One morning in the middle of the semester my class seemed nearly dead. They didn’t even want spoon fed; they wanted an intra-video-ous drip. Roller boxes came to the rescue! Roller boxes are a novelty in the days of movies, videos and DVD’s and it is that novelty that makes them so valuable in story telling.
My favorite way to use a roller box is to assign the students a part of the story and then let them illustrate it. After the pictures are taped together a narrator reads the story while the pictures are rolled from one stick to the other. Waiting and watching to see their drawings, plus seeing their peers' illustrations, makes it an entertaining show for everyone.
To make a roller box:
1. Cut an opening in the side of a large box (at least 10 inches wide and 20 inches long—a computer paper box will do).
2. Cut two sticks 6 inches longer that the width of the box (1/2-3/4 inch dowel rod or an old broom handle).
3. Cut two holes for the sticks on each side of the box and push the sticks through the holes.
4. Give each student a piece of paper (8 ˝“x 17“is a good size to work with) and have the students illustrate a part of the story and write what is happening at the bottom of their picture. Tape the papers together to form one long roll.
5. Attach the ends of the roll to the sticks and wind up the story.
To tell, have two students roll the story along. It can be narrated or silent. Consider using background music (a movie score is great) to enhance the story.
I recently used roller boxes with two classes of high school aged students to teach a biography. Each student illustrated a different segment of the man's life and wrote what was happening beneath their drawing. When everyone had finished, some of the students were assigned to edit the film (taped it together), others worked on the lighting (for special effects, we put a lamp in the box behind the paper roll), still others popped popcorn and some stirred kool-aid. When everything was ready, we turned off the lights, gathered around the roller box with our kool-aid and popcorn and turned on the music. It was very successful and fun.
