Shakespeare Kids: Performing his Plays, Speaking his Words

This book is a practical, comprehensive, step-by-step guide to performing one of Shakespeare’s plays in a classroom, library, or recreational setting.

Shakespeare Kids: Performing his Plays, Speaking his Words opens the world of the Bard to children, providing a wonderful learning experience along the way. Designed as a comprehensive, practical guide to engaging students with the playwright’s timeless stories, Shakespeare Kids covers every aspect of production and performance, with step-by-step guidelines on how to choose, cast, rehearse, produce, and perform a play. It even shows you how to condense a play without changing Shakespeare’s language.

The book’s inclusive approach is based on the author’s experience performing these plays with hundreds of students in the classroom and in recreational programs. Each of the ten recommended plays is summarized, with special attractions for performing it with students noted. The rationale for teaching language arts and reading by performing Shakespeare is based on national standards and recent reading research and explains how to differentiate this approach for English learners and students with disabilities. A ready-to-use, condensed script for Macbeth gets you started.

Grades 3-8

Ten plays by Shakespeare are recommended for students, with the story of each play and special attraction for performing it noted

Includes a ready-to-use script for Macbeth, condensed for children in grades 3-8

Presents photographs of presentations author Carole Cox has done with kids

Offers a step-by-step diagram of how to make a Greek chiton for a costume