Reader's theater allows children to come together to create a play from a book they've been reading. With the help of an adult, children can decipher the most important parts of the text to include in the play, honing their decision making skills. Performing the play for the class or parents helps the students with their confidence level, reading comprehension and reading fluency. Having students select costumes and sets will expand their imagination and further immerse them in the story.
Reading aloud is perhaps the most fundamental and effective form of interactive reading. Having each child take a turn to read part of a book ensures that children stay focused so they're ready for their turn. Reading aloud also helps with reading fluency and pronunciation, particularly with ESL students. Reading aloud allows teachers to quickly and easily correct students when they make a mistake.
Reading only the beginning, ending or middle of a story then asking children to fill in the rest develops many different skills. Challenging students to do this will utilize their imagination, stretching it in ways they may not be used to. Asking students to do this in groups will help them with both stretching their imagination and interpersonal skills as students must agree on what to write in order to complete the assignment. In addition, this will help with character development and give children practice writing a story in a structured manner.
Many interactive book exist for children. These books ask children to press buttons at certain points in the story to play a sound or "discover" things in a book such as items inside a paper pocket. This can help with young children's fine motor skills as they learn where exactly to press or touch to make things happen in the book. In addition, this will help with the child's basic reading skills, as it immerses a child further into the story and challenges them to figure out the appropriate point to search for items or press buttons.