This blog has come about because of a chance comment by one of my students. He said that he wished that there was somewhere he could go for ideas on how to teach Shakespeare to his class. I'm going to attempt one idea each day.

Monday, 18 July 2011

True/false

A PNI table is a business tool.  The abbreviation stands for positives, negatives and implications.

Here is another quote from Dash (1981, 249). "Individuality seldom emerges when criticism concentrates on the male character and only tangentially on the female, perceiving her as subordinate."

This is another quote identifying a patriarchial society.

Have students work in pairs.  The first student finds the first appearance of the lead female character or the first time she is mentioned.  They should describe the scene to their partner.  The cue question is: Is it true that XXX (insert name of lead female) is subordinate to the male characters in the play.  The second of the pair must now decide whether it is true or false that the female character is subordinate to the male character and justify their answer.

In some cases the answer maybe both true and false.  For example when we first hear of Desdemona she is described as belonging to her father which makes her a subordinate character but she has made her own decision about who she loves and has eloped with Othello.  Alternatively, you may wish to provide students with the scenes that you wish them to discuss.

You may wish to look at the plot or to discuss whether the plot would have taken a different turn if the female character under discussion had been stronger.

Sunday, 17 July 2011

Shakespeare's Women + planning tools

"The actions of Shakespeare's women characters spring from a realistic confrontation with life as they learn the meaning of self sovereignty for a woman in a patriarchal society." Discuss.

This quote comes from the introduction of Irene Dash's text entitled Wooing, Wedding and Power

First ensure that students know what the key words in the quotation mean.

Half the class look for evidence to argue that women in the play they are studying are self ruling and the other half look for evidence against. 

For every point made there must be supporting evidence.

Draw on the board a table with two columns- true and false.   During feedback write up student responses and the location of the evidence. 

Add a third column- this one is labelled major/minor.  Ask students to vote on whether they think each point made is a major or minor one.  There should be a discussion before the vote.

Conclude with a vote counting students who believe that the female characters in the play they are studying are self ruling.

Saturday, 16 July 2011

Wordsearch

Create a wordsearch - a grid of letters- some of the letters spell words, horizontally, vertically, backwards and forwards depending on the skill level of the students.

You can provide students with a word bank or just give them the theme- again depending on their level.

Once students have found all the words they should write two or three paragraphs on the topic identified in the title using the words in the word search as cues.

Remind them of PQD (point, quote, development) or PEA (point, evidence, assessment)

Friday, 15 July 2011

Outburst

Divide the class into two teams.  Have a prepared pack of topic cards- you will need to write the topic and then ten things associated with that topic for each card.  This is good for themes, language and character.

Have a nominated umpire to turn the card and call the topic. The first team can accept or pass on the topic.  If the first team passes on the topic card then that topic will be played by the second team after the first team have played the next topic card.  Now they have no choice.  They must play the topic on the card turned up from the pack. 

The team now have one minute for a nominated player to call out things that they think may be associated with that topic.  Other players may make suggestions but they may not call out as this would become unruly.  One point is scored for each correct answer.

Thursday, 14 July 2011

Missing Letters

The object of this game is to guess incomplete words with the help of clues.  The words should all be related to the play that is being studied.  They could be technical terms or words from important speeches.

Have a list of words prepared.  Each clue should have the word with some letters missing and a clue.  It can be played as a team game - so the clue would be on individual slips of paper or given to all students in the form of a handout.  If the game is played in handout form then stick to a theme that can be explored in more detail after the activity.

e.g.  *t**c*os*ed (fate has its mark on Romeo and Juliet)

The follow up requires discussion as to how fate or the word impacts on Romeo and Juliet.

Wednesday, 13 July 2011

Shakespeare's Character

This is a version of the Minister's Cat game as in "The minister's cat is an (adjective beginnning with a) eg amazing cat.

