Storytelling/Readers Theatre

Indian Myths & Legends from the North Pacific Coast of America
Franz Boaz, Edited by Randy Bouchard and Dorothy Kennedy
This reissue of Franz Boas' 1895 German publication consists of 250 B.C. First Nations myths and legends which had been previously serialized in German periodicals between 1891 and 1895. This volume of First Nations myths and legends is an extraordinarily important document in the history of North American anthropology. Softcover, 702 pp. $39.95.

Speaking Out: Storytelling and Creative Drama for Children
Jack Zipes
In his successful Creative Storytelling, Jack Zipes showed how storytelling is a rich and powerful tool for self-expression, and for building children's imaginations. In speaking out, this master storyteller goes further, speaking out agianst rote learning and testing, and for the positive force within storytelling and creative drama during the K-12 years. Softcover, 296 pp. $30.95.

Suddenly They Heard Footsteps: Storytelling for the Twenty-First Century
Dan Yashinsky
In this terrific book, Dan Yashinsky relates his life lived as a storyteller and listener, following the thread of discovery through family lore, personal experiences, and his rambles as a professional teller. Along the way, he offers wisdom about the art: finding the right tale for your voice and values, holding your listener's attention, telling in difficult times and giving new life to old stories. Hardcover, 316 pp. $34.95.

The New Dramathemes
Larry Swartz
In this new edition you will find a variety of sources for storytelling, improvisation, interpretation, and movement; guides for planning drama; novel response activities; reproducible blackline masters of sources, assessment profiles, and activities; drama conventions with descriptions; and rubrics for evaluation.
This newly revised third edition has been written to provide you with an updated version of games, activities, and resources on the ten themes that framed the original two books. They are based on popular thematic explorations in literature for young people: Humour, Mystery, Fantasy, Animals, Relationships, Folklore, Community, The Pastr, The Future, Diversity and Equity. 160 pages Large-format softcover, $18.95.

Stories to Tell
by Bob Barton
An anthology of a dozen stories, some from the world of folklore, some of the author's own invention. Along with individual descriptions of how he found (and sometimes changed) the stories, Barton gives details on how to tell each one most effectively as well as how to adapt other stories for use with children. $9.95.

Stories to Read Aloud
by David Booth
An anthology of fifteen stories with ideas and suggestions for using these stories as read-alouds. Each story, which are written by authors from a variety of different ethnic backgrounds, is accompanied by an introduction to the author and their work, as well as practical tips for reading aloud and a list of related stories to explore with children. $12.95.

The Art of Storytelling
by Marsh Cassady
Presented in three parts, the book provides creative strategies for understanding and performing stories. Part one focuses on choosing a story to tell, and includes a wide range of illustrative stories and activities for "finding," adapting and developing stories to tell. Part two focuses on developing original ideas, and includes practical suggestions for the creation of characters and workable structures. Part three emphasizes the presentation of the story, from setting the mood to the use of body and voice. $22.95.


Learning with Readers Theatre:
Building Connections
by Neill Dixon, Anne Davies & Colleen Politano
The book includes effective ways to plan and organize for Readers Theatre; successful classroom strategies for making assessment and evaluation an integral part of the learning and teaching process; ideas for building scripts and staging performances, and sample scripts that can be used as is or as jumping off points for original scripts. $28.00.
 

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Once Upon a Time: Using Stories in the Language Classroom
by John Morgan & Mario Rinvolucri
The authors argue that almost everyone can tell stories convincingly, especially given an outline to work from. A very wide range of these outlines, from many cultures and sources, are provided. These can be used as a resource for a variety of activities for students from beginner to advanced levels, including listening comprehension, grammar practice, oral production and fluency practice. $32.95.

Invitation to Readers Theatre
by Helen Raczuk & Marilyn Smith
This approach to teaching and developing reading capitalizes on the child's innate sense of rhythm and love of rhyme. The book celebrates seasons, holidays and special events in a series of scripted rhymes, each one of which is followed by a carefully designed set of teaching suggestions, children's activities, and a list of source books. $23.00.

Beyond the Beanstalk:
Interdisciplinary Learning Through Storytelling
By Lynn Rubright
The author demonstrates how K -- 6 teachers can use storytelling and the expressive arts not as motivational tools to develop their student's skills, but also as ways to improve their own teaching styles. Each of the fifteen chapters contains a storytelling project, from the story of Bellerophon and Pegasus to a Family Folklore Unit, that may be adapted for several grade levels. The book is filled with specific activities and drama games to enhance children's creative responses. $32.95.

Classic Myths to Read Aloud
by William F. Russell
A valuable compendium of Greek and Roman mythology designed specifically to be read to children aged five and up. Complete with the fascinating histories of many common words that originated in these myths. $18.00.

Readers Theatre Fundamentals, Second Edition
by Fran Averett Tanner
Written to help students become knowledgeable and successful participants in Readers Theatre. The text is also meant to ease teaching preparation by providing numerous learning activities for student involvement. Each chapter features one basic project that is presented in detail, beginning with a Chapter Focus that supplies behavioural objectives for the students. Also, there are many script samples, warm-up activities and staging ideas included. $33.95.

The Mysteries of Harris Burdick
by Chris Van Allsburg
A collection of fourteen drawings, with captions, that are like clues to a larger mystery. Burdick's drawings have been, and may be, used as a springboard for a storytelling or drama class. Allsburg's reproductions of the drawings exhibit the mystery and magic of each unfinished tale. $25.95. Portfolio Edition $33.95.

Readers Theatre in the Middle School and Junior High Classroom
by Lois Walker
A concise resource which includes chapters on general strategies for teaching Readers Theatre, as well as four specialized in-class applications for the method. There are also suggestions for casting, staging, and performing the readings, and for using Readers Theatre as a springboard for language development. Finally, the author has included two sample scripts. $17.95 J/I (1996).

Making Stories
by Irene Watts
The comprehensive and practical ideas for participating in storymaking range from filling in the gaps, adding words or details to generating completely original stories. Students will discover how to find stories in the news, how to use letters as stories, and how to uncover stories through updating folktales. From strategies incorporating sound to using simple objects, students will learn to explore the world hidden in the lines of poetry and prose. $12.95.

Creative Storytelling: Building Community, Changing Lives
by Jack Zipes
Written with a special affection for young storytellers, this book explains for stories can be told with an eye to canons, social standards, and ethical issues. A largely theoretical book which looks at encounters with fairy tales, diverse genres such as fables, myths, legends and science fiction, and discusses the topic of storytelling in context. As always, the author stresses the importance of storytelling in schools. $36.50.

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Last modified July 15, 2003 .
Please note that all prices are in Canadian dollars. All prices are subject to change without notice.