Purpose
Readers' Theater gives students a chance to bring life to a text that they may not otherwise find enticing. The activity involves a collective dramatic reading of a text in class, which typically does not involve memorization, props, or movements of those participating. This ensures that the focus remains on the expression of the text as opposed to theatrics; it also allows students to display increased levels of creativity. Students have the opportunity to see the text in a different manner, instead of simply reading the text silently as individuals.
Procedures
In an enactment of Readers' Theater, students would be required to select parts as characters in order to act out a given portion of the text. They should be given time to review the text that will be depicted in order to provide an accurate reading with correct expression. An alternative to this would be to have students role-play a predetermined situation from the text. This can involve a more extensive process, such as writing a script in order to better show their understanding of the material. When creating their own dialogue for the determined situation, students may be allowed to interpret the text in more creative ways to show comprehension.
References: Central High School, 2012