Curated OER
Shakespeare 2000
Young thespians can try their hand at writing a script and acting out a scene, while gaining a deeper understanding of the universal topics presented in Shakespeare's wide array of plays. Begin the lesson by conducting a compare and...
Curated OER
MTV and Othello
After reading Acts III and IV of Othello, give your class a fun, interactive, music-related activity. Begin by asking students about songs they have heard in movies or plays. Let them look up the lyrics online and ruminate about the...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Hamlet Meets Chushingura: Traditions of the Revenge Tragedy
Students read texts, view film and video and conduct research in an analysis and comparison of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" and the Kabuki piece "Chushingura". They focus their analysis on the theme of revenge.
PBS
Supernatural Shakespeare and Macbeth
"A drum, a drum! Macbeth doth come." The withered and wild witches of Shakespeare’s Scottish play launch an examination of the fantastical elements in Act I, scene iii, paying particular attention to the action, imagery,...
Curated OER
That's Moor Like It!
How do modern adaptations of Shakespearean plays relate to their original source material? Middle and high schoolers focus on Shakespeare's play Othello and its screen adaptation "O" to explore how modern film adaptations of Shakespeare...
Curated OER
Experiencing "Romeo and Juliet"
Ninth graders read and analyze the William Shakespeare play "Romeo and Juliet" and compare it to the 1996 modern version of the play and the movie "West Side Story." They write an essay comparing and contrasting the three versions.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Hamlet and the Elizabethan Revenge Ethic in Text and Film
Young scholars research the social context of Elizabethan England for Shakespeare's "Hamlet". They identify cultural influences on the play focusing on the theme of revenge and then analyze and compare film interpretations of the play.
Curated OER
The Bard: Shakespeare Up Close
Students choose a Shakespearean play to reenact into a modern setting. In this Shakespeare instructional activity, students practice insulting each other using Shakespearean language. Students watch Shakespeare plays and complete online...
Curated OER
The Portrayal of the Witches
Eleventh graders discover the importance of the fortune teller in Shakespeare's Macbeth. After watching two interpretations of the play, they examine and compare the portrayal of the character. They create their own modern adaptation of...
Orlando Shakes
Julius Caesar: Study Guide
What makes a good leader? Use the curriculum guide for William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar to help scholars answer that question. Pupils research the play's historical context and other background information before engaging in...
Curated OER
Shortened Shakespeare
Students discover the two main ingredients of a play: speech and actions. They then listen to a shortened version of "Macbeth" and write down one sentence to describe what is happening in each of the comic-strip cells.
Curated OER
The Merchant of Venice
Students read parts of Shakespeare's play The Merchant of Venice. Using primary sources, they gain a glimpse into the early modern period's negative perceptions and stereotypes of human beings of African descent.
Curated OER
Words, Words, Words
Students discover Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. In this drama lesson, students read the first act of the play and then rewrite the original passages in today's English.
Curated OER
The Bard, the Globe, the Midsummer Night's Dream
Students complete a unit of lessons to learn about William Shakespeare and the Globe Theatre. In this William Shakespeare lesson, students complete 7 lessons of activities to study William Shakespeare, the Globe Theatre, and the play 'A...
Curated OER
Examining Redemption in King Lear
High schoolers examine the concept of the tragic hero in Shakespeare's King Lear and explore how it affects the plot of the play. In this theatrical analysis lesson, students investigate the redemption or defeat of King Lear and perform...
Curated OER
Seventeenth Century Pick-up Lines
Students analyze passages from The Mysteries of Love and Eloquence, or the Arts of Wooing and Complementing, written in the seventeenth century. Students analyze the images, words and figures of speech the author used and compare the...
Curated OER
Can't Buy Me Love?
High schoolers activity find the multiplicity of meanings buried within Shakespeare's language. They examine how the meanings of words differ in modern America and in Venice.
Curated OER
Othello
Students examine patterns of imagery in Othello by using online resources. Students compare the patterns they see to those they've found in other Shakespeare plays. Then students draw conclusions about why Shakespeare might have used the...
Curated OER
A Midsummer Night's Dream
High schoolers examine patterns of imagery in A Midsummer Night's Dream by using online resources. Students compare the patterns they see to those they've found in other Shakespeare plays. Then high schoolers draw conclusions about why...
Curated OER
Macbeth
High schoolers examine patterns of imagery in Macbeth by using online resources. Students compare the patterns they see to those they've found in other Shakespeare plays. Then high schoolers draw conclusions about why Shakespeare might...
Curated OER
Get Thee To Wife!
Learners read and analyze a piece of literature from 1591 to investigate whether Elizabethan fathers were patriarchal dicatators. Students read the passage and answer questions to determine what fathers were like during the late...
Curated OER
Hamlet
Students examine patterns of imagery in Hamlet by using online resources. Students compare the patterns they see to those they've found in other Shakespeare plays. Then students draw conclusions about why Shakespeare might have used the...
Curated OER
The Bard in the Big Apple
Identify their feelings about Shakespeare's plays, addressing their readability and relevance to their lives.
2. Explore the effects of remaking Shakespeare plays in a modern context, as well as differences that emerge when a play is...
Curated OER
Merchant of Venice
Students examine patterns of imagery in Merchant of Venice by using online resources. Students compare the patterns they see to those they've found in other Shakespeare plays. Then students draw conclusions about why Shakespeare might...