English Language Arts & Reading
Six Six Weeks: Weeks 1-2
Theme: Enemies and Allies
Time Frame: 10 Days
Genre: Drama
Writing: Expository
Objective:
 Utilize strategies and tools to expand knowledge of English vocabulary.
 Predict, retell, ask questions, re-read, adjust reading rate, summarize, visualize,
determine the main idea, infer, recognize the influence of text structure on meaning,
and make connections to texts centered around the theme of “Fate versus Free
Will”.
 Support responses by referring to relevant aspects of text and utilize interpretive
response formats such as open-ended questions.
 Read to get the gist, identify and explain significant moments (big ideas/main
ideas).
 Recognize and analyze literary elements and forms (e.g., plot, conflict, mood,
character, foreshadowing, myth, style, and theme)
 Represent information in a variety of ways.
 Analyze literary devices and their effect on the meaning of the text.
 Analyze and imitate author’s craft/style.
 Determine bias and evaluate credibility of text.
 Write for a variety of purposes and audiences (to explain, to entertain, to defend
stance, to inform and to persuade).
 Use prewriting strategies to generate ideas, develop a composition’s focus,
organizational structure, and ideas.
 Employ drafting, revising, re-drafting, and analysis of compositions according to
rubrics focused on the traits of effective writing.
 Edit writing for correct use of conventions, including capitalization, punctuation,
agreement (subject-verb, pronoun-antecedent), and usage.
TEKS: Participate productively in teams, building on the ideas of others, contributing relevant information, developing a plan for consensus-building, and setting
ground rules for decision-making. ELAR 9.26; Explain how dramatic conventions (e.g., monologues, soliloquies, dramatic irony) enhance dramatic text. ELAR 9.4A;
Analyze textual context (within a sentence and in larger sections of text) to distinguish between the denotative and connotative meanings of words. ELAR 9.1B; Use a
dictionary, a glossary, or a thesaurus (printed or electronic) to determine or confirm the meanings of words and phrases, including their connotations and
denotations, and their etymology. ELAR 9.1E; Reflect on understanding to monitor comprehension (e. g., asking questions, summarizing and synthesizing, making
connections, creating sensory images). Figure 19.110.30A; Analyze how authors develop complex yet believable characters in works of fiction through a range of
literary devices, including character foils. ELAR 9.5B; Summarize text and distinguish between a summary that captures the main ideas and elements of a text and a
critique that takes a position and expresses an opinion. ELAR 9.9A; Make subtle inferences and draw complex conclusions about the ideas in text and their
organizational patterns. ELAR 9.9C; Make complex inferences about text and use textual evidence to support understanding. Figure