Spark Notes
King Lear by William Shakespeare: Study Guide - Mini Essays
In this online interactive literature worksheet, students respond to 10 short answer and essay questions about Shakespeare's King Lear. Students may check some of their answers online.
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Direct the Ghost of Caesar
learners read the Ghost of Caesar scene and use prompt books to stage the scene. For this Shakespeare lesson, students read the scene and then stage the scene. Learners make prompt books for the staging activity and then perform the scenes.
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Choosing Sides
Students examine the alliances in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. In this drama lesson, students read the play and act out the conflict and controversy among Brutus, Caesar, Cassius, and Marc Antony.
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"Tear him for his bad verses:" Cinna the poet and Shakespeare's Sonnets
Poor Cinna, the poet. His dream of “things unlucky” certainly comes true as the mob tears him apart, at first because they mistake him for Cinna, the conspirator, and then continue to “tear him to pieces for his bad verses.” As part of...
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Juliius Caesar
Students discuss suggestive language and the use of symbols and foreshadowing in Shakespeare's plays. For this Julius Caesar lesson, students discuss the idea that men control their own fates. Students examine the words of Cassius in...
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Their Names Are Pricked
Students discuss areas of ambiguity in Julius Caesar and analyze the language as a tool to illustrate complex desires. In this Shakespeare lesson plan, students define subtext and use a neutral scene to act out subtext. Students create...
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Following the Blood
Students rehearse a scene from Julius Caesar and analyze how the physical aspects of stage direction impact the audience. In this Julius Caesar lesson plan, students use blood in the scene and analyze the direction and where the blood is...
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Good Words are Better than Bad Strokes
Students research negative campaigns and propaganda and then interpret characters from Julius Caesar in that light. In this negative campaign lesson plan, students take the character and create visual images to depict the characters in a...
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Women in Shakespeare's Plays
Readers match the name of a female character from a Shakespearean play to the correct play that woman is in. Strong, mostly central female characters are covered.
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From Start to Finish: Shakespeare's Plays
This online interactive quiz is too low-quality to assign to your class; however, you may want to adapt the idea of recognizing starts and finishes of works for your own lesson or quiz. An example from the worksheet is: "When shall we...
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Bridging the Language Gap
Young scholars gain an understanding of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. In this drama lesson, students read the second act of the play and then rewrite the original passages in today's English.
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Characteristics of Point of View and Dialogue
Students discover the impact of dialogue Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. In this drama lesson, students read selected scenes and note the point of view and dialogue in the scenes.
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Let the Leader Beware
Students consider the tone of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. In this drama instructional activity, students read the first two acts of the play and discuss tone of the acts. Students also respond to questions about the characters and their...
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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.
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Hear, Hear
Students participate in a listening assessment. In this listening skills lesson, students listen to presentations by classmates and then write essays about the use of dialogue in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar.
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True and Honorable Wives?
Students discuss whether men or women are smarter. They divide into groups and review Act 2 of Julius Caesar and look for incidents of characters reading or mis-reading "signs", and making either wise or foolish decisions.
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Caesar
Students examine patterns of imagery in Caesar 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...
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The Secret life of Minor Characters
Students read Julius Caesar line by line. They discuss what is going on in a particular scene. Each student in a group takes the role of an assassin and comes up with a clear characterization and motivation. They share and watch within...
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Cutting Antony's speeches: "I am meek and gentle with these butchers"
Tenth graders identify Mark Anthony's scheming brilliance in his three major speeches in 3.1. They isolate the main idea by cutting the speech in half and then they perform the speech chorally. Each student also identifies three phrases...
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Restaging Julius Ceasar
High schoolers 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...
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The Tragedy of Antony and Cleopatra Questions
In this reading comprehension worksheet, students respond to 5 short answer and essay questions based on Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Antony and Cleopatra.
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Calling All Directors
Interpret Shakespearian scenes with your middle and high school classes. Groups select scenes from plays that they are familiar with to perform for their classmates. They should attempt to recreate the emotions they think the characters...
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What? Did Caesar Swoon?
Students discover the "dumb show," a scene that enacts a story silently while focusing on an example from Hamlet. Divided into groups, they act out the silent scene from the play. Again, in groups, they create a "dumb show" from Julius...
Center for History Education
Where Did Thomas Jefferson Stand on the Issue of Slavery?
Thomas Jefferson was a complicated man with a complex legacy. Middle schoolers examine a series of primary source documents to gather evidence for an essay in which they answer where Jefferson stood on the issue of slavery.