The Winter Woodsman Reader's Theatre Script -Mystery ghost story -Riddles

Giles

Yews are ancient trees. They know all the secrets. They can live for over one thousand years. That one out there is only half such an age. Still, it means you will meet the ghost, that much is certain.

Both children glanced nervously towards the front door, despite their conviction that ghosts were simply inventions of an overactive imagination.

Colin

Why do you say that? There are no such things as ghosts really…are there?

Giles Foster

You've spoke on that once already. People who repeat things really don't mean what they say. They usually mean the opposite. Let me speak more on this ghost, and then you can make up your own minds.

Included in The Winter Woodsman Reader's Theatre Unit:

37 page script

6 characters + the narrator

49 questions that range 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

The Winter Woodsman synopsis:

Siblings, Jill and Colin are going to spend Christmas with their Uncle. Upon arriving at the train station, they don't see anyone waiting for them. They hail a cab and find a driver who is friends with their Uncle. He takes them to their Uncle's cottage and then departs for another fare. They enter the cottage and find it dark and without power. Feeling cold, Colin and Jill walk through the forest and pick up firewood. Once they place it in the fireplace, there is a knock on the door; it's their Uncle. Once he enters, he sits by the fireplace. He can tell that they used wood from the yew tree. Their uncle tells them that anyone who burns wood from the yew tree in the forest will be visited by a ghost who died near that tree. The only way to get rid of the ghost is by solving a riddle: how did a tree kill the man? Will Colin and Jill be able to solve the riddle before the ghost knocks on the door? Find out in The Winter Woodsman!

Mr. Marvel's Musings:

*This story takes place around Christmas, but it does not focus on Christmas.

*It is a suspenseful tale, with a riddle at the heart of it.

*I stop reading after the Uncle tells Colin and Jill the riddle, and then I ask the class to solve the riddle. I write their guesses down, and once everyone has participated, I continue the story. Once the story is finished, I see if anyone had the correct guess.

*Thank you dear readers for your requests. I do my best to fulfill them :)

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 have a fun time reading The Winter Woodsman.

Excelsior!

Mr. Marvel: The King of Reader's Theatre