Shakespeare's Macbeth (Act II, Scenes I and II) lacks explicit details of the murder of King Duncan, yet the author creates an atmosphere that allows us to visualize the event. Readers interpret the "Dagger Speech" by writing stage...

Students work in teams of two to introduce stage directions/ blocking into a basic dialog using the program Hollywood High.

Conduct a Reader's Theater. Third, fourth, and fifth graders rewrite books with a baseball theme to a Reader's Theater format. They form groups of four or five, practice reading the script, and then perform it for an audience.

The house lights dim, the curtain parts, lights slowly come up, revealing the stage. Before the actors appear, before a word is spoken, the audience is drawn in by the lighting, by the colors, by lines of the set, by the props, and...

Compile a promptbook with your young theater designers using a scene from Taming of the Shrew. The lesson outlines several activities, though it doesn't provide any examples of a promptbook or text from the play. Additionally, it...

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...

Students investigate the life and works of Eugene O'Neill. In this American theater instructional activity, students read biographical information about O'Neill and review Long Day's Journey into Night. Students then analyze the play in...

Ten drama lessons are the perfect addition to your language arts or theater class. With a focus on script elements, plot development, and parts of a dramatic story, the lessons guide young playwrights through the steps of telling a story...

Immerse yourself in the beautiful, twisted world of Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera. A detailed lesson plan provides important details about the writing, stagecraft, music, and literary elements of the famous musical,...

A great actor has the ability to make or break a play. A series of lesson plans related to William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar looks closely at the choices actors make during a production of the play to help provide insight into the...

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...

How important are sound effects in films? In stage plays? In radio programs? To gain an understanding of the impact of these special effects, class members watch a short video spoof of the sound in a scene from Star...

Charlie Brown may not feel the Christmas spirit this year, but your elementary students can use the season to practice important cross-curricular skills! A set of worksheets and activities based on A Charlie Brown Christmas guide...

Young scholars perform various scenes from the play, A Midsummer Night's Dream. They examine and discuss the text and stage directions, then perform their scenes in small groups for the class.

Considering a unit study of American Musical Theatre? What better way to start than at the very beginning. Eight pairs of cards provide class members with background information about the genre from 1893 through 2004. The cards are...

Bully, bullied, or bystander? Paul Langan's The Bully is the anchor text in a unit that examines bullying and violence. After a close reading of the text, readers imagine themselves as the characters and consider how they would react in...

Your intermediate or advanced thespians choose dramatic scenes to perform in duos, small groups, or solo to demonstrate vocal and physical characterization. Use class time to prepare and rehearse. Detailed rubrics work for peer assessment.

Plays are meant to be performed! After reading the entire play, invite your learners to choose a scene from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead that relates to earlier class discussion about characters, motifs, and themes to interpret...

Students investigate the characteristics of wind. In this weather lesson, students use poetry and van Gogh's paintings to discuss the movement of wind. Students are introduced to the Beaufort Scale and use the tool to measure the wind...

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...

Planning on using Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol this year? Then give yourself a gift and download this colorful guide thats packed with goodies. Kids, as well as the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future are sure to...

Sixth graders present reader's theatre by improvising folktales from different countries. In groups, they produce an improvisation of a folktale story from an assigned reading of a folktale.

Students participate in an alternative reading assessment using a video camera and script. In this alternative reading instructional activity, students work as a group to perform their reading story. students memorize their lines and...