Skelton-in-the-Schools Returns to VCSC on May 9, 2008
Teachers Encouraged to Bring Skelton-to-the-Schools Anytime.
Vincennes, Indiana - Hometown of Red Skelton

Dear Teachers,
We are pleased to announce the return of Skelton-in-the-Schools. The Vincennes Community School Corporation has set May 9, 2008, as a day for learning about beloved clown and favorite Hoosier, Red Skelton. Vincennes' favorite son, Red Skelton. The inaugural program in 2006 was observed by educators throughout the state and we encourage you to bring the life and talents of Red Skelton to your school anytime.

Feel free to adapt any of these activities to suit your classrooms. Most match Indiana Academic Standards in English/Language Arts, Social Studies, Music/Visual Arts or Theatre. You can verify standards at www.doe.state.in.us. We welcome your ideas for adding to and improving this site. EMAIL ideas or suggestions, attention Skelton-in-the-Schools.

District-wide school suggested day themes:

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
Wear RED Day	RED Nose Day	Crazy Hat Day	RED Look-Alike Day (Character of choice)	Wear a CLOWN costume & have a parade

Suggested ideas for Class Activities for Red Skelton Week:
ELEMENTARY GRADES

HISTORY	Make a time-line and display in a well-traveled area depicting Red’s life. Study the lifestyle of the citizens of Vincennes (or your town) at the time Red Skelton, as a boy, lived in Vincennes. Students can contact historians Gus Stevens at 812.882.3834 or Richard Day at 812.882.7428 or invite them to talk about Red Skelton.
LANGUAGE ARTS	Read Red’s jokes in his book Gertrude and Heathcliffe and have a joke-writing contest. Read Red’s stories in his coloring books:Clown Alley & Frog Follys. Collect stories about Red from your grandparents and parents. Publish it as a class/school booklet. Read about clowns. Discuss: What kinds of clowns are there? Why do clowns wear silly clothes? How do clowns make you feel? What kinds of clowns did Red Skelton portray? Activity: Draw self as a clown. Use watercolors, tempera paints, crayons, etc. or make a 3-d sculpture. Talk about his well-known characters. Write a short essay about Red Skelton. Write letters to his widow (Mrs. Red Skelton). Write a biography about Red Skelton. Write skit (class or individual) using Red’s characters. Write a creative story about a clown. Illustrate. Memorize Red’s Pledge of Allegiance. Listen to Red's rendition. Read Red's rendition.
VISUAL ARTS	Show various artistic works done by Red Skelton, comedy and paintings. Draw pictures of his characters using different mediums. Have art teachers develop a unit featuring his art. Make a 3-D shoebox display showing a scene depicting one of his characters. Color pictures from Red’s Clown Alley or draw your own clowns and frogs.
PERFORMING ARTS	Show videos of Red Skelton's movies. Write a movie review as a movie critic. Listen to his music compositions and draw how the music makes them feel as they listen. March to "Red’s White and Blue" one of Red's many musical compositions (primary). Watch, then reenact one of Red's comedy skits. Two students research one of his characters: One student dresses as the “live" character. Acts out the character or is a statue as the other student reads pertinent information about that character. Use a refrigerator box as a “backdrop.” Present to lower grades. Be sure to invite local TV to tape and broadcast this to community.
SCHOOL ACTIVITIES	Movie Night in the gym --- film festival Purchase RED park benches for the playground Invite some clowns to perform Make RED buttons to wear/sell Have a mime or puppet show Students memorize Red’s Pledge of Allegiance. Listen to Red's rendition. Read Red's rendition. Students could present Red’s Pledge before an assembly and/or invite local radio stations to tape or do “live remote” and broadcast it to the community. Include Red Skelton in “Famous Hoosiers” study
