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Sunday, November 13, 2011

Readers Theatre Script: The First Annual Planet Awards


I adapted a storybook from NASA's "Storybook for You" series, by turning it into a reader theatre script as shown below.  I imagined students from the 4, 5, or 6th Grade levels  presenting it to a lower grade as a special treat.  In the script all the planets are winners, but you could have the audience vote for their favorite planet, and graph the results on a  colorful premade graph template, that the presenters would provide, to make a connection between math and science.

Here is the beginning of the script:


The First Annual

Planet Awards!

Readers Theatre Script

 Host: Welcome! Today we will see which planets are the best in the solar system. We have eight contestants—eight planets who will compete for awards. Each planet will tell us about itself and why it is unique among the planets. When all the planets have spoken, the judges will decide which planets will receive a Best Planet Award. Let’s meet our first contestant.


ANNOUNCER 1:  Let’s give a big welcome to Mercury.

 HOST: Tell us about yourself, Mercury.


MERCURY: OK. I am the closest planet to the Sun. I am the second smallest planet in the solar system. I rotate so slowly that my day is 58-1/2 Earth days long! I am rocky, nearly airless, and covered with craters.

  HOST: Do you have any moons?

 MERCURY: Nope, no moons.

 HOST: What makes you special?

  MERCURY: I am the fastest of all the planets when it comes to orbiting the Sun. It takes me only 88 Earth days, which is the length of my year. Also, I have the most extreme temperatures of any planet. I can be as cold as –300° Fahrenheit at night and as hot as 870° Fahrenheit during the day!

 HOST: Whew! Thank you, Mercury. Now, on to our next contestant.



This Reader's Theater script can be obtained by CLICKING HERE. This lesson is from a Multi-grade Planet unit for Grades 3/4 and 4/5.

Deborah

6 comments:

  1. KimNovember 13, 2011 at 12:05 PM

    Hi Deborah:

    This is awesome! I think I will have my 6th graders try it with the 2nd graders... This is conference week, so I was looking for something fun.

    THANKS for sharing!

    Kim
    Finding JOY in 6th Grade

    ReplyDelete
  2. Deborah DevineNovember 13, 2011 at 1:14 PM

    Dear Kim,
    NASA also has images of each of the planets on their site. Each planet could wear a placard around their neck with the image of the actual planet. OR you can print out a coloring book style of image and have each planet color it correctly and wear that on their placard. INSTANT COSTUMES.

    Thanks for leaving a comment... it's nice to find out what others are thinking as they read your posts.

    Deborah

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousNovember 15, 2011 at 8:04 PM

    Thank You for sharing, my students loved acting it out!:)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Deborah DevineNovember 15, 2011 at 10:19 PM

    Knowing that students enjoyed the script put a smile on my face.
    Deborah

    ReplyDelete
  5. The Book WheelAugust 13, 2020 at 4:04 AM

    Thank you It's a lovely script

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousApril 13, 2023 at 5:32 PM

    I would love a full copy of this! My 4th grade class has been learning about space and the solar system. Our school is having a variety show and I’m thinking this would be perfect for my students!

    ReplyDelete