Glen Ridge Public
Schools
Curriculum Guide
Course Title: The Study
of Shakespeare
Subject: English
Grade Level: Grade 12
Department/School: English Department/Glen
Ridge High School
Duration: Half Year
Number of Credits: 2.5 Credits
Prerequisite: Completion
of 11th Grade English
Elective or Required: Elective
Author: Mark Townsend
Date Submitted: Summer 2006
Course Description
Besides becoming familiar with some of Shakespeare’s works, students will gain an understanding of many literary, dramatic, and poetic devices employed in his writing. With regard to the specific literary pieces, the course attempts to survey Shakespeare’s career from the early 1590’s until 1610. All three genres—history, comedy, and tragedy—will be studied as well as the majority of Shakespeare’s sonnets. The course will also cover both the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods, providing students with the historical background necessary for a more in-depth analysis of the works as well as a better understanding of the cultural, social, religious, and political dimensions that influenced Shakespeare’s writing.
GLEN RIDGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS
LANGUAGE ARTS MISSION STATEMENT
In order to pursue interdisciplinary lifelong learning,
students need the skills to communicate effectively. Through a challenging, sequential academic
curriculum, the Glen Ridge Language Arts Literacy Program provides all students
with varied and integrated experiences.
The skills of reading, writing, listening, speaking, viewing,
presenting, and researching will enable them to effectively participate in
school and in society, respectful of various points of view while displaying
creative and critical thinking skills.
GOALS OF THE
Provided with an environment that encourages creativity as
well as expression of unique feelings and thoughts, students will
·
become competent critical readers who learn to
analyze, evaluate, reflect upon and respond to the ideas of others;
·
approach reading with an appreciation for a
variety of literary styles, genres and contexts;
·
implement the writing process, including:
pre-writing, drafting, revising, proofreading and publishing;
·
write in clear, concise, organized language that
varies in content and form for different audiences and purposes;
·
apply appropriate conventions of spelling,
grammar, punctuation and language usage;
·
speak for a variety of real purposes and
audiences;
·
listen interactively in diverse situations to
information from a variety of sources;
·
view, understand and construct meaning from
non-textual sources;
·
gather, evaluate, synthesize and cite data from
a variety of technological sources and print materials;
·
share, display and/or
publish individual and collaborative products.
All
skills of the New Jersey Core Curriculum Standards for Language Arts Literacy
and the High School Proficiency Assessment are met, exceeded and referenced
throughout the curriculum.
B. Phonological Awareness
C. Decoding and Word Recognition
D. Fluency
1. Read developmentally appropriate materials at an independent
level with accuracy and speed.
2. Use appropriate rhythm, flow, meter, and pronunciation
when reading.
3. Read a variety of genres and types of text with
fluency and comprehension.
E. Reading Strategies (before,
during, and after reading)
F. Vocabulary and Concept
Development
1. Use knowledge of word origins and word relationships,
as well as historical and literary context clues, to determine the meanings of
specialized vocabulary.
2. Use knowledge of root words to understand new words.
3. Apply reading vocabulary in different content areas.
G. Comprehension Skills and
Response to Text
10. Differentiate between fact and opinion by using
complete and accurate information, coherent arguments, and points of view.
11. Analyze how an author’s use of words creates tone and
mood, and how choice of words advances the theme or purpose of the work.
12. Demonstrate familiarity with everyday texts such as
job and college applications, W-2 forms, and contracts.
13. Read, comprehend, and be able to follow information
gained from technical and instructional manuals (e.g., how-to books, computer
manuals, or instructional manuals).
H. Inquiry and Research
1. Select appropriate electronic media for research and
evaluate the quality of the information received.
2. Develop materials for a portfolio that reflect a
specific career choice.
3. Develop increased ability to critically select works
to support a research topic.
4. Read and critically analyze a variety of works,
including books and other print materials (e.g., periodicals, journals,
manuals), about one issue or topic, or books by a single author or in one
genre, and produce evidence of reading.
5. Apply information gained from several sources or books
on a single topic or by a single author to foster an argument, draw
conclusions, or advance a position.
6. Critique the validity and logic of arguments advanced
in public documents, their appeal to various audiences, and the extent to which
they anticipate and address reader concerns.
A. Writing as a Process (prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, post
writing)
1. Engage in the full writing process by writing daily
and for sustained amounts of time.
2. Use strategies such as graphic organizers and outlines
to plan and write drafts according to the intended message, audience, and
purpose for writing.
3. Analyze and revise writing to improve style, focus and
organization, coherence, clarity of thought, sophisticated word choice and
sentence variety, and subtlety of meaning.
4. Review and edit work for spelling, usage, clarity, and
fluency.
5. Use the computer and word-processing software to
compose, revise, edit, and publish a piece.
6. Use a scoring rubric to evaluate and improve own
writing and the writing of others.
