Stage It For College Professors
Teach teachers and others who work with children to do a unit of study in drama through a human development lens.
Stage It: Making Shakespeare Come Alive in Schools by Floyd Rumohr equips teachers and others who work with children with practical, whole classroom engagement strategies for introducing Shakespeare to students ages 9–12. Using acting as a developmentally appropriate pedagogy for this age group, the book and its accompanying support resources describe strategies that have demonstrated extremely high student engagement even for kids who struggle in the classroom.
Children in their wonder years and beyond might conjure vivid imaginative pursuits such as wielding a makeshift sword to combat mythical dragons, transforming into Wonder Woman to thwart evildoers, or assuming the role of detective in a quest to determine the true whereabouts of a missing hamster. From a developmental standpoint, such transcendent adventures play a crucial role in fostering the well-being of children. These experiences instill a profound sense of trust, eliciting reciprocal cooperation from the child that contributes to their overall growth and development.
Stage It takes the position that if children love to act, why not give them great literature to do it? In a flash, students can embody the King in Henry V, a deceived general in Othello, an avenging prince in Hamlet, or a calculating murderer in Julius Caesar, among the dozens of other characters just waiting in the wings for students to bring to life in each of these four plays.
Using acting to bring literature to life was a wildly successful pedagogy field-tested with about 40,000 students at this age across a sixteen-year period at a New York City-based arts education organization founded and operated by the author from 1994 through 2010. The approach was so successful that PS 6 Principal, Dan Feigelson (now a highly respected international literacy coach), said at the time, “I sat in on one rehearsal every week and consistently saw 100% engagement from students who I know struggle in the classroom”.
While Shakespeare is the literary content area for this book, the pedagogical approach can be used with any story or book to stunning results.
Recommended for courses in:
Curriculum & Instruction
Language Arts/English Methods (Elementary or Middle Grades)
Child Development
Drama in Education
Integrated Curriculum/Creative Arts
Teaching Literature to Children/Youth
Key Features and Why Include This Book?
Analysis of why drama is a developmental imperative for children ages 9-12
Step-by-step guidance to use drama as a pedagogy regardless of experience in the art form
Adaptable performance activities and abridged scripts rich in vocabulary
A focus on making Shakespeare accessible, inclusive, and fun
Classroom-ready lesson plans aligned with literacy outcomes that have been shown to engage every student in the classroom
Course Learning Objectives Supported:
Demonstrate strategies for engaging students in reading complex texts
Integrate creative arts into core literacy instruction
Plan differentiated instruction for diverse learners
Build confidence in delivering culturally responsive literature lessons
Extras Available to Instructors:
Request inspection copy here
Virtual guest author Q&A for your class
Companion Support Materials available for download
Discount pricing for cohort or class adoptions