"Now is the summer of our happiness/Made winter by this sudden, fierce attack!" Luke Skywalker meets Hamlet in a 10-instructional activity unit based on Ian Doescher's William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, a New Hope. Using Star...

Learners participate in a guide close reading of the Prologue to Romeo and Juliet. They write a prologue sonnet to another piece of literature they have read.

Learners create a soundtrack for Romeo and Juliet choosing one song to represent each scene. They write a paragraph explaining their song choices.

Students explore life and language development in the Elizabethan Age. For this English lesson students complete web-quests and other activities surrounding Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

"O, I am fortune's fool!" As they continue their analysis of Act 3, scene 1, class members consider the role of fate in the events. The lesson concludes with a viewing of a brief portion of Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet, in which the...

S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders is the anchor text in a unit that asks readers to reflect on their own identity, their place in their family, in groups with which they identify, and in school. 

Students read and discuss Romeo and Juliet Act IV, Scenes 1 and 2. They compare the unfolding action with yesterday's predictions. They consider the concepts of trust, fate, and self-determination.

What are the roles within your family, culture and society as well as the personal and societal consequences of transgressing them? To explore this question, class members look at long-held traditions, examples in literature...

Students choose a creative medium for expressing personalization of one of the themes from the play. They share their projects orally. Instructions, rubric, and suggested theme choices are included.

Students read and discuss Act V, Scene 1. They define foreshadowing and identify examples of it from the text. They edit a partner's diary entry. They identify key ideas from the scene.

Ninth graders read Romeo and Juliet. They complete a character analysis on one of the major players and present it in an informative and entertaining way. They rewrite and perform one scene from another character's point of view.

Students examine class structure. In this diversity education lesson, students discuss stereotypes within their school as an introduction to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. After students have read the play and discussed social class...

Are you about to launch into one of William Shakespeare's plays or a collection of his sonnets? If you doubt your class has read much Shakespeare, have them complete this attitude and interest survey. A lot of preconceived notions swirl...

Students study the work of William Shakespeare. They survey the elements of comedy and tragedy and read plays and poems. They discuss the texts they read and recite poetry. They dramatize poems with movement and sounds and write poetry...

As an exercise in self-awareness and improvement, class members create a Conflict Shield listing 12 skills they believe are the most useful in conflict resolution. They then color the ones they have mastered while leaving uncolored those...

Students compare and contrast the four seasons. Using this information, they determine the plant, animal and environmental activities that can be enjoyed in each season. They discuss why the seasons must change and how humans adapt to them.

Learners examine the gods and goddesses of Greek and Roman mythology. In groups, they use this information to participate in skits as they role-play the gods and goddesses. To end the lesson, they draw their own caricature of their...

Eighth graders discuss conflict. Working in pairs, they create lists of skills they have used in conflicts, skills they have seen used successfully but not used themselves, and skills they wish to develop. From their lists they identify...

Students create a graffiti wall using their own name or personal symbol. They examine their own understanding of the film as a source of inspiration and listen to the music from the soundtrack as an effective motivation. They make...

Young scholars determine how the themes expressed in Macbeth are also applicable to contemporary society. They complete a series of written assignments demonstrating their comprehension of theme, content, and interpretation of the play....

Sixth graders investigate snow using pieces of literature, experimentation, and studying images by Wilson Bentley. They view snow from its artistic, geometric and literary expressions.

Students examine the attributes of teamwork. For this current events lesson, students compare and contrast gangs with teams. Students conduct their own school gang audit and discuss the implications of violence.