Readers Theater Brain Teaser Mystery Script GRADES 3-4

This grades 3-4 Readers' Theater fun AND funny mystery script will give your students high interest practice in reading aloud, inferencing, making predictions and drawing conclusions. The Mystery of the Stolen Laptop brain teaser script makes your students into detectives, performing inference tasks to solve clues. If you have a class that dislikes anything they perceive as "babyish", this amusing script, with its relevant modern characters, will get a thumbs-up! Drama and ELA fun! Question sheets and answers are included.
PLOT
This funny and engaging 11 page script is about the theft of a laptop at school and the detective work two characters use to track it down. The main character parts range in age from 8-11. Matt fears he isn’t as speedy at working things out as his clever friend Sophie is, but he manages to wow her in this whodunit- and discovers where his laptop is!

STUDENT TASKS
-- Students read aloud their assigned part.
-- To track down the missing laptop, students unscramble anagrams.
-- They also work out clues using a numbers-to-alphabet code.
-- They discuss and write on six short answer questions.
-- They complete a journal entry in paragraph form.
-- They design a ‘Where’s Waldo?’ style drawing for a fellow student.

NUMBER OF READERS
The cast list is intended for 8 readers but the number of readers can easily be contracted or expanded depending on how many groups you wish to have.
The role list page suggests options for different group sizes.

DIFFERENTIATION
This resource is based on a grades 5-8 resource, but this version contains less slang, shorter sentences, and leads students through the mysteries more explicitly. For a gifted and talented group you might want to use the more challenging resource: Readers' Theater - Mystery of the Stolen Laptop

Checklist of reading comprehension strategies that readers' theater mysteries strengthen
Inferencing
Cause and effect
Chronological sequencing
Prediction

Suspense

Point of view
Character traits

Story elements
Plot twists

This script is part of a 50% off bargain bundle: 50% OFF GRADES 3-4 BIG BARGAIN BUNDLE
For more fun Brilliantly Lit drama resources, try

Readers Theater Scary Mystery Script GRADES 3-4

Readers Theater Aesop's Fractured Fable: The Boy who Cried Wolf GRADES 3-4
Thanksgiving Drama Circle Mystery Activity GRADES 3-4
Christmas Drama Circle Activity GRADES 3-4: Rude Alf the Red-Nosed Reindeer
DRAMA CIRCLE SPORTS MYSTERY
Think your class would enjoy a whole class (24 roles) script where they all read together? Try these:

Aesop's The Tortoise and the Hare READERS THEATER WHOLE CLASS SCRIPT: 24 ROLES

Aesop's Fable The Lion and the Mouse READERS THEATER WHOLE CLASS SCRIPT: 24 Roles

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