Celebrating Shakespeare
If you were to walk down the hallway on the fourth floor in the afternoon, you might see middle school students wearing name tags labeled Montague or Capulet. You might see students standing on drama blocks while reading aloud the famous words of Prospero. You might hear students acting out skits they wrote using Shakespearean insults. You might see students preparing to film a Shakespearean music video or learning how to transform a classroom into a theater.
You might ask yourself, what is the point of all this?
In December, we have the opportunity to teach one of our favorite literacy units: Shakespeare. We love this unit because it is an opportunity for students to engage Shakespeare in ways that are fun, creative, and accessible. The challenge, then, is supporting students as they discover the world of Shakespeare in a manner that is relevant and appropriate for middle school students. At the same time, we want to guide students as they play with language that is new to them and as they engage a world that is foreign and yet surprisingly relatable.
In the middle school, as students read and study Romeo and Juliet in sixth grade, and as they read and study The Tempest in seventh and eighth grade, they are making connections to timeless themes in ways that are familiar and relevant to their experiences.
Our goal as middle school teachers is to make Shakespeare familiar and accessible to students. They will encounter Shakespeare again and in different ways when they graduate and go on to high school and college. They will do this with the confidence that Shakespeare is accessible to them, and they will be empowered by knowing that they can be fully engaged in his works. We are establishing a foundation of knowledge in our middle students that will enable them to face Shakespeare fearlessly, no matter where they are.
Ms. Kuder and Mrs. Decker
You might ask yourself, what is the point of all this?
In December, we have the opportunity to teach one of our favorite literacy units: Shakespeare. We love this unit because it is an opportunity for students to engage Shakespeare in ways that are fun, creative, and accessible. The challenge, then, is supporting students as they discover the world of Shakespeare in a manner that is relevant and appropriate for middle school students. At the same time, we want to guide students as they play with language that is new to them and as they engage a world that is foreign and yet surprisingly relatable.
In the middle school, as students read and study Romeo and Juliet in sixth grade, and as they read and study The Tempest in seventh and eighth grade, they are making connections to timeless themes in ways that are familiar and relevant to their experiences.
Our goal as middle school teachers is to make Shakespeare familiar and accessible to students. They will encounter Shakespeare again and in different ways when they graduate and go on to high school and college. They will do this with the confidence that Shakespeare is accessible to them, and they will be empowered by knowing that they can be fully engaged in his works. We are establishing a foundation of knowledge in our middle students that will enable them to face Shakespeare fearlessly, no matter where they are.
Ms. Kuder and Mrs. Decker