* Before the start of this session, all students would've been set up with their Google classroom username and GoConqr accounts. GoConqur is an online note-taking site for students and teachers alike to create blog posts, record and organise ideas (such as a note-page for different characters or themes), share/ discuss and create quizzes. It allows the teachers to follow the students and easily track their progress as well. Using technology is one way of creating student engagement as well as catering to a variety of learner styles. Students, having their personal devices, can readily personalize it to maximize its use within the classroom. As a teacher, I won't have to worry too much about magnifying an image (for the vision impaired) or turning up the volume or changing the pitch (for the hearing impaired) for all the resources can be accessed via Google classroom.
This short 2-minute video is an excellent introduction to Shakespeare before teaching The Tempest for Module A: Textual Conversations because it gets students thinking about the right questions! Prior to reading The Tempest, I'd WANT my students to know and discover why we're still reading Shakespeare - someone who lived hundreds of years ago! What is it about Shakespeare's plays that have endured through the centuries?
Faust declares the "continued relevance of Shakespeare's work at the start of a new century" (2002, p. 383).
Following which, this next short video is one that can be a springboard to Shakespeare's life and the subsequent parts of the lesson.
A brief overview of William Shakespeare
- born in April 1564
- Tudor times (this is important subsequently when reading a brief history about English and Shakespeare's everlasting effect on the English language.
-Left school at 15 due to father's financial problems
-Married to Anne Hathaway (3 children)
- Left Stratford after marriage and not much known in the interim (mysterious)
- Resurfaced in London as an actor and playwright.
- Very successful from the start and soon became wealthy.
The Globe Theatre
The Lord Chamberlain's Men moved the company in 1597.
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| Outdoor Shot |
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| Indoor Shot |
Short activity: Look for other pictures of the Globe Theatre on the Internet and note these observations in GoConqr.
Discussions about students' observations can vary:
- it was an outdoor theatre
- it was circular
- the stage was a simple platform thrust into the middle of an open space
- audience standing the closest tot he stage paid the least
- little use of technology.
- voices had to be projected, music had to be played live
Setting the context: The Elizabethan period
Students should explore the period that Shakespeare was born and era that he wrote his plays. He wrote during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. This was a glorious time in English history when England conquered new parts of the world and emerged as a commercial power in the west.
Mini research project: Investigative report about William Shakespeare and the period in which he lived. Students are given free-reign on how they would like to present this project. A visual learner could make a video clip, a kinaesthetic learner could craft or make something from that era, an auditory learner might like to discover what kind of music or difference in language/accents during that period.
These questions may serve as a guide.
1) What were some of the religious beliefs and cultural practices during the Elizabethan period? Compare then and now.
2) What are some of the legends and rumours about Shakespeare's life?
3) What is so powerful about his plays?
The above project is a good foundation to getting students to understand the context of Shakespeare's time. After all, Module A is about exploring the influence that context has on the text.
"Crafty readers try to ‘make something’ of their encounters with literary texts. They use what they know about the context in which the words were written as well as what they know about the present context in which they are reading (and this includes what they know about the craft of writing) to produce experiences that make a difference in their lives." (Faust, 2002, p. 377)
References:
Faust, M. (2002). ‘Getting it right’: pragmatic approaches to reading and teaching English literature. Journal of curriculum studies. 35(3). 371-386. DOI: 10.1080/0022027032000050025