7. Reflect on own writing and establish goals for growth
and improvement.
B. Writing as a Product (resulting in a formal product or publication)
1. Analyze characteristics, structures, tone, and
features of language of selected genres and apply this knowledge to own
writing.
2. Critique published works for authenticity and
credibility.
3. Draft a thesis statement and support/defend it through
highly developed ideas and content, organization, and paragraph development.
4. Write multi-paragraph, complex pieces across the
curriculum using a variety of strategies to develop a central idea (e.g.,
cause-effect, problem/solution, hypothesis/results, rhetorical questions,
parallelism).
5. Write a range of essays and expository pieces across
the curriculum, such as persuasive, analytic, critique, or position paper.
6. Write a literary research paper that synthesizes and
cites data using researched information and technology to support writing.
7. Use primary and secondary sources to provide evidence,
justification, or to extend a position, and cite sources, such as periodicals,
interviews, discourse, and electronic media.
8. Foresee readers’ needs and develop interest through
strategies such as using precise language, specific details, definitions, descriptions,
examples, anecdotes, analogies, and humor as well as anticipating and
countering concerns and arguments and advancing a position.
9. Provide compelling openings and strong closure to
written pieces.
10. Employ relevant graphics to support a central idea
(e.g., charts, graphic organizers, pictures, computer-generated presentation).
11. Use the responses of others to review content,
organization, and usage for publication.
12. Select pieces of writing from a literacy folder for a
presentation portfolio that reflects performance in a variety of genres.
C. Mechanics, Spelling, and Handwriting
1. Use Standard English conventions in all writing, such
as sentence structure, grammar and usage, punctuation, capitalization, and
spelling.
2. Demonstrate a well-developed knowledge of English
syntax to express ideas in a lively and effective personal style.
3. Use subordination, coordination, apposition, and other
devices effectively to indicate relationships between ideas.
4. Use transition words to reinforce a logical
progression of ideas.
5. Exclude extraneous details, repetitious ideas, and
inconsistencies to improve writing.
6. Use knowledge of Standard English conventions to edit
own writing and the writing of others for correctness.
7. Use a variety of reference materials, such as a dictionary,
grammar reference, and/or Internet/software resources to edit written work.
8. Write legibly in manuscript or cursive to meet
district standards.
D. Writing Forms, Audiences, and Purposes (exploring a variety of
forms)
1. Employ the most effective writing formats and
strategies for the purpose and audience.
2. Demonstrate command of a variety of writing genres,
such as:
·
Persuasive essay
·
Personal
narrative
·
Research report
·
Literary research
paper
·
Descriptive essay
·
Critique
·
Response to
literature
·
Parody of a particular
narrative style (fable, myth, short story)
·
Poetry
3. Evaluate the impact of an author’s decisions regarding
tone, word choice, style, content, point of view, literary elements, and
literary merit, and produce an interpretation of overall effectiveness.
4. Apply all copyright laws to information used in
written work.
5. When writing, employ structures to support the reader,
such as transition words, chronology, hierarchy or sequence, and forms, such as
headings and subtitles.
6. Compile and synthesize information for everyday and
workplace purposes, such as job applications, resumes, business letters, and college applications.
7. Demonstrate personal style and voice effectively to
support the purpose and engage the audience of a piece of writing.
8.
Select pieces of
writing from a literacy folder for a presentation portfolio that reflects
performance in a variety of genres.
Speaking - NJCCS S.3.3
A. Discussion
1. Support a position integrating multiple perspectives.
2. Support, modify, or refute a position in small or
large-group discussions.
3. Assume leadership roles in student-directed
discussions, projects, and forums.
4. Summarize and evaluate tentative conclusions and take
the initiative in moving discussions to the next stage.
5. B. Questioning (Inquiry) and Contributing
1. Ask prepared and follow-up questions in interviews and
other discussions.
2. Extend peer contributions by elaboration and
illustration.
3. Analyze, evaluate, and modify group processes.
4. Select and discuss literary passages that reveal
character, develop theme, and illustrate literary elements.
5. Question critically the position or viewpoint of an
author.
6. Respond to audience questions by providing
clarification, illustration, definition, and elaboration.
7. Participate actively in panel discussions, symposiums,
and/or business meeting formats (e.g., explore a question and consider
perspectives).
C. Word Choice
1. Modulate tone and clarify thoughts through word
choice.
2. Improve word choice by focusing on rhetorical devices
(e.g., puns, parallelism, allusion, alliteration).
D. Oral Presentation
1. Speak for a variety of purposes (e.g., persuasion,
information, entertainment, literary interpretation, dramatization, personal
expression).
2. Use a variety of organizational strategies (e.g.,
focusing idea, attention getters, clinchers, repetition
and transition words).
3. Demonstrate effective delivery strategies (e.g., eye
contact, body language, volume, intonation, articulation) when speaking.
