Literature - Beowulf

This unit plan for Beowulf emphasizes the origins of the language and insights into Anglo-Saxon culture.  The fifteen activities listed, which can be varied in their length and depth, include classroom activities, lecture/instruction and group work.  At the end of the unit, the students create a compendium of class materials and written assignments.

Since our first unit is Anglo-Saxon literature, which is based on the tradition of historical story telling, your first assignment is to write a narrative essay that relates a family story that was told to you. A “famous” family anecdote that is often repeated at family gatherings would be ideal (and very Anglo-Saxon). Consult family members for details. This assignment would be a wonderful opportunity to call a grandparent or other relatives for help. The Anglo-Saxons repeated histories that illustrated qualities of heroism,

Rather than giving students notes about the important characters or "things" of Beowulf, I constructed a tea party format so that students could interact with and become the characters.  I give each student a small card with the name and description of their character.  I then give each student a name tag and ask them to write their new name and a "job description" for their new persona.  They then find their other selves (because most classes have three or four of the same character) and brainstorm ways that their actions and behaviors can p

Because Beowulf is one of the first things that we do for the school year - it is important for me to show the students that many of our own modern (so they think) cultural concepts and ideals are actually quite old - quite universal.  These movie questions are designed to be answered (partially) while watching the movie, High Noon, and elaborated on later for homework. They ask students to consider what has changed and what has stayed the same with our ideals such as heroism and sacrifice.