Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis is one of the most prominent and influential books to come out of the existential movement. Host a group discussion in which learners list different characteristics of existent art, group these tenets, and...

Scholars read Kafka's The Metamorphosis and research for essays and articles on existentialism. After gaining information and evidence from their research, pupils write essays defining existentialism and its relationship on the work of...

According to the presentation, the age of confusion was marked by a very specific set of art and philosophical movements. Take a visual trip, and explore expressionism, cubism, Dada, Bauhaus, existentialism, and the new modes of...

Meet Simone de Beauvoir, teacher, writer, feminist. Perhaps best known as an existential philosopher, her views on what it means to be a woman upended the post World War II intellectual theatre.

This exercise is all about practice using the existential (there is) in the singular, plural, interrogative, declarative, positive and negative forms. From a bank of six possibilities learners fill in two blank spaces in each...

What does it mean to be free? Is freedom possible? What are is joy and anguish associated with freedom? A fascinating video details Jean-Paul Sartre's key ideas and insights about freedom.

Students discover the ideas of enlightenment by reading historical poetry. In this philosophical lesson plan, students read poems by Sir Walter Scott and Sergeant Joyce Kilmer while discussing the themes of the writing with classmates....

According to existentialist philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre, individuals engage in bad faith, and they lie to themselves in order to spare themselves from short term pain. A short film explores the problem of mauvaise foi (bad faith),...

If life is meaningless, why should we endure? This question is at the heart of The School of Life "Philosophy" episode on Albert Camus. Viewers are introduced to the life, major works, and central ideas of the famous French philosopher.

How can despair be hopeful? Introduce young philosophers to the ideas of Danish Soren Kierkegaard with a video from a philosophy video playlist.

Round out your unit on Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis with a series of reading comprehension questions. As kids read, they challenge each other to answer specific connection questions from the text.

Keep your scholars organized using this study plan and progress report tool, one of many great learning strategies featured in this online western civilizations resource! Although designed for use alongside the Western Civilizations...

Students explore all the different avenues of the concept of different ways of thinking by involving the views of several great minds of history to thinkers of Western Civilization. They assess questioning, life, work, skepticism,...

Students examine a theatrical performance of Waiting for Godot. In this theatrical analysis lesson, students discuss the topic of existentialism and the Theatre of the Absurd. This lesson includes multiple activities to engage students in.

Challenge your class to hold a discussion about the theme of death in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead without direct teacher guidance. After going over the discussion protocols and quotes from the text, learners move in a circle...

Conclude a study of Viktor Frankl's Man's Search for Meaning with a research project that asks readers to investigate what various religions and philosophies believe is the meaning of life. The resource packet includes a list of...

Encourage your class to use a variety of strategies to learn and retain vocabulary words. The plan suggests that near the beginning of your reading of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead pupils should find words in the text that are...

Making predictions is an excellent reading strategy. Work on building this into your pupils' toolkit of strategies by trying out the process outlined here for reading the very beginning of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. The...

Make sure you are well-informed before embarking on a study of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. This resource includes an analysis of the text that a teacher can use to prepare a unit of study. It covers plot elements, themes,...

Plays are meant to be performed! After reading the entire play, invite your learners to choose a scene from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead that relates to earlier class discussion about characters, motifs, and themes to interpret...

Pause in your reading of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead to take an in-depth look at the characters. Learners examine a chosen character by drawing a body and assigning quotes and traits to specific areas of the body, thinking...

After reading through Act II of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, take some time to discuss the references to death in the play. For this fishbowl discussion, learners prepare questions, practice answering individually and with...

What is right isn't always lawful — and what is lawful isn't always right. Such is the argument of Henry David Thoreau's Civil Disobedience, which contends that it is the duty of the citizen to disobey the authority of the government...