"I all alone beweep my outcast state." After a discussion of the "Shakespeare in American Life" segment in which Maya Angelou's relates her reaction to Sonnet 29, class groups create and perform a scene about an outcast that includes the...

Looking for ways to implement the words and works of William Shakespeare into your curriculum? This list of activity ideas is a great starting point, as it covers a wide range of grade levels and a wealth of online references to explore.

Young scholars research the social context of Elizabethan England for Shakespeare's "Hamlet". They identify cultural influences on the play focusing on the theme of revenge and then analyze and compare film interpretations of the play.

Middle schoolers read Shakespeare's, Julius Caesar while identifying a number of literary elements including simile, metaphor, personification, and hyperbole. As a response activity, they simulate a mock trial, and finally, compare and...

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

Learners identify the extent of the Roman Empire on a map of Europe and North Africa. They discuss the reasons behind Roman expansion and occupation. They read Cymbeline and write about the attitudes of 3 characters. Groups stage the scene.

Students read passages from Shakespeare and have a Town Hall meeting in which they defend Shakespeare as part of American culture.

Being a clown is hard work — no joke! Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee's Laugh Clown Laugh, a short film about German clown Reinhard "Filou" Harstkotte, asks viewers to consider the various roles played by clowns and to consider the...

"What's in a name?" Is it irrelevant, as Juliet suggests in Shakespeare's play, or is nomenclature deeply significant? Young scholars weigh in on the debate by examining the controversy over the NFL's Washington, D.C. Redskins. Groups...

Students study the life and times of Shakespeare. In this William Shakespeare instructional activity, students research the noted Web sites to discover details about Shakespeare's life and the times he lived in. Students also virtually...

Students participate in various social studies activities in correlation to William Shakespeare's Macbeth. In this Macbeth lesson, students study maps of Scotland, England, and Norway to identify locations mentioned in Macbeth. Students...

Students analyze the Shakespearian play, "Julius Caesar" in this seven lesson unit. Through readings, hands-on projects, and the study of plot development, comparisons are made to the movie and the historical records available.

Here’s a clever way to combine language arts and social studies. Shakespeare’s The Tempest is believed to have been inspired by the wreck of the Sea Venture on Bermuda in 1609. The class views a brief scene from Castaway in which Tom...

Using examples from Socrates to Johnny Carson, this slideshow presents your students with the history and definition of dramatic irony, satire, situational irony, and tragic irony. This presentation would be useful in a language arts...

Young scholars analyze literature and apply it to current times. They organize complex information and communicate it in writing. They edit their own communications and that of their peers.

Students identify themes in Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet by analyzing the film or text. In this tolerance activity, students create their own Elizabethan era terms related to interacting with different social groups. In groups,...

Students author and film their own adaptations of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. For this multimedia skills lesson, students script a play that pits an Orthodox Christian family against a Muslim family. Students use GarageBand...

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....

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...

Young scholars define public domain and provide examples of work in the public domain. They define copyright, provide examples of copyrighted materials, and state the procedure for securing copyright for their own work

Students consider the impact of language. In this literacy lesson plan, students read an article about literary classics being rewritten in "youth speak" (the article is not included). Students read and discuss the article.