The Colonel and the Doll -Scary Reader's Theatre Story -Halloween Radio Script

Summary:

Colonel Myron Masters, was stationed in Her Majesties British Army, and has recently returned from India. A mysterious doll arrives at his home, from India, along with a special sinister purpose. It is a doll that the Colonel's niece Monica, quickly grows fond of. Monica loves the doll, but Colonel Masters can't figure out who sent it to her. The Colonel asks his housekeeper, Ms. Dentin to get rid of the doll, but the doll keeps coming back, despite all the damage it receives. The doll also speaks to Monica when the adults are not around and it is very interested in Colonel Masters. Are the doll's eyes following the Colonel, or is that his imagination? Will the Colonel and Ms. Dentin be able to get rid of the doll before it's too late?

The doll featured here dates back a few hundred years to the British-Indian colonial period - proving only that sometimes the least likely objects can be filled with the most likely horror. This story is titled "The Colonel and the Doll" and this doll is one you'd best not play with.

I have read this story with grades 5-12 and with my adult learners. Read the preview and see if your class would enjoy it. I have read this story in-class and online with my students.

This story contains:

5 characters

27 pages

6 post chapter questions

Spooky dolls are an instant hook for reluctant readers. I would surmise to say that the horror genre is the ultimate hook for reluctant readers of any age. Neil Gaiman wrote a fantastic article about the universal fascination of horror literature and how it helps young readers become better readers. If the horror genre did not attract my students' attention, then I would have found another genre to champion. I do not believe that a horror story has to be bloody and violent for it to be good. The stories in my resource bank do not contain violence or blood. I don't like it, and I do not think my audience would, either.

You can decide where you want to include the picture at the end of the chapter of the doll. Some of my students become so enamored with the story, that they draw their own version of the doll. An art project is another cross-curricular connection that can be made from this story. If there is time, I sometimes ask the students to include a setting in their doll portrait so that the doll has some spatial sense around it, which will heighten the response from the audience.

Have a spooky good time reading The Colonel and the Doll with your class.

Mr. Marvel: The King of Reader's Theatre