In this version choose a character from the play you are studying.  Ask students to try to think of an adjective that describes the character acurately as there are two parts to this particular version of the game. e.g. Macbeth is an ambitious character.
The next person has to think of an adjective beginning with b etc.

Write each adjective on the board.

Stage two of the activity requires students to find a quote in the text or an event that supports each of the different adjectives.  There should be more than one quote for example that shows that Macbeth is ambitious- If no quote or event can be found to support an adjective it must be struck from the list.

Remind students that the best essays show PQD (point, quote, development)  or PEA (point, evidence, assessment).

Shakespeare Just a Minute

You will need- an umpire and a time keeper as well as slips of paper with the topics for conversation.
You may wish to set it up as a panel game with three people on each team.  Players can be substituted for their class mates at five minute intervals or it can be an ongoing activity used as a plenary to sessions.

Set the topics for conversation beforehand on slips of paper.  Begin with a volunteer who must speak for a minute on something Shakespeare related e.g. a character.  The speaker must speak without hesitation, deviation or repetition for a minute.  Challenges can be made by the rest of the class.  If the umpire (that could be you or another class member) upholds the challenge then the person who challenged takes over, if not the original speaker continues.  At the end of the minute the person speaking gets a point.

Monday, 11 July 2011

Word history

Some of the words that Shakespeare uses have disappeared from use.  Other words have changed their meaning. Give the example of the word web - which has moved from a spider's web to the world wide web.  Discuss with students why they think this might be.

Give each student a word from the play that has changed its meaning over time.  Ask them to find out how the word has changed its meaning.  They should then feed back to the rest of the class.  This is an opportunity for research on the Internet and use of an etymological dictionary.  Ask them to provide a word that Shakespeare might have used in its place if he was writing today.

Sunday, 10 July 2011

Lucky draw

Write key words on individual bits of card e.g. metaphor.  A student should draw a card from the pack and then the whole class find an example of that particular type of language or theme or character.  The student who identifies it must explain its relevence.

Saturday, 9 July 2011

Metaphor

A metaphor is a comparison between two things but there is no like or as to identify it.  The metaphor joins the two things in one e.g. All the world's a stage.  The two things become one.

Shakespeare uses lots of metaphors.  Sonnet 73 uses the seasons as a metaphor for age. 

On a straight forward level there is spring for youth etc.  Divide the sonnet up.  Ask the students to put it in the right order and ask them to tell you what the metaphor is - don't tell them that its the seasons - they should tell you.

Ask them to pick one of the elements of the metaphor and explain why its effective.

Ask students to create their own metaphors for youth.

Friday, 8 July 2011

Similes

A simile is a comparison between two things prefaced by the word 'like' or 'as'.

It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night 
Like a rich jewel in an Ethiope's ear; 

Romeo describes Juliet as a bright jewel in the night.  The comparison is made between two things that share similar qualities. 

Have a simile hunt through the text- it may be useful to divide the class so that they look at different scenes or acts.  Have them write the similes on post-it notes or pieces of paper which can then be pinned up around the class room.  

Have students moving around the room looking at the similes and writing their comments beneath the similes e.g. what works about it, what they don't understand, how it changes their perception, why they think Shakespeare used it? Then ask students to choose their favourite and explain why they like it.

Similes 2

This involves students writing their own similes.

Provide small groups with a tray of items or a worksheet of pictures.  The actual items are better because they should be using all their senses rather than just sight.

Ask students within each group to work on their own creating similes comparing two of the objects on the tray.  They should work with one another helping to edit and polish their simile.

Part two of the activity is where students present their similes to the rest of the group.  In order to make it more interesting they must only share the part of the simile after 'like' or 'as' - the class must then guess what the other object is.  Depending on the size of the group it may be better to do this by bringing two of the smaller groups together rather than individual students sharing with the whole class.

Similes 1

A simile is a comparison between two things prefaced by the word 'like' or 'as'.  The two items are placed together so that the audience or reader can see the similarities between the two things.  Some similes have been used so much that they have turned into cliches (a cliche is a worn out phrase) e.g. as flat as a pancake.