4. Edit drafts of speeches independently and in peer
discussions.
5. Modify oral communications through sensing audience
confusion, and make impromptu revisions in oral presentation (e.g.,
summarizing, restating, adding illustrations/details).
6.
Use a rubric to
self-assess and improve oral presentations.
A. Active Listening
1. Explore and reflect on ideas while hearing and
focusing attentively.
2. Listen skillfully to distinguish emotive and
persuasive rhetoric.
3. Demonstrate appropriate listener response to ideas in
a persuasive speech, oral interpretation of a literary selection, or scientific
or educational presentation.
B. Listening Comprehension
1. Listen to summarize, make judgments, and evaluate.
2. Evaluate the credibility of a speaker.
3. Determine when propaganda and argument are used in
oral forms.
4.
Listen and
respond appropriately to a debate.
A. Constructing Meaning from Media
1. Understand that messages are representations of social
reality and vary by historic time periods and parts of the world.
2. Identify and evaluate how a media product expresses
the values of the culture that produced it.
3. Identify and select media forms appropriate for the
viewer’s purpose.
B. Visual and Verbal Messages
1. Analyze media for stereotyping (e.g., gender,
ethnicity).
2. Compare and contrast three or more media sources.
C. Living with Media
1. Use print and electronic media texts to explore human
relationships, new ideas, and aspects of culture (e.g., racial prejudice,
dating, marriage, family, and social institutions).
2. Determine influences on news media based on existing
political, historical, economical, and social contexts (e.g., importance of
audience feedback).
3.
Recognize that
creators of media and performances use a number of forms, techniques, and
technologies to convey their messages.
CURRICULUM DESCRIPTION
UNIT I: SHAKESPEARE’S BIOGRAPHY
Standard 3.1 C, D, E, F, G, H; 3.2 A, B, C, D; 3.3 A, B, C, D; 3.4 A, B; 3.5 A, B
Objectives:
Students will be able to:
1. Critically examine Shakespeare’s background.
2. Make
a connection between his upbringing in
3. Divide his life into four distinct parts.
4. Make connections between his life and work.
Approximate Duration: Two weeks
Activities:
- View Michael Wood’s In Search of Shakespeare in order to fully understand Shakespeare’s life. Students will take notes on the film and research five distinct events that helped to shape Shakespeare.
- Research Shakespeare’s family to better understand his lineage.
- Divide Shakespeare’s life into four distinct parts and do research on a significant event from each section.
-
Research the town of
- Write short biographies on important figures in his life.
UNIT 2: ELIZABETHAN AND JACOBEAN HISTORY
Standard 3.1 A, B, C,
D, E, F, G, H; 3.2 A, B, C, D; 3.3 A, B, C, D; 3.4 A, B; 3.5 A, B
Objectives:
Students will be able to:
1. Understand the historical context influencing Shakespeare.
2. Have a clear understanding of English history while Shakespeare was alive.
3. Recognize historical figures who shaped the time period.
Approximate Duration: One week
Activities:
- View historical videos dealing with this time period. Students will take notes and research areas of interest.
- Research the time period and construct a timeline of events.
- Research the politics to see how events and ideas shaped Shakespeare. They will have to make five connections between history and Shakespeare’s development.
UNIT 3: COMEDY
Standard 3.1 A, B, C,
D, E, F, G, H; 3.2 A, B, C, D; 3.3 A, B, C, D; 3.4 A, B; 3.5 A, B
Objectives:
Students will be able to:
1. Develop a working definition of comedy.
2. Understand the Roman roots of Elizabethan comedy.
3. Recognize the common themes in Shakespearean comedy.
4. Recognize comedic literary conventions.
5. Understand comedic plot lines.
6. Recognize the creative use of puns in Shakespeare’s comedies.
7. Recognize common themes and gender roles in Shakespeare’s comedies.
8. Have
a clear understanding of Much
Approximate Duration: Five to six weeks
Activities:
- Provide handouts that outline the history of European comedy. Students will then write a paper explaining how Shakespearean comedy is part of the tradition.
- Research the literary conventions and common themes of comedy and apply them to Shakespeare’s work.
- While reading the comedies, compare narrative and character development. At the completion of the comedy unit, students will write an essay comparing the narratives.
-
Read Much
- Find a critical essay on a play that is written from a distinct theoretical position (i.e. Feminist, Marxist, etc.) and write a response that engages the essay.
- Weekly quizzes that will reinforce the literary elements covered in class.
- An essay will be given at the completion of each play.
UNIT 4: TRAGEDY
Standard 3.1 A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H; 3.2 A, B, C, D; 3.3 A, B, C, D; 3.4 A, B; 3.5 A, B
Objectives:
Students will be able to:
1. Develop a working definition of tragedy.
2. Understand the classical roots of Elizabethan tragedy.
3.