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Festival of Fools
Students act out lines from King Lear to show a character's folly. In this English literature lesson, students identify the 'folly' of a given character by choosing a passage from King Lear to demonstrate a time when the character acts...
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The Trial of Iago: "To you...remains the censure of this hellish villain"
Students analyze text and utilize outside resources to determine Iago's fate, which is not addressed by Shakespeare in Othello; students present their findings in an organized trial scenario.
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Romeo & Juliet (Drama)
Ninth graders read and internalize the drama Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. Many intriguing and thought provoking assignments are waiting for the completion of students within this instructional activity profile.
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MacBeth Activity Using Alanis Morissette's "Wake Up"
Students analyze Macbeth through the lens of a pop song. In this Macbeth lesson, students read Act I, Scene 7 of Macbeth and determine Lady Macbeth's viewpoint. Students read the lyrics to Alanis Morrissette's song 'Wake Up' and work in...
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A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
Young scholars design and create photo albums that tell the story of the play, Twelfth Night, using pictures they take of themselves recreating various scenes of the play.
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"I Will Hear That Play": Using Sound to Enhance the Text
Learners become familiar with Foley artists and sound effects as they analyze a scene from A Midsumer Night's Dream. They record their own sound for another scene.
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THE GOOD AND THE BADDE: ARE STEREOTYPES A PERFECT FIT?
Students examine stereotypes of women from The Good and the Badde in juxtaposition with the female characters in The Taming of the Shrew. Through this exercise, students locate evidence from the text of the play to support or refute...
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Romeo and Juliet-Balcony Scence
Students create and carry out a "modern day" version of the famous scene from Romeo and Juliet to help them build understanding of the plot and the two characters.
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Romans in Britain, or Classical Colonialism
Students identify the extent of the Roman Empire on a map of Europe and North Africa. They discuss the reasons behind Roman expansion and occupation. They read Cymbeline and write about the attitudes of 3 characters. Groups stage the scene.
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AND WE ALL SIT DOWN: STATUS IN KING LEAR
Young scholars participate in two simple status games to allow students to explore the relationships between Lear, his three daughters, and his court.
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Romeo and Juliet...Unfinished Business?
Students act as characters from Romeo and Juliet to carry on a cross-fire type discussion using contemporary language.
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ESSAYS ABOUT IAGO'S METAPHORS
Students examine the first two scenes of Act I and do a metaphor interpretation exercise. They write an essay on the following question: Through Iago's metaphors, what is he trying to do to Brabantio? To answer this question they ...
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Macbeth - Analyzing Characterization in Drama
The writing activity in this lesson could be used to assess student understanding of previously taught concepts of how language reveals character.
Shakespeare in American Life
"Strike a Pose:" Music and Vogueing in The Winter's Tale
After class members have read and discussed Act III of The Winter’s Tale, groups select one line from Act III, scene i that they feel captures the essence of the entire scene. They then create a tableaux that best depicts the scene’s...
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Puck's Girdle
Fifth graders calculate the perimeters, areas, and volumes of everyday objects. They discuss the word problem involving Puck from the Shakespeare play "Mid-Summer Night's Dream," and invent and plan a method for solving the problem in...
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The Play's the Thing
Young scholars describe to a partner theater experiences they have had in their lives that were memorable, and analyze why. They study about one director's original artistic choices for staging Shakespeare by reading and discussing...
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Guild Hall
Incorporate a research project into your study of Shakespeare and the Renaissance Period. Class members assume the role of an apprentice seeking membership in one of the various guilds that existed during the Renaissance period. After...
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Macbeth Madness
Students analyze Shakespeare's Macbeth. For this Macbeth lesson, students read Act Two Scene iv and Act Three Scenes i-vi in the play and complete the test from the given link.
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Restaging Julius Ceasar
Students engage in a lesson looking at a major scene of a Shakespeare play. They assume the role play of being the director and apply problem solving skills in order to conduct the scene. Others must switch roles and take on the roles of...
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"I am Not Well": Unspoken Endings and Unscripted Scenes
High schoolers analyze Act 4, scene 1 from the play, Merchant of Venice. They hypothesize the content of an unscripted moment and response, look for evidence in the text to support their hypothesis, rewrite the scene, and perform it for...
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What is Hamlet Thinking?
Students explore Hamlet's character. For this Shakespeare lesson, students read the selected lines from Hamlet and write any unusual or difficult phrases. Students highlight the names of characters who speak the lines and underline words...
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Leontes from Head to Toe
Students read Act One of "The Winter's Tale" and analyze the importance, influence and actions of Leontes. They predict what happen next in the play.
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Twelfth Night-The Musical!
Students read Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. In groups, they divide Act 2 and add a new character or direction to the plot. They reinterpret the scene as a musical, using contemporary songs.
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Othello's Father of the Bride
High schoolers read and analyze Act one of the play Othello. They examine the themes of love and marriage and interpret Brabantio's words by using different subtexts.