stripe Posted May 23, 2013 Share Posted May 23, 2013 I just read about this book by Ken Ludwig, which recommends 25 passages for kids to learn from Shakespeare, and his technique for doing so. Thought this might be of interest. Here are two descriptions of his method and the book. It begins with the memorization of short passages from Shakespeare's plays. It then continues with an exploration of Shakespeare’s life and time period, the implications of Shakespeare’s choice of words, and an exposure to cultural references that children will use for years to come. Ludwig delves into each play with an eye to revealing the invaluable lessons behind Shakespeare’s characters and stories. Colorfully incorporating the history of Shakespearean theater and society, How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare guides readers on an informed and adventurous journey through the world in which Shakespeare wrote. http://www.backstage.com/news/spotlight/how-shakespeare-can-make-your-child-better-actor/ http://www.kenludwig.com/books/how_to_teach_kids_shakespeare.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serendipitous journey Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 ooooh, you are my friend! :) I have been looking for a sensible guide to Shakespeare memorization!!! I'm off to follow your links. You may turn out not to be a friend to my pocketbook ;) .... ETA: It's official. You are the enemy of my pocketbook!!!!!! OTOH, what's it for anyhow? Thank you for finding & posting this, Stripe. Even if you generated some negative cashflow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Five More Minutes Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 Thanks for sharing this. DH, who basically started planning our dds' Shakespearean education when they were still newborns, is going to love this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted May 24, 2013 Author Share Posted May 24, 2013 The book is selling for about $18, so not too outrageous. Suggest it to your library! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Um_2_4 Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 oooo...it's only 12.99 on the nook...LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 Thanks for the tip! I found it at my library. I love my library. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smudge Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 I am SO getting this! I am a new Christian, DH is mostly agnostic and he doesn't want any Bible learning during school time. He wants that to stay at church. So this will be fab for memory work for the kids and me! I didn't appreciate The Bard so much in high school, but to my old 43yr old brain he's a delight! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailV Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 Wait -- it isn't out yet? Or is it just not at Amazon yet? I want instant gratification! Edited to add: And already a hold on it at the library. Hmmm, is that you SusanC? :boxing_smiley: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted May 24, 2013 Author Share Posted May 24, 2013 Wait -- it isn't out yet? Or is it just not at Amazon yet? I want instant gratification! Edited to add: And already a hold on it at the library. Hmmm, is that you SusanC? :boxing_smiley: No, it's coming out in June. Here are links http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307951499/ http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/how-to-teach-your-children-shakespeare-ken-ludwig/1113507776?ean=9780307951496 Someone beat me to it at my library, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 This looks wonderful! Is there any indication what ages it would be for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted May 24, 2013 Author Share Posted May 24, 2013 This looks wonderful! Is there any indication what ages it would be for? In the article on Backstage.com, he says I’ve felt strongly about Shakespeare since I first entered the theater, but it wasn’t until I became a father that I figured out how to put my convictions into practice. When each of my children entered first grade, we sat down together and started memorizing lines from Shakespeare, starting with short accessible passages from the comedies and gradually increasing the length and complexity of the pieces. What I have tried to do in “How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare†is offer parents and educators the techniques and strategies I developed over the years for my own children. I realized early in this process that Shakespeare is a lot like a foreign language. Many of the words are unfamiliar, even to adults; Shakespeare’s sentence structure sounds odd to our modern ears; and Shakespeare is constantly speaking in complex metaphors that can be difficult to understand. So what I did for my kids—and what you can do for yours—was teach them how to decipher every difficult word in the passage being studied, and then memorize that passage so their knowledge of Shakespeare became second nature. The goal was fluency in the way a foreign language can become fluent. In total, the book presents the first 25 passages I taught my kids, ordered in a specific sequence to make learning them as easy as possible. As each passage is discussed, from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream†to “Hamlet†(with many more plays in between), I talk about the stories, the characters, and the meanings of the works, so ultimately the kids get the kind of knowledge of Shakespeare