Crash Course
Where Are My Children: Crash Course Film Criticism
Before the Hayes Code was enacted, movies were a lot more brazen than we sometimes tend to think. Director/Producer Lois Weber spent much of her career making movies that challenged audiences. Her film, "Where Are My Children" is no...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: In on a secret? That's dramatic irony - Christopher Warner
You're in a movie theater, watching the new horror flick. The audience knows something that the main character does not. The audience sees the character's actions are not in his best interest. What's that feeling -- the one that makes...
TED-Ed
TED-ED: How to make your writing suspenseful - Victoria Smith
What makes a good horror story? Hideous monsters and fountains of blood might seem like a good place to start, but as horror author H.P. Lovecraft wrote, _The oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown." Writers harness...
Curated Video
Hamlet 3.2 Hamlet’s Wordplay
This video examines a key scene in Act 3, Scene 2 of Shakespeare's "Hamlet," where the interplay between Hamlet and King Claudius is highlighted during the court's attendance at a play. The video focuses on Hamlet's cryptic responses and...
Curated Video
Romeo and Juliet 2.5 Performance: Juliet and Nurse, Lines 37-53
This video features a performance from Act 2, Scene 5 of "Romeo and Juliet," where Juliet's impatience contrasts with the Nurse's playful yet evasive responses. The focus is on the Nurse's humorous critique of Romeo's attributes and her...
Curated Video
Macbeth 2.3 Interview: Porter
This video features an interview with the porter from Shakespeare's "Macbeth." In the interview, the porter humorously ponders the implications of answering the door as if it were the gates of hell, highlighting the play's dark themes...
Curated Video
Macbeth 1.4 Discussion: Irony in Duncan's Remarks
This video examines a scene from Shakespeare's "Macbeth," where King Duncan comments on the impossibility of knowing a person's thoughts by their appearance. This remark is made as Macbeth, who is secretly plotting Duncan's murder,...
Schooling Online
Shakespeare Today: Much Ado About Nothing - Theme of Language and Communication
Watch this lesson today to discover how Shakespeare explores the power of language and spoken communication in Much Ado About Nothing. Unpack the witty banter between Beatrice and Benedick, the deceitful language of Don John, and...
Curated Video
Tevye the Dairyman Episode 4 - ASSAULT: REVOLUTION
Sholem Aleichem’s fourth installment in Tevye the Dairyman, “Hodl,” was published in 1904, as imperial Russia was undergoing the first pangs of revolution. Reflecting the political milieu of the time, Sholem Aleichem incorporates a young...
Schooling Online
Shakespeare Today: Romeo and Juliet - Key Quotes 1
After watching this lesson, you will be able to support your discussion of Romeo and Juliet’s themes with detailed textual analysis! This lesson unpacks the most famous and significant quotes uttered by Romeo and Juliet, the main...
Schooling Online
Shakespeare Today: The Merchant of Venice - Key Quotes 1
After watching this lesson, you will be able to support your discussion of themes in The Merchant of Venice with detailed textual analysis! This lesson unpacks the most famous and significant quotes uttered by Shylock, the main...
Schooling Online
Shakespeare Today: Othello - Key Quotes 1
After watching this lesson, you will be able to support your discussion of Othello’s themes with detailed textual analysis! This lesson unpacks the most famous and significant quotes uttered by Othello, the main character. These quotes...
Schooling Online
Shakespeare Today: The Tempest - Theme of Ambition and Greed
Watch this lesson today to discover how Shakespeare explores the destructive nature of greed and ambition in The Tempest. See how the stories of Antonio and Prospero warn us not to become too ambitious or take more than what is...
Schooling Online
English Essentials - Destroying Drama - 'Big Picture' Questions in Drama (Stage 6, Years/Grades 11-12)
Join us for an advanced lesson on Destroying Drama! We’ll examine the world of plays and playwrights, starting with key aspects of information flow. How do you analyse dialogue and what is the purpose of dramatic irony? We’ll also break...
Schooling Online
Shakespeare Today: Romeo and Juliet - Theme of Fate vs Free Will
Watch this lesson today to discover how Shakespeare explores the tension between the power fate and our own free will in Romeo and Juliet. Decide for yourself: does fate control everything? Or can individuals change things by their own...
Schooling Online
Shakespeare Today: Othello - Theme of Manipulation and Jealousy
Watch this lesson today to discover how Shakespeare explores the destructive power of manipulation and jealousy in Othello. See Othello’s downfall, as Iago’s manipulation causes jealousy to consume him. Along the way, learn how to...
Schooling Online
Shakespeare Today: Hamlet - Key Quotes 2
After watching this lesson, you will be able to support your discussion of Hamlet’s themes with detailed textual analysis! This lesson unpacks quotes from characters other than Hamlet, including Claudius, Gertrude and Ophelia.
Schooling Online
Shakespeare Today: Much Ado About Nothing - Key Quotes 2
After watching this lesson, you will be able to support your discussion of Much Ado About Nothing’s themes with detailed textual analysis! This lesson unpacks the most famous and significant quotes uttered by Claudio and Hero.
Schooling Online
English Essentials - Powering through Prose - Figurative Language (Stage 6, Years/Grades 11-12)
Our third lesson will zoom into the finer elements of prose fiction. We’ll delve into figurative language, imagery, rhythm, syntax and tone. We’ll review some basic language features before building on your understanding. To help us,...
Curated Video
Merchant of Venice Act 5 Analysis | Shakespeare Play by Play
This video analyzes act 5 of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice and establishes the characters, themes, and symbols that will carry through the entire the play. I read The Merchant of Venice through the theme of Paradise.
Schooling Online
English Essentials - Destroying Drama - 'Big Picture' Questions to ask in Dramatic Analysis (Stage 4, Years/Grades 7-8)
Join us in our first lesson on Destroying Drama. We’ll explore the world of plays and playwrights, starting with information flow – how do we figure out what’s going on in a play? We’ll also break down a common play structure with the...
Schooling Online
English Essentials - Powering Through Prose - Common Narrative Techniques (Stage 5, Years/Grades 9-10)
Our second lesson will zoom into the finer elements of prose fiction. We’ll explore narrative style, techniques, figurative language, imagery, syntax and tone. We’ll revisit some basic language features before building on your...
Oxford Comma
Ending Explained! Chopin's "Story of an Hour"
A short look into an even shorter story. In just two pages, Chopin takes readers on a journey of grief and how the oppressive forces in society can drive people to the most startling of discoveries. In this video we'll look at how Chopin...