Sally's Smile Reader's Theatre Script -Ghosts -Sentimental -Family -Doll

Ian

I don't understand. You’re dying everyday?

Sophie

We always die.

Ian

But why are you always dying?

She didn't reply directly. Instead she said:

Sophie

I'm so unhappy about Sally…Sally my doll. I can't bear to think of her all smashed up. Maybe that's why we have to keep on riding on the bus…maybe that’s why we keep on dying all the time. I must know that Sally's safe.

lan passed a hand across his face and began to cry.

Included in the Sally's Smile Reader's Theatre Unit:

34 page script

5 characters + the narrator

43 metacognitive questions ranging from easy to challenging

Student Reader's Theatre Evaluations based on 4 levels and 5 criteria.

Student Success Criteria

Student Friendly Goals When Reading

Reader's Theatre Checklist

Sally's Smile synopsis:

Teenager Ian lives with his Aunt Jen. She forbids him to go into the attic and she is very evasive about his family history. He decides to sneak upstairs one day while his aunt is at work. He discovers a doll there with a cracked smile. When he picks it up, he begins to feel dizzy and falls down. While the room is spinning, he hears the doll laughing at him. Ian regains his focus and exits the attic. The event haunts him. One day after school, Ian visits an old cottage with his friend. When he reaches the top floor, he sees two ghosts staring out the window. A lady and a child. He tries to speak with them but they walk past him. When Ian exits the cottage and runs for the bus home, he notices that the streets are different. Everything seems to be from the past. Ian gets on a bus and sees the ghost girl and the lady. Ian converses with the girl, who is holding the doll from the attic, except its face is not cracked. The girl says that she and her mom relive their death everyday, and she recommends that Ian get off the bus. Ian jumps off and sees an angry driver following the bus. The next day Ian has a heated conversation with his aunt, and then returns to the cottage. Will he be able to see the ghosts again? As the story progresses, Ian tries to fit the pieces together. Who is the ghostly girl and the lady, and why does the little girl have the exact same doll as the one he found in the attic? Could they be someone he knows? Who is the angry driver pursuing the bus? Why must the ghosts relive their death daily? What does his aunt know that she is keeping a secret? Find out in Sally's Smile!

Mr. Marvel's Musings:

This story starts off spooky and then becomes more heartfelt as Ian realizes who the ghosts are and what his aunt was hiding. Very touching. It tells us that we cannot change the past, just like the 2023 Flash movie. No matter what is done or said, there is no time travel device or actions to change the events of the past. You may even have some readers in tears by the third act.

Do not fear the reader's theater format. Students love these adapted stories because they are listening to the story and they are a part of the story by playing a character within the story.

Reader's theatre inspires reluctant readers to join in the fun. The strongest and most advanced readers in your class will encourage other students to raise their hand and participate in the story. I also use reader's theatre to add to my drama marks.

If the reader's theatre format did not work for my students and I, then I would have stopped creating and adapting them years ago.

Reluctant readers sometimes feel anxious looking at pages of text, whereas a reader's theater script is broken up into narration and different characters speaking, thus making the story more accessible to those students who have not discovered the incredibly fun activity of reading for entertainment.

I use shorter stories with minimal characters in literature circles.

When can one make time for a reader's theatre story in class?

When I am not reading a reader's theatre unit with my class, I usually reserve Friday's for the reading of a one-off story. It is an event that the class looks forward to, since they do not know which story I will choose. Great for Librarians. I project the stories on the screen and assign characters in class. Some characters only have 1 line. A character like that is perfect for a reluctant reader.

I have read these stories remotely/online and in class/in-person.

I encourage teachers and instructors to allow students to practice their parts at home before they read in front of the class. They can try different voices and tones when they practice and it is a good family bonding activity.

I hope you, and your students enjoy reading Sally's Smile.

Excelsior!

Mr. Marvel: The King of Reader's Theatre