; after students act out their story, they write it down as a narrative.

Everyone loves a great riddle, right? Everyone except for the characters in Shakespeare's Pericles, who will be killed unless they answer the king's riddle correctly. With the study guide, scholars use words coined by Shakespeare to play...

Fifth graders view the play, The Ant and the Grasshopper. They define Aristotle's six elements of a play. At the end of the instructional activity, 5th graders be asked to participate in the play by acting like busy ants. This...

Students explore characterization in Little Women. In this literature lesson, students participate in written analysis and research in order to explore Alcott's characterization in the novel.

Students examine and discuss the 14th and 15th amentments, and evaluate the agendas of Americans from underrepresented groups in the quest for civil rights. They conduct Internet research and create essays or posters regarding Civil Rights.