Nightmare Before Christmas Reader's Theatre Script -Activites -Rubric

Jack Skellington

I have been doing this all wrong! I can never turn Halloween Town into Christmas Town. It’s impossible! We are too different, but that’s all right. We can have something even better. We can make presents for all the boys and girls of the world. We can have Christmas in our own way!

Included in the Nightmare Before Christmas Reader's Theatre Unit:

64 page script divided among 12 chapters

50 analytical questions that range from easy to challenging

10 activities such as creating your own holiday, word scrambles, holiday symbols, secret coded message, what if you lived in Halloween Town, match the holidays to the correct day.

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

Student Success Criteria

Student Friendly Goals

Reader's Theatre Checklist

Chapter 1:

7 pages - 15 characters + the narrator

Chapter 2:

3 pages - 2 characters + the narrator

Chapter 3:

6 pages - 7 characters + the narrator

Chapter 4:

5 pages - 5 characters + the narrator

Chapter 5:

5 pages - 6 characters + the narrator

Chapter 6:

5 pages - 5 characters + the narrator

Chapter 7:

8 pages - 13 characters + the narrator

Chapter 8:

7 pages - 6 characters + the narrator

Chapter 9:

3 pages - 5 characters + the narrator

Chapter 10:

5 pages - 4 characters + the narrator

Chapter 11:

8 pages - 8 characters + the narrator

Chapter 12:

1 page - 2 characters + the narrator

Mr. Marvel's Musings:

I have included some of the songs. If the class is not familiar with the melodies (like most of my class) then the songs can be read as poetry. :)

The Nightmare Before Christmas synopsis:

Jack Skellington, Halloween Town's beloved pumpkin king, has become bored with the same annual routine of frightening people in the "real world." When Jack accidentally stumbles on Christmas Town, all bright colors and warm spirits, he becomes inspired -- he plots to bring Christmas under his control by kidnapping Santa Claus and taking over the role. But Jack soon discovers even the best-laid plans of mice and skeleton men can go seriously awry. Will Sally ever escape the confinement of Doctor Finkelstein? Will Jack ever know how much Sally loves him? Can Jack trust Lock, Shock and Barrel with his Christmas plan, or will they end up telling their boss, Oogie-Boogie? What will Santa Claus think of being replaced by Jack?

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 Nightmare Before Christmas.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and Heri za Kwanzaa!

Excelsior!

Mr. Marvel: The King of Reader's Theatre