Conquering the Sonnet

Get this lesson here. 

The Shakespeare Blues

When I was in high school, I took a Shakespeare class and it was my FAVORITE. My teacher was AMAZING!!! So, when I became a teacher, I hoped that I could make Shakespeare as engaging as my teacher did, but I've decided I don't have the same super power he did. The last few years have been rough. In fact, when we get to the part where Romeo finally dies, most of my classes applaud, me included. I needed to do something different before I had a full on riot on my hands. 

Sonnet Balderdash

Introducing sonnets doesn't have to be boring. Although my kiddos are too young to remember the board game Balderdash, they picked up the rules pretty quickly. You can use any sonnet with this, but choosing one with some salty language makes them realize Shakespeare isn't as boring as they previously thought. Directions are included here. 

When I do this, I line my desks into rows. The person farthest from the middle aisle is "it." After they write the paraphrase on the group paper, they pass it to the middle. Usually I count down from ten so they don't take four years to write something. Any team without a paper when I get to one is disqualified. Also, group members can't help the "it" person. Each round, the students move seats so everyone gets a change to be "it".

After playing this once, my students request this game. Let me repeat, they ask to read more sonnets. 

Behold, the Visual Sonnet

Downfall of this project = messy room.

My second solution to the Shakespeare blues was actually stealing using a lesson from my high school class. We worked in groups to visually represent a sonnet we were assigned. We did Sonnet 19, and I will never forget it. We had colored lights, a hula hoop bedecked with red and orange streamers, a tiger, a lion. It was EPIC. And that high school memory has never left me. For years, I wanted to do the project, but was too afraid I wouldn't be able to pull it off in my classroom. This year, I sucked it up and just did it. I used this YouTube video to introduce the project. I do not expect them to create shadow figures like this one, but it shows how the dancers create images from the spoken word. You can find the entire assignment here for free!!

This is something you can NEVER unsee.

The Dark Lady

This project can be used as an introduction to Shakespeare's language or as a culminating activity. I used it at the end of our Romeo and Juliet unit (which I will poster later. I actually had fun this year with it. Update: the month long lesson unit is posted here.) I wanted to test their ability to paraphrase the language and my kiddos did pretty well. If this project is at beginning of a unit, they will struggle more and need your support. 

By the end of this project, each group has practically memorized a sonnet (but I don't tell them that.) Also, each student recognizes the power of imagery in poetry. Can't get better than that, right?