How to Make My Own Skit Scripts

A skit is a short play, often acted out onstage.

Adding just the right amount of humor to your skit will leave the audience rolling with laughter instead of being bored with the message you are portraying. Skits, sometimes called sketches, are meant to briefly entertain your audience while acting out a meaningful scene. Write your own script for a skit and act it out with your friends for a comedy show, short presentation before a meeting or to teach school children a valuable moral.

Instructions

1. Write a brief outline or summary of your story. List the characters and a little about each one of them. Your summary should include the plot of the story and a basic outline of what is happening.

2. Model your characters after real characters. Think of people you know or have met. Use characters from movies that may be interesting or useful in the script, if desired.

3. Separate the parts of the summary into sections. For example, if a character in the story should walk into the room, make this one section by itself. Save the "catch" — the moral value you are teaching — for the end of the skit.

4. Add dialogue about the topic. Create conversations between characters in the skit. Write dialog even if one character is talking to himself or mumbling about a topic. Ensure that the dialog verbalizes the thoughts and actions occurring in the story so that the audience can understand what is happening. Alternatively, if you are writing a silent skit, create actions that will tell the audience what is happening. Include hand movements, body language or other clues and signals specific to the story.

5. Write instructions for your actors. Include any facial expressions, hand gestures and actions they should be completing during the scene or while saying each line. For example, your actors will need to understand exactly when to knock on a door or sit in a chair during the scene. These gestures will add emotion, humor and value to the script.

6. Proofread all you have written and edit as needed to make the story flow better. Act out the story in your head or imagining the skit as it will be performed. Make any changes necessary to add humor and depth to the story.

References

• Proclaiming Christ Ministries: Writing Christian Skits
• The Guardian UK; Writing sketches; Richard Herring, David Mitchell and Robert Webb; September 2008
• The Japan Foundation Sydney: Ideas for Developing Your Own Resources

Resources

• Innovative Learning: Write Your Own Play
• Read Write Think: Skit Template