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Teacher Lessons and Student Projects for Shakespeare's Works
Lessons and projects by students and teachers on Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.
Film Study Guide for Franco Zefferelli's 1968 Version of Romeo and Juliet
I introduce my Romeo and Juliet unit by briefly introducing the history of the Globe Theatre, then teach the sonnet, tragedy vs. comedy, and then the film before I ever have them open the play. I show the first 2/3 of the film (I stop at the "morning after" scene when Romeo is about to leave Juliet's bedroom). My intent here is to introduce my students to the language, the plot, the characters, the clothing and behavior of the times before they enter into the play. I have used this methodology for the past 4 years and it works beautfully as it is the first time my students really are exposed to Shakespeare in any depth. I use the attached film study guide as the students are viewing the movie. Though it is not specifically in chronological order of the movie, it is divided into sectors - The Beginning, The Actors,Scene Analysis, etc.
Dreams often Lie: A Critical Thinking Webquest for Romeo and Juliet
This Web Quest has students putting together ideas from Romeo and Juliet such as Queen Mab, Romeo and Juliet in Sarajevo (a documentary about two lovers from different faiths in civil war-torn Bosnia), and the origins of Shakespeare's play. I have always believed that Web Quests can be a valuable tool - however, they too often seem to be a technologically-enabled treasure hunt. I hope that this assignment pushes the genre to a level were a good deal of critical thinking can take place.
The Very Abridged 15-minute Romeo and Juliet
Like all good ideas that I have, this is stolen from Peggy O'Brien and Company from The Folger Shakespeare Library. The concept is simple and the effect is always quite a lot of fun. Use the handout to divide students into 6 groups - they will be given 5-10 minutes to act out, to explicate, to have fun with the line that you will give them (again see the handout). For instance, one group will act out "You kiss by the book." Tell me that doesn't sound like fun. Once they are all ready, the teacher narrorates the story - pausing at just the right moment for the students to act out their part. I always tell my students that when group 1 is on - group 2 should be standing and ready (and so on).
Anticipation Guide - Romeo & Juliet
This is an anticipation guide for Romeo and Juliet. The essential inquiry for this unit is based around the question "what makes a work of literature classic?" This anticipation guide is designed to "jump-start" students into formulating ideas about social issues that are universal: gender roles, gang violence, suicide/depression, fate, and familial relationships.
Romeo and Juliet Made Easy - An Examination of Shakespeare's Language
There are two parts to this group work - the first part has students look at two different versions of Romeo and Juliet. The first version being Shakespeare, and the second version the modern paraphrased version known as Shakespeare Made Easy. It asks the students to keep an open and critical mind in comparing the two. The first part of handouts also contains reviews from Amazon.com of the original Shakespeare and the paraphrased version - and asks to students to consider these. The second part of the excercise requires that students answer questions about what happens when the words of Shakespeare are changed -- what happens to the meaning, to the connotation.
Romeo and Juliet Scrapbook
This one of three culminating assignments for Romeo and Juliet (the other two are a scene performance and an analytical essay). I include it because it gives students whose gifts may not be in performance a chance to express their responses to the text creatively. The guidelines are pretty specific. Students must incorporate plenty of the text into the project. Even their artistic elements must reflect a clear connection to the text. The scrapbook contains
Romeo and Juliet and The Taxonomy of Love
In this lesson students will evaluate the types of love that are present in the play and "diagnose" the characters. Essential Question: What is true love?
Enduring Understandings: Love is irrational - passion colors perception Language evolves over time, but human nature does not
Overall Lesson Objectives: Analyze the different types of love
Discuss how Romeo and Juliet view love
Oxymorons in Act I, Scene I (Romeo & Benvolio's Conversation)
This is a tiered assignment for a concept-focused (oxymoron/paradox) reading of Benvolio and Romeo's first conversation in Act I, Scene I of Romeo & Juliet. I use this lesson with ninth graders and differentiate some between honors and standard levels. I begin the lesson by writing some common, elementary oxymorons on the board ("jumbo shrimp," "honest politician," "fine mess," and the like), and ask the kids what the pairs of words have in common. After we re-read this short passage, the kids point out the contradictions they find, and we discuss a few of them in terms of Romeo's ideals versus his perceptions.
Final Project for Romeo and Juliet
After Reading Romeo and Juliet I have the students present a group project. We create 5 groups one to represent each act in the play.The group decides which version of the project that they want to do. The choices are to either put on a puppet show, create a skit or come up with a song. Each student must them write an indivudual essay on a character and discuss how the character has reacted to a situation and also tell me how the character has evolved at the end of the story.
What's in a name?
That which we call a rose / By any other name would smell as sweet.
Juliet, Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2)
Imagery in Romeo & Juliet
The purpose of this lesson is to facilitate a meaningful discussion around Mercutio’s famous “Queen Mab” speech based on the imagery of the scene. The students will be able to recognize and define the element of imagery and the effect it plays on the scene, the characters, and the overall story of Romeo & Juliet. Exploring and discussing this scene through the analysis of imagery will improve students’ future creative writing.
Romeo and Juliet: Gender Identity
In this lesson students will evaluate their beliefs about the roles of men and women inside a social space by reflecting on how they cast a non-gendered set of professions. They also will argue their opinions about the social space for men and women through modulated discussion of controversial topics. The teacher uses film, a "get of the fences activity," and popular music to help students with issure of gender and stereotyping in Romeo and Juliet.
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