Ask students to think of some similes that exist in every day speech.

Discuss why they are so effective.

You will now need two objects to compare e.g. a rose and a book- ask students what the two items share in common - petals unfurl and pages turn, as the bud opens the scent is released, as the book opens so the knowledge is released.  Work as a class to create a simile.

Ask students to write a list of rules for the creation of a simile.

Use the rose with another item or the book for students to work on a simile of their own which they should then share with one another.

Discuss how similes help readers or listeners to understand the thing being described in a new or different way.

Thursday, 7 July 2011

Emotion, emotion and more emotion.

Provide students with a soliloquy or important speech made by a principle character.  Ask students to identify the different thoughts in the speech and then to identify the emotions.

This can be done in a different way.  Break the speech up into individual thoughts and ideas.  These should be numbered unless you want students to order the speech correctly in the first instance as a revision exercise.

Also provide a set of face cards.  These face cards should show a face expressing a specific emotion- to avoid confusion write the emotion beneath the face.  Ask students to match the different ideas contained in the speech to the different emotions.  There should be one for each.

Now provide students with a flow chart- build the flow chart to show the way in which the character's emotions change during the course of his or her speech. 

Ask students to mind map for each different emotion how the actor could show that emotion through the way that they speak - so how the emotion can be heard through the words.  Then add to the mind map with physical actions and facial expression.

Punctuation pause

Shakespeare Monologues for Men edited by Luke Dixon makes the point that Shakespeare did not prepare his plays for publication.  The punctuation has changed to meet the needs of actors delivering the speeches and editors preparing the texts for publication, although there is the First Folio.

Snowball activity: What is the purpose of punctuation? 1 minute on own, 2 minutes in pairs and 4 minutes in fours.

Feedback.

Provide students with a speech and the following list breathe, rest, pause, change of gear, change of thought (Dixon, 12).  Ask them to decide the role of the different punctuation marks and to be prepared to explain why they have reached their conclusions.  You may also wish to provide 'wild cards' for things such as emphasis.

Wednesday, 6 July 2011

Rhyming couplets

When the end of two consecutive lines rhyme eg cat and mat. Then there is a rhyming couplet.

Provide students with ten examples.  Half of them should be couplets, half not.  Ask students to sort them into two piles, those that rhyme and those that don't.  This is simply to check understanding.  For less able students you might want to use an onset and rime activity to enable them to recognise the sound pattern similarities.

Divide students into five different groups.  Allocate each group an act.  Groups should scan through their portion of the text to identify rhyming couplets. Again, for less able groups you may wish to identify a specific speech for the whole group to work on rather than addressing the whole text.  Each group should then apply 'language detective skills' to decide why Shakespeare uses couplets the way that he does- emphasis, pace and often at the end of a speech or a scene to show finality- so rather like a sign post.  You can provide prompt questions to help them to work out why Shakespeare uses rhyme.

Iambic pentameter 3 warm up.

Some students struggle with the concept of iambic pentameter. 

It can be explained as making a di-dum, di-dum, di-dum, di-dum, di-dum sound.

Provide students with a couple of lines that fit exactly into iambic pentameter. Its important to remember that Shakespeare didn't stick to it all the time, espcially where he was using sound patterns to create different meanings.

Use the lines you have given students to model the warm up activity.  You might say di-dum, di-dum, di for example and students must identify the syllable or word that you have stopped on.

Do this a couple more times.  Then divide the group up into pairs.  Give person A one set of lines and person B another set of lines.  The pairs should complete the same activity that you have modelled and which they have completed as a group but testing one another.

  In effect you are using this activity as a reminder of the way in which iambic pentameter works and checking student understanding.  Briefly feed back with a discussion about what is easy and difficult about iambic pentameter.  Also ask closed questions about the structure of imabic pentameter and its effect on the dialogue.

Tuesday, 5 July 2011

Rapping it up.

