Work or Starve: Captain John Smith and the Jamestown Colony

Students will act out the story of John Smith, a captain who saved the American colonists with the help of Pocahontas and her father, Powhatan. This Reader's Theater script features roles written to match multiple reading levels. Teachers can assign specific roles to their readers based on each student's current reading level, allowing all students to get involved in the same activity and feel successful! Students will gain confidence in their reading fluency through performance, regardless of their current reading ability. While performing with others, students will practice performance, interacting cooperatively, reading aloud, and using expressive voices and gestures to better tell the story. These drama scripts for students are a great way to teach literacy and engage all learners! | Act out the story of Captain John Smith, leader of the Jamestown colony! Teachers can get everyone involved by assigning leveled roles to specifically accommodate varying reading levels. All students can successfully improve fluency with this script! | Debra J. Housel, M.A., earned a master's degree from Nazareth College of Rochester and worked as a teacher for more than a dozen years before becoming a freelance writer. She is an award-winning author and has written and/or consulted on more than 100 titles.