Chapter Graphic : Play Reading: Dial 111
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Approach: Team  Level: Year 8
Focus: Preparing and presenting a fully scripted play reading.
88k
Resources: 5 copies of the play.

Questions / instructions:
In this activity your team is going to read a play. Try to enjoy doing the play, and to make it sound as interesting and realistic as you can. You don't have to dress up, and you don't have to do any acting unless you want to.

Before you get ready for the play, I will tell you what it is about. The play is called "Dial 111". There are 4 characters: Mr Pannick, a telephone operator, an ambulance driver, and a nurse. In the play, Mr Pannick rings the operator to ask for an ambulance because something has happened to his wife. But it takes a long time to get all the important information from Mr Pannick, and everyone gets confused.

Before you do the play, I want you to practise reading it through together one time. After that you can talk about how you are going to make it really good. It is important to think of ways to use your voices to make the play realistic and interesting. After you've practised it, you will do it again for a special recording on the video.

To get started, I will tell each of you the part you will play. After you've practised it once, you can change who does the parts if you want to. Here are the copies of the play.
Tell each child the part they will play, ensuring that less confident readers are given shorter parts to read. Mr Pannick is the longest part, the operator the next longest, and the ambulance driver and nurse are of similar lengths.

DIAL 111
A Play for 4 Characters

CHARACTERS
Mr Pannick
Telephone Operator
Ambulance Driver
Nurse
Mr Pannick is telephoning for an ambulance.
Mr Pannick Operator, operator, get me an ambulance, quick!
Operator Certainly, sir. What's the trouble?
Mr Pannick It's my wife. Please hurry.
Operator Now calm down, sir. Where are you ringing from?
Mr Pannick From the front room.
Operator Yes, sir, but where's that?
Mr Pannick Next to the dining room. Don't waste time. Hurry!
Operator Listen, sir. Take a deep breath and tell me where your house is.
Mr Pannick It's by the fish and chip shop.
Operator Yes, sir, but where's the fish and chip shop?
Mr Pannick About ten metres from my house. Now get me an ambulance!
Operator How can I send an ambulance if I don't know where you live? Please give me your name.
Mr Pannick Pannick! Pannick!
Operator Steady on, sir, for goodness sake don't panic, please.
Mr Pannick I'm not panicking. My name is Pannick.
Operator OK, I've got your name, now where do you live?
Mr Pannick 81, East Street. Please hurry!
Operator Where's East Street?
Mr Pannick It's opposite West Street. Do you want me to send you a map?
Operator WHAT TOWN IS EAST STREET IN?
Mr Pannick There's no need to shout. It's in Nutville.
Operator Well, thank goodness for that. Right, Mr Pannick, we'll get an ambulance along to 81, East Street, Nutville. OK?
Mr Pannick NO!
Operator What do you mean, no?
Mr Pannick Don't send the ambulance there.
Operator Why ever not? You live there don't you?
Mr Pannick Yes, I live there all right.
Operator Well?
Mr Pannick I'm phoning from my mother-in-law's.
Operator I just can't believe this is happening to me. OK. I hate to ask this question, but I'm going to have to. Here goes ...WHERE DOES YOUR MOTHER-IN-LAW LIVE?
Mr Pannick 63 Main Street, Brownville, near Wellington City.
Operator Well I'll be ..... Why didn't you say all that in the first place?
Mr Pannick You never gave me the chance!
  (Ten minutes later the ambulance arrives. An ambulance driver and a nurse get out. They go into the house.)
Driver Mr Pannick?
Mr Pannick Yes, that's right.
Nurse We came as soon as we could.
Driver Where's your wife, sir?
Mr Pannick In the bathroom. Come on, get on with it.
Nurse Can you tell me where the bathroom is?
Mr Pannick Why? Didn't you go before you came out?
Driver No, sir. You don't understand.
Nurse We want to know where the bathroom is so that we can see to your wife.
Mr Pannick Well, why stand around talking then?
Driver Look, sir, we know you're upset but if you don't let us know where she is, we can't help you, can we? I'll tell you what, Mr Pannick, you sit down there on that nice comfy chair and relax.
  (Mr Pannick sinks into an easy chair)
Nurse There, that's better, isn't it? Now, where's your wife?
Mr Pannick How many times do I have to tell you? She's in the bathroom.
Driver Thank you very much, Mr Pannick. BUT WHERE IS IT?
Mr Pannick Take a look out of that window.
Driver I'm looking.
Mr Pannick Do you see that tiny brick building in the garden? Well, that's the bathroom.
Nurse You couldn't swing a cat round in there.
Mr Pannick We don't bath our cat.
Nurse No, I didn't mean ......oh, never mind!
Driver How does your mother-in-law bath in there?
Mr Pannick It's not easy.
Driver And you say your wife is in there?
Mr Pannick Well, she was when I rang. I heard her shouting.
Nurse Hang on. We'll take a look.
  (They both go into the garden and come back trying hard not to laugh)
Mr Pannick You've found her then?
Driver Yes, we found her.
Nurse Didn't you see what was wrong before you rang us?
Mr Pannick No, I can't stand the sight of blood, it makes me faint.
Driver Me too!
Mr Pannick What do you do when you find someone bleeding then?
Driver I give 'em a "do-it-yourself" first aid book.
Nurse Have you any idea what's happened to your wife?
Mr Pannick None at all.
Nurse Well, I'll tell you. She was standing on the edge of the toilet seat to open a window when her foot slipped.
Driver She's stuck round the bend.
Mr Pannick That doesn't surprise me. She's been round the bend for years.
Nurse We've made her as comfortable as we could.
Driver You don't really need us any more. You need the Fire Brigade.
Mr Pannick OK. I'll phone the operator.
  (He picks up the telephone and dials 111)
Operator Emergency, Which service do you require?
Mr Pannick Get me the Fire Brigade and be quick.
Operator Where are you ringing from, sir?
Mr Pannick From the front room.
Operator Yes, sir, but where's that?
Mr Pannick Next to the dining room and get a move on.
Operator Excuse me, sir, but I seem to know your voice. What is your name?
Mr Pannick It's Pannick, Mr Pannick.
Operator Did you say Pannick? The Mr Pannick who wanted that ambulance?
Mr Pannick Yes, that's me.
Operator OH NO!
END  

 
     
% responses
2000 ('96)
y8
Expressiveness capturing the feel of the part
strong
54 (47)
moderate
33 (35)
weak
13 (18)
Timing & continuity
strong
81 (78)
moderate
16 (16)
weak
3 (6)
Fluency within individual speeches
strong
54 (51)
moderate
36 (32)
weak
10 (17)
Accuracy
strong
61 (60)
moderate
33 (29)
weak
6 (11)
Speech clarity
strong
80 (70)
 
moderate
18 (27)
weak
2(3)
Total score:
9 – 10
52 (47)
 
7 – 8
27 (25)
5 – 6
11 (11)
3 – 4
7 (9)
0 – 2
3 (8)
Commentary:
About 80% of the students achieved high levels of speech clarity and continuity, with just over half presenting their parts accurately, fluently and expressively. About 5% more students scored higher on each attribute and the total score in 2000 than in 1996. This task used the same procedures and criteria as the year 4 task Three Woolly Lambs.
 
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