they’ll need to become great students, great thinkers, great teachers, and yes, great actors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 Thanks! It sounds perfect. I've put an order in already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missouri Okie Posted May 24, 2013 Share Posted May 24, 2013 I just put in my order too! This is timely. I usually am able to resist buying the new shiny toys books, but this is too timely! We're going to study Shakespeare in the fall, and I didn't know how to approach it. My Shakespeare education did not get past Romeo and Juliet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladydusk Posted May 25, 2013 Share Posted May 25, 2013 My library actually has it on order. They *never* have ed books I want. I put in a request. Yay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pod's mum Posted May 25, 2013 Share Posted May 25, 2013 Here are some more shiny things we've used and recommend. One very cheap. It's a currclick download which gives a beakdown of number of lines per character per play for shared read-a-louds if you can get together with a couple of other families.... Sharing Shakespeare With Students... http://www.currclick.com/product/34044/Sharing-Shakespeare-with-Students?it=1 (currently only $3.10) The other is an expensive investment, the boxed set of the complete BBC Shakespeare plays... http://www.amazon.com/The-BBC-TV-Shakespeare-Collection/dp/B0010EBGJO You can watch them with subtitles on too. These are great to watch before the read throughs. You can borrow some of these from libraries, but we could only find a few. My dd loves the bard and has learnt a couple of sections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunnyDays Posted May 25, 2013 Share Posted May 25, 2013 Well, golly... That handy Amazon button is right there on one of Stripe's links. It's like I HAD to order it!! ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 I just had to come back to my thread and share the awesomeness of our pubic librarians. I go to church with one of our local librarians (Beth) and am friends with her on Facebook as well. Anyway, I posted yesterday that my 9 year old and I were studying Much Ado About Nothing this month for our Shakespeare study. This morning we went to the library to pick up some books and sign up for the summer reading program and Beth was working. She stops me and says that she has something for me in her car. She brings back an uncorrected proof copy of How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare!!!!! She said that the publisher was handing them out at a library conference they just attended. If any of you have any specific questions about the book I can answer them! I'm so excited! :party: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailV Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 I just had to come back to my thread and share the awesomeness of our pubic librarians. I go to church with one of our local librarians (Beth) and am friends with her on Facebook as well. Anyway, I posted yesterday that my 9 year old and I were studying Much Ado About Nothing this month for our Shakespeare study. This morning we went to the library to pick up some books and sign up for the summer reading program and Beth was working. She stops me and says that she has something for me in her car. She brings back an uncorrected proof copy of How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare!!!!! She said that the publisher was handing them out at a library conference they just attended. If any of you have any specific questions about the book I can answer them! I'm so excited! :party: :hurray: Good for you! (And a big BOO HISS to my sister for retiring from library services -- she used to snag stuff like that for us.) By the way, it looks as though you could get free access to the Digital Theatre version of Much Ado if you sign up for the free 2 week trial of their Fine Arts program that's on Homeschool Buyer's Co-op -- see this thread: http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/472117-update-for-those-interested-in-digital-theatre-plus/page__hl__+digital?do=findComment&comment=4987111 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted June 2, 2013 Share Posted June 2, 2013 :hurray: Good for you! (And a big BOO HISS to my sister for retiring from library services -- she used to snag stuff like that for us.) By the way, it looks as though you could get free access to the Digital Theatre version of Much Ado if you sign up for the free 2 week trial of their Fine Arts program that's on Homeschool Buyer's Co-op -- see this thread: http://forums.welltr...al#entry4987111 Thanks for the link! I've been looking for a version of Much Ado About Nothing that we can watch. This one looks fun since it's a modern retelling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailV Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Thanks for the link! I've been looking for a version of Much Ado About Nothing that we can watch. This one looks fun since it's a modern retelling. Well, phooey, you only get the first 5 minutes when you sign up for the free trial. That's disappointing. It really IS a fun version, although the bawdiness of it is more apparent since it's updated. We purchased the download last year directly from Digital Theater, and my kids have watched it several times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Well, phooey, you only get the first 5 minutes when you sign up for the free trial. That's disappointing. It really IS a fun version, although the bawdiness of it is more apparent since it's updated. We purchased the download last year directly from Digital Theater, and my kids have watched it several times. Thanks for letting me know. I hadn't signed up for the free trial yet so that saves me some time and effort! I've got the Branagh version coming from the library. I'm going to preview it and see if it's suitable for 9 year old eyes. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScoutTN Posted June 14, 2013 Share Posted June 14, 2013 Just got this from the library tonight! :hurray: Looking forward to reading it and to hearing what others here think about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailV Posted June 14, 2013 Share Posted June 14, 2013 I got my copy from Amazon on Monday. My kids are in As You Like It this summer, so I skipped ahead to that part. I really, really like how he broke down Jaques speech, explaining each part, giving tips about how it's performed. After I read through it I thought it would certainly be easier for *me* to memorize now! I told the director that whoever plays that role might want to read through those pages in the book. Overall, he really does have infectious enthusiasm for his subject. I need to look at the entire book now to figure out how we might use it. We were at a performance of Twelfth NIght tonight, and I could sometimes hear older dd murmuring Viola's lines along with the actress -- it struck me that my kids already know some good chunks of Shakespeare. I really like having all of these selections laid out as choices for future work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzie in Ma Posted June 14, 2013 Share Posted June 14, 2013 Thanks for letting me know. I hadn't signed up for the free trial yet so that saves me some time and effort! I've got the Branagh version coming from the library. I'm going to preview it and see if it's suitable for 9 year old eyes. ;) In the first act there is a scene where everyone is getting washed up from the road, lots of naked backsides. Also the scene with Borachio and Margaret deceiving Claudio and the prince is a good one to fast forward through. Other than that is is a pure delight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly1730 Posted June 14, 2013 Share Posted June 14, 2013 Our library doesn't have it, no big surprise there. Put it directly in my amazon cart:) Thanks!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladydusk Posted June 19, 2013 Share Posted June 19, 2013 I'm about 100 pages in after checking it out Monday afternoon. Considering we have VBS this week, that's pretty good. Very readable. Short chapters. Gotta get done in 14 days ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indigomama Posted June 20, 2013 Share Posted June 20, 2013 Just got my copy today from Amazon. Took the kids to the park today, hoping to get some reading done....made it past the intro. Oh well, guess it will have to wait till bedtime:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScoutTN Posted June 20, 2013 Share Posted June 20, 2013 Got it from the library and I'm halfway through. Definitely going on my Amazon wish list. In the meantime, I'm taking notes. :) DD already enjoyes Shakespeare stories and knows plots and characters of many plays. I think this will be a good fit for our homeschool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladydusk Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 Finished! I loved it as a book, here's my review. Definitely recommended :) Thanks, Stripe! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BakersDozen Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 Ordering this book tonight! I avoided Shakespeare until my 3 oldest performed in A Midsummer Night's Dream recently and we are now hooked! I hope to do at least one Shakespeare work/year with my younger ones coming up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
threedogfarm Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 Has anyone bought the kindle edition yet and can give a review of it? Or, for those of you who have the hard copy--is this better to have as a hard copy? Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 I added it to my Amazon cart to consider. Please come back and post a review once you've had a chance to read it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momof3littles Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 I have it as a Kindle book and I'm enjoying it. I think he says his website has downloadable files where you can print in nice big font various lines. He talks about how that bigger text is helpful in memorizing. I'm about 1/3 of the way through and I'm finding it very readable and enjoyable. I'm excited to implement some of it with my kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pod's mum Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 We did Comedy of Errors as a shared read through using Sharing Shakespeare With Students and I've just found this at the Playhouse and booked this for dd and myself up in the stalls. Guess what we're doing tomorrow night. Hoo Woo! Better go, battery nearly flat. Thanks for keeping the Bard prominant OP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ralfy Posted June 29, 2013 Share Posted June 29, 2013 Probably TV and movie versions of the plays, if not local productions, as the works are meant to be seen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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