Coffee Can Theatre.................................
Find a container like ean empty coffee can or brown paper bag. Create groups of 3-5 people each. Each group member goes to a different part of the classroom/house and each has three minutes to find an object that would fit in their hand. Bring that object back to the group. Put the object in the bag/coffee can without showing other group members the object and without looking in the container to see what is already there. When everyone has contributed, pour out all objects on table or pull them out one at a time.
Pass the story around the group so that one person starts the story and each member of the group adds the next part of the story. Be sure each member listens to what has happened in the story before adding new parts so the story makes sense from the beginning, through the middle and to the end.
Poetry Box
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Search for poems that you like and write them on a 5x7 index card. If there is room on the card, illustrate the poem using colored pencils or crayons. At dinner, breakfast or bedtime take turns with your family reading or reciting the chosen poem. Keep the poems together in a poetry box. To make a poetry box decorate the outside of a shoe box or candy box using pictures you have cut out from magazines.
(National Geographics are my favorite for collaging.)
Specialty Poetry Boxes
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Feeling Poetry Box
Find picture of faces or bodies expressing different emotions.
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Sensible Poetry Box
Choose pictures that show one of the five senses:
(sight, sound, texture, smell, taste)
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Word Poetry Box
Cut out interesting words to cover the box
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Verb Poetry Box
Cut out words that are verbs and pictures that
show verbs being performed
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Blue Poetry Box
Everything in the pictures are blue
(or whatever color you choose to make the box)
On the Ning, Nang, Nong
All the cows go bong
And the monkeys all say boo.
On the Nong, Nang, Ning
All the trees go ping
And the teapots
jibber jabber joo.
On the Nong, Ning, Nang
All the mice go clang
And you just can't catch 'em
When they do.
So it's
Ning, Nang, Nong
Cows go bong
Nong, Nang, Ning
Trees go ping
Nong, Ning,Nang
Mice go clang
What a noisy place to belong
Is the
Ning, Nang, Ning, Nang, Nong.
—Spike Milligan
Dictionary Story
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Open the dictionary to any page, close your eyes and pick a word. Tell a story with that word as your inspiration.
Keep a poem in your pocket
and a picture in your head
and you'll never feel lonely
at night when you're in bed.
The little poem will sing to you
the little picture bring to you
a dozen dreams to dance to you
at night when you're in bed.
So –
Keep a picture in your pocket
and a poem in your head
and you'll never feel lonely
at night when you're in bed.
—Beatrice Schenk de Regniers
You can look for more poems in:
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Noisy Poems —collected by Jill Bennett
Poetry By Heart —compiled by Liz Attenborough
The Random House Book of Poetry for Children —selected by Jack Prelutsky
Where the Sidewalk Ends —by Shel Silverstein
...Or in your favorite poetry collection...
Storytelling Cards
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Using twenty 3 1/2" x 5" index cards, draw characters on ten cards and settings on another ten cards. Randomly pick one card from the character pile and one card from the setting pile and create a story about the character in the chosen setting.
Possible characters:
Pig
Witch
Dragon
Alien
Waitress
Clown
Baby
Teacher
Mad Scientist
Bear
Key Story
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Imagine you have a key. What do the characters need that key for? What will it open or lock? And why is that important to the characters? Where are they and what happens?
GREAT
FUN!
Possible Settings:
Dark Cave
Tree House
Castle
Desert
Beach
Deserted Island
Magic Shoe
Forest
Blizzard
Playground
STORYTELLING ACTIVITIES