Christy B Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 The course is primarily targeted as a .5 credit course for high schoolers, but needs to be appropriate for 7th/8th graders as well. Much Ado About Nothing is at the top of my list although I could be persuaded to replace it with Midsummer Night's Dream. I have an excellent free unit on King Lear from Janice Campbell (Excellence in Literature) so I'm leaning toward that as a selection, because I love the way it introduces background information and the writing assignments are perfect. (Also, hello, free!) HOW on earth do I choose just one more?!?!? Macbeth keeps coming to mind; of course, one might think Romeo and Juliet as an obvious choice (although both my college and high school daughters are saying no, that's too predictable). Julius Caesar and Hamlet are both being covered in other courses, so I don't want to duplicate those. I feel like I should include a history, but frankly, they are my least favorite. Couldn't King Lear be considered a historical tragedy? :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corraleno Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 In addition to Lear, I would do Midsummer Night's Dream, because fairies and bad actors are so much fun and the structure is great for analysis, and Macbeth, because it's short and accessible and full of great quotes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 Definitely Macbeth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzie in Ma Posted March 22, 2014 Share Posted March 22, 2014 Henry V Much Ado Hamlet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiguirre Posted March 22, 2014 Share Posted March 22, 2014 I'd choose one comedy, one history and one tragedy. I love Much Ado About Nothing, but Midsummer Night's Dream is a standard hs choice. Either King Lear or Macbeth is great, having a good guide is important, but Macbeth is also a very standard hs choice. For the history, I'd choose Henry V. It's got a famous speech and a version by Kenneth Branagh and none of the other classes are covering it. All of your choices are good, so I'd go with what you most want to spend a time with yourself. The kids will get a lot out of it no matter what you pick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted March 22, 2014 Share Posted March 22, 2014 Since a history and a tragedy are being done elsewhere, how about 2 comedies and a tragedy in this semester? Macbeth is VERY accessible to middle schoolers -- and check out the great teacher guide and student workbook from Parallel Shakespeare materials, which would give you lots to draw from. Much Ado would allow you to play clips from the lovely, recent B&W version by Josh Whedon, which is set in modern times -- that can open up a whole line of discussion right there. Twelfth Night is a fun one, with the typical Shakespeare motifs of disguises and falling for the wrong person. Taming of the Shrew is full of very witty banter and punning, and you could watch 10 Things I Hate About You as a modern story loosely based on the play. ETA: …sigh… finally previewed this and I do NOT recommend showing it without first previewing -- too crass, too many direct s*x comments, which is a shame because it was a clever idea for a film, but got ruined by sinking into vulgarity... More choices! ;) But I think the REAL decision should be based on what do YOU the teacher-who is donating your time and effort to put this together want to enjoy for the semester? Do that! Your enthusiasm for the works you enjoy will make it a better class in the end. :) Enjoy! Warmest regards, Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegasus Posted March 22, 2014 Share Posted March 22, 2014 I just asked DD, who spent last year immersed in Shakespeare. Her three favorites were Twelfth Night, Macbeth, and Hamlet. She says that Hamlet wins hands-down for having the most quotable lines. Plus, she really enjoyed "Rosencrantz and Guidenstern are Dead" which she watched after reading Hamlet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted March 23, 2014 Share Posted March 23, 2014 We did: Romeo and Juliete Henry IV and Henry V Taming of the Shrew Julius Caesar and various sonnets. If you chose to do the "Henrys," The Hollow Crown with Tom Hiddleston is very good. Julius Caesar and Henry IV and V were dds favorites. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
claire up north Posted March 23, 2014 Share Posted March 23, 2014 If you have an ipad, I strongly recommend the Shakespearience iBooks. They totally rock. They have complete texts, include audio and video from actual performances, discuss costuming, lots and lots of help with Vocab, plus more. Certain.y a better way to study shakespeare than how I did it in school!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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