this thesis explores the writings of Anne Morrow Lindbergh and their potential for oral performance. Lindbergh's life and works are examined, theories of interpretation are explored, and a solo performance script is compiled from various writings of Anne Morrow Lingbergh. The script was rehearsed and presented so that its effectiveness in oral performance could be evaluated. Both the performer and the audience members attest to the appeal of Lindbergh's writings as literature to be performed orally.

After an extensive survey of available literature in Readers Theatre and Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor, the purpose for this thesis was to cut and convert The Merry Wives into the twentieth century idiom from the authorized version found in the 1623 folio.

According to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, an estimated 75% of students who are poor readers in 3rd grade continue to be poor readers in 9th grade. Although much research has been conducted on this topic, engaging and successful reading programs that put theory into practice are scarce. Reader's theater is a strategy students use to collaborate, rehearse, and critique one another while the teacher offers support and modeling. The research questions addressed the effectiveness of using Reader's Theater to improve scores in reading fluency and comprehension. LaBerge and Samuels' automaticity theory was used as the theoretical foundation for the study. A quasi-experimental control group design was used with a convenience sample of 50 students from 2 fifth-grade classrooms. Preexisting pre- and posttest scores of fluency and comprehension were analyzed using a t test. The results showed no significant differences among groups in their gain scores; however, in regards to comprehension, there was 0.40 point gain among students with disabilities. Findings were presented to stakeholders through a program evaluation report, which recommended the continuation of Reader's Theater during the 2015-2016 school year. While findings were not significant, they do support social change by giving teachers a valid reason to engage readers in meaningful, repeated readings that can increase reading comprehension and enable both struggling and thriving students to better comprehend text and become higher achieving readers.

Elementary teachers in a school district in a western state expressed concerns about the reading achievement of students with disabilities (SWDs). SWDs were not developing decoding, comprehension, and fluency skills to become proficient readers. Without mastering these skills, SWDs will experience diminished academic attainment in their school career. To address this problem, teachers in elementary learning centers (LCs) within the district implemented Reader's Theater (RT), an evidenced-based reading approach that incorporates repeated readings using drama-based activities. The purpose of this qualitative bounded case study was to explore elementary LC teachers' use and implementation of RT to improve reading performance with SWDs. Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences served as the conceptual framework for this study. A purposeful sample of 2 LC teachers who implemented RT with SWDs volunteered to participate in semistructured interviews. Qualitative data were analyzed thematically using open coding. The 2 LC teachers noted that RT was useful to increase SWDs' willingness to read, reading fluency, and student investment by integrating repeated reading opportunities in drama-based activities. Based on the research findings, a 3-day RT professional development workshop was developed to assist elementary LC teachers in the district to teach early reading skills to SWDs. This endeavor may contribute to positive social change by providing LC teachers with knowledge about RT that is useful in improving SWDs' fluency, decoding, and comprehension skills and, ultimately, enhancing their reading achievement.

The thrust of this study was twofold: to research and compile a script of English Medieval and Renaissance literature and to direct a group performance of the script in the oral interpretation mode at Scarborough Faire in Waxahachie, Texas. The study sought to show that a Readers Theatre script compiled of literature from the oral tradition of England was a suitable art form for a twentieth-century audience and that Readers Theatre benefited participants in the Scarborough Faire workshop program. This study concluded that the performed script appealed to a modern audience and that workshop training was enhanced by Readers Theatre in rehearsal and performance.