National Endowment for the Humanities
Shakespeare's Julius Caesar: Leadership and a Global Stage
Shakespeare's Julius Caesar is, among other things, the study of a ruler's ambitions. Young scholars watch videos, read articles, and keep a Commonplace Book while studying the play. At the end of Act III, pupils stage the play that...
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Shakespeare: Julius Caesar
Before your high schoolers read Julius Caesar, have them complete this thought-provoking activity! To familiarize them with some of the play's most important lines, break the class into pairs and have them create a skit around two lines...
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Friendship in Julius Caesar
Learners examine the vocabulary used to show friendship in Shakespeare's, Julius Caesar. In this Julius Caesar lesson, students discuss their idea of friendship and what it means to them. They work in pairs to determine how same sex...
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This Was the Noblest Roman of Them All
High schoolers analyze the problems with staging and character using the play Julius Caesar. They summarize the final scene of the play and view film versions of the scene. Additionally, they prepare a promptbook for the final scene and...
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Unlocking Soliloquies and Unleashing "the Dogs of War"
What is a soliloquy, and who is Julius Caesar? Explore soliloquies with this lesson that gets your kids up and moving! Learners line up, facing each other. Then they read the soliloquy (one side reads one line, and the other side reads...
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"Seeing Things With Parted Eye."
Student read a section of Shakespeare's, Julius Caesar to identify the context. In this Shakespeare instructional activity, students discuss a section of Julius Caesar to determine how Cassius feels about Antony. They work with a partner...
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In Search of Caesar's Ghost
Students collaborate in small groups to choose a scene that they write in place of a scene in Shakespeare's play "Julius Caesar". In this dramatic expression lesson plan, their scripts include roles, lines and stage directions. Students...
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Cracking Cassius
Students examine the argument between Cassius and Brutus to define the importance of friendship and study a Shakespearean play. In this Julius Caesar analysis instructional activity, students list qualities of a best friend and read...
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Betrayal or Honest Mistake?
Students present different versions of scenes in the play Julius Caesar. In this Julius Caesar lesson plan, students present different perspectives of scenes from the viewpoint of betrayal or mistake.
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Drama: Julius Caesar Storyboard
Students create storyboards based on Julius Caesar using the device of framing to convey character information. After examining framing techniques in photographs from the Folger Theater, they discuss how they influence character...
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Direct the Ghost of Caesar
students read the Ghost of Caesar scene and use prompt books to stage the scene. In this Shakespeare lesson, students read the scene and then stage the scene. Students make prompt books for the staging activity and then perform the scenes.
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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. For this Shakespeare lesson, students define subtext and use a neutral scene to act out subtext. Students create their...
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Following the Blood
Young scholars 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...
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Good Words are Better than Bad Strokes
Learners 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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The Secret life of Minor Characters
High schoolers 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...
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Restaging Julius Ceasar
Students 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 roles of...
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What? Did Caesar Swoon?
Pupils 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...
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Knock, Knock, or Whose Line is it Anyway?
Students compare two versions of Macbeth and participate in improvisational acting. In this improvisational lesson, students read and discuss the text before watching two different versions of the film. Students roleplay a scenario and...