Identify a soliloquy- provide a copy of the soliloquy with plenty of white space around it.

Ask students to identify who is speaking, where that person is speaking within the play and also in terms of setting, who else is there, what is happening?  What is the main emotion?

Now ask them to read through identifying patterns of sound (iambic pentameter) to show where the emphasis might be.  Explain that sometimes Shakespeare varies tone and pace so it is also important to identify the key message of the speech and the crescendo of passion doubt etc.

If you can find a clip of the soliloquy on the Internet or on DVD play it to the students so that they can compare how they would have said it with how the actor plays it.

Now ask students to work in pairs to turn the soliloquy into a rap.  Explain that there is a tradition of turning Shakespeare into music ie: West Side Story.   Ask them to think about how they change the pace and the emphasis of the words but so that they keep the meaning and the emotion.


Depending on the ability of the group they should now be able to write an essay on the way Shakespeare uses language to convey meaning, mood and atmosphere.

Monday, 4 July 2011

more on metrical feet

Rhythm is an important part of popular music.  Ask students to choose a song that they like and identify how the musician or group creates rhythm.  Things like the base line are important.   Provide groups of students with popular lyrics and ask them to identify the rising and falling pattern of stresses.

For more able students provide a handout that explains iambus, trochee, anapaest and dactyl.

Ask them to see if there is a pattern created by the stressed and unstressed syllables and also whether the pattern fits any of the traditional forms.  Explain that it is a problem solving exercise and the aim is to think about the way in which words rise and fall to give meaning to the words, to provide emphasis, atmosphere and pace.

Create a two column table.

In the first column identify the ways in which modern songs create rhythm and pace.  Discuss also what the effect of this might be on the song and on the listener.

In the second column identify the way in which Shakespeare uses language to create rhythm and pace. 

Identify similarities and differences.

introducing metrical feet

Meter is about the number of stresses in a line.  Feet refers to the pattern of the stresses.

Look at some two syllable words.  Decide which syllable is stressed and which syllable is unstressed. Take the word enjoy. The emphasis is on the last syllable.

Put a / symbol over the stressed syllable and a u (it should be more a a smile than a u) over the unstressed syllables.

The patterns that the rising and falling sound, or rhythm, that the syllables make are given different names.

An iambic foot has a pattern like enjoy.  The is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.

Sunday, 3 July 2011

Pentameter 2

The lines from Macbeth are unusual in that they are deliberately crafted at a different pace from much of the rest of the play.

Most often Shakespeare writes in Pentameter.  This means that there are five stresses to the line.

Provide students with a model worked through with them so that they can see how it works.

Provide students with examples of monometer, dimeter, trimeter, tetrameter, pentameter, hexameter, heptameter and octameter.  Ask them to identify the different stresses.  It could be a matching activity or a joining up style of activity.

Ask students to comment on the effect of the different kinds of meter.

Then ask them to look at different sections of the play that they are studying to see whether Shakespeare is using pentameter.  If he is, what is the effect on the language and the pace at which we speak the words.  If it isn't pentameter why not?  How does Shakespeare use language to signpost changes of atmosphere, to increase tension or even to show different social status between the characters in the play?

Pentameter

The metre of a poem or a line of Shakespeare's plays is about the number of stresses in an individual line.  The stresses give shape and pattern to what is being written.  We use stresses in our speech all the time, we lay stress on words for emphasis and use stress patterns to give our speech interest- we do not speak in a monotone with equal stress placed on all syllables.

Look at the witches spell in Macbeth. It uses four stresses on each line throughout the incantation.

Explain this to students and then ask them to identify which the stressed syllables and words are.  Mark these and practise saying the incantation giving the words the best stress.

Then ask them what the effect of a fast moving metre like this one is- Its regular and repetitive and it helps create atmosphere.  Remind students that many of Shakespeare's plays were performed with the minimum of stage sets so the language was important to help the audience suspend reality and get into the world where the play was happening.