MEDIA CENTER - LIBRARY RESOURCES	NOTE TO TEACHERS: We have found that if you ask for Red Skelton artifacts or information, the families of you and your students and acquaintances will have items ranging from Red's paintings to his videos. You'll find numerous resources to flesh out your Skelton-in-the-Schools activities. Maintain a section or shelf about Red Skelton that could include his books, paintings, story coloring books, videos or CDs of his movies and/or TV shows. Use clips from Red's shows and skits. Red’s coloring books: Clown Alley and Frog Follys. Red’s book: Gertrude & Heathcliffe with Red’s jokes. Prepare a Hall of Comedians: Elementary teacher, Cindy Hagen and her fifth grade social studies classes at Tecumseh-Harrison Elementary in Vincennes are preparing a Hall of Comedians similar to one that her former classes prepared for inventors. Look up a media presentation about Red Skelton in Project Hometown, Indiana, by Valerie Kelly’s students at Vigo Elementary in Vincennes at: http://www.vcsc.k12.in.us/tcr/kelly.
CONVOCATION PRESENTERS	Individual schools should contact presenters to arrange date and time during the Skelton-in-the-Schools Week. Doug Carroll: Doug can do a 25-30 minute presentation on Red Skelton that includes Doug's ventriloquism. His presentation is an overview of Red's life with emphasis on his Vincennes roots and his talents as a modern-day Renaissance Man. Doug's ventriloquism character is named Kharlie Kukamonga, whom he bills as the nephew of Red's character Clem Kadiddlehopper. Kharlie helps bring the humor of Red Skelton to the presentation. Contact Doug Carroll at 812.882.9207 (home), 812.888.5896 (office), or dcarroll@vinu.edu or stangle@vincennes.net. May God bless. Tom Fausnacht: Tom can do a 10-30 minute presentation according to the school's needs. He is a well-known Vincennes artist and cartoonist who creates a large scale sketch of Red while he talks to the students. Call Tom at 812.882.7843. Mark Kratzner: Mark can do a 30 minute presentation. His program will focus on the clowning of Red Skelton. He plans to talk about the characters Red portrayed and how some are like characters children know today (Junior-Bart Simpson and Tweety Bird, Deadeye-Yosemite Sam, Clem-Bullwinkle) and Red's style of humor from watching people. Mark will use a mime activity to interact with kids and end with a mime performance. Mark can come dressed as Freddie the Freeloader. Contact Mark at 812.886.4012 or hollywoodhoosiers@earthlink.net. You may also visit Mark's website www.idoodit.com Dr. Phillip Summers: Dr. Summers can do a 30-60 minute presentation, but is available only M-W-F, April 17, 19, and 21. Dr. Summers will bring an original Red Skelton costume, pictures, and make-up artist to make up one of the students. If the school has the set-up, he can show a 4-minute video of Red telling how he became interested in being a comedian during his childhood in Vincennes. He will close with Red's Pledge of Allegiance and then answer questions. Call 812.888.4849, fax 812.888.5942, or email drsummers@vinu.edu.
TOUR/FIELD TRIPS (IN VINCENNES)	Red’s birthplace and boyhood home. Pantheon Theater where Red, when a boy, was invited backstage by Ed Wynn. Red Skelton Performing Arts Center, M-W-F only. Contact Maggie Cornyn, Theater Manager, at 888-4150 or mcornyn@vinu.edu.
TOUR the Red Skelton Performing Arts Center	Weekly tours scheduled for Mondays & Fridays @ 2:00pm; Wednesdays @ 10:00am. For parties of 20 or more, please book your tour at least 1 week in advance. Contact: JoEllen Horne at jhorne@vinu.edu

Suggested ideas for Class Activities for Red Skelton Week:
MIDDLE & HIGH SCHOOLS

Many activities suggested for younger students could be utilized with older students with higher expectations and in more sophisticated ways.
VISUAL ARTS	Make an art sculpture of Red himself or one of his many characters. Display art of Red Skelton in the school. Make a scale drawing or model of his birthplace. Make a collage showing his characters, Red himself, his birthplace, Vincennes University, the Red Skelton Performing Arts Center, etc. It could be drawn, painted or of any medium. Many students can work on this project.
PERFORMING ARTS	Two students research one of his characters: One student dresses as the "live" character and acts out the character or is a statue. The other student reads pertinent information about the character.