Having a high proportion of ELLs in my high school English classroom, I saw that there was no quick fix targeting both language acquisition and literary reading…but I knew that our big textbook was not my answer. I was absolutely frightened to think about the struggles ahead of me when I confronted the Shakespeare unit… Continue Reading »
I first read about this go-to strategy in the Folger Library’s Shakespeare Set Free resources. Over the years, I’ve developed and personalized my own take on this interactive way of getting students to jump into Shakespeare’s language. The basic “Tossing Lines” activity is to give each student a different line from the play,… Continue Reading »
By Greta Brasgalla As a “veteran” teacher in my 22nd year of teaching, I sometimes look back at how I used to teach when I first started. It makes me cringe. And the teaching materials I used? Of course, I don’t have any of them because they are outdated and irrelevant. And then… Continue Reading »
By Gina Voskov NYC teacher and Folger National Teacher Corps member Gina Voskov is back with the second installment in her series “Inside the Classroom,” which takes us into her middle school classroom during a Shakespeare unit. Today, we hear Gina’s perspective as teacher, and Thursday, we’ll hear from her students. You can read the… Continue Reading »
In this special series we’re calling “Inside the Classroom,” we’ll follow middle school teacher Gina Voskov and her students as they embark on a Twelfth Night unit. Today, it’s all about pre-reading—check back for notes from the group throughout the learning process. By: Gina Voskov I am so pleased to introduce Won Jae, Lois, and Alexandra,… Continue Reading »
By Jill Burdick-Zupancic Midterms. This word always evokes a bit of panic in my mind. It feels like some kind of “super assessment” I’m expected to give to my students. Even in my seventh year as an educator, it’s a jarring word; however, the past three years, since my experience at the Teaching Shakespeare Institute… Continue Reading »
Happy holidays, readers! We’ll be on hiatus until January 6, 2015. Check back then for a new post—and have a very merry winter break! By Sara Lehn Occasionally, those of us who revere the Bard speak of his works as if they are some sort of holy text. These plays contain such incredible… Continue Reading »
By David Fulco After-school programs find a way to weave themselves into the fabric of a school. At my school, all sixth and seventh grade students participate in after-school activities from 2:15-4:30pm, five days a week. It has been more than evident during the school day that students are not only enjoying their after-school activities, but also… Continue Reading »
By Mike Klein Year after year kids in my classroom have strikingly similar reactions to my announcement, “Tomorrow, we’ll be starting Shakespeare.” That reaction is usually a series of “Ughs,” or “Oh nos!” or “Whys?” The most dreaded by English teachers everywhere is, of course, “I hate Shakespeare!” Perhaps I am different, perhaps I’m a… Continue Reading »
As you may have guessed, we never get tired of reading about the creative ways teachers are using performance-based learning techniques to teach Shakespeare. Sarah Goodis-Orenstein, a middle school language arts teacher and department head in a public charter school in Brooklyn, recently shared in a blog post on Education Week how she’s experimented with the Folger’s Shakespeare… Continue Reading »
