CONTACT: Dianna Cleveland
111 Corporate Drive, Ste 240
Ladera Ranch, CA 92694
(800) 375-2926 Ext. 701
Email:dcleveland@playbooks.com
Playbooks Reader’s Theater Publishes Local Teacher’s Sequel
Sequel Showcases African American Heroes and Elections
May 9, 2008, Goldsboro, NC and Ladera Ranch, CA – Playbooks, Inc. has published another story written by elementary school reading specialist, Gregory Brown, a Wayne County teacher. The Great Rhyme Travel Machine Presents: African American Heroes, is a sequel to Brown’s original story published in January of this year by Playbooks, Inc. This creative and thrilling series features children who create an invention fair project that somehow magically works as a time travel machine. It transports famous people from the past right into their classroom. The twist is that these famous people are still children themselves! Students are inspired by these young heroes as they figure out who they are and how they affected history.
Brown continues the magic of his original story in this exciting, unpredictable and timely sequel. A young African American student plans to run for Sixth Grade Class President but is discouraged to find that no United States presidents have shared her skin color or been female. The Great Rhyme Travel Machine surprises her and her campaign volunteers with new travelers from the past, including George Washington Carver and Shirley Chisholm, who provide guidance and inspiration.
The Playbook® Reader’s Theater story includes social studies content, recounting the groundbreaking accomplishments of the famous characters portrayed. Racial and gender boundaries are broken down,a valuable lesson in today's society. The storyline captivates readers with the excitement of a school election while at the same time inspiring young people to pursue their goals. This story not only promotes positive character traits and Black History themes, but also mirrors the excitement of present day elections. The Reader’s Theater format provides an engaging method for students to take on character roles and bring the story to life with dramatic expression. Memorization is not necessary because Reader’s Theater is designed for informal out-loud reading. With “Repeated Guided Oral Reading” being the best proven method for building reading fluency, Reader’s Theater is the most dynamic solution that also brings excitement and fun to reading aloud in the classroom.
The Great Rhyme Travel Machine series has six character roles written at four different reading levels with each character role appearing in a different color text. The multiple reading levels of dialogue, and the opportunities for dramatic role-playing, encourage readers of differing skill levels by modeling higher levels of reading, vocabulary and creative expression. Playbooks® Reader’s Theater is used in thousands of schools across the country to promote reading and speaking skills in children of all ages and to engage students in a love of reading.
About the Author
Gregory Brown is a Reading Recovery Teacher in North Carolina. Brown received both his Theater Arts and Masters in Elementary Education degrees from East Carolina University.
About Playbooks® Reader’s Theater Company
Playbooks, Inc. is located in Ladera Ranch, CA and is a leading supplier of Reader’s Theater scripts and classroom story sets to the educational market. For more information, call 1-800-375-2926 or visit http://playbooks.com/NewsArchive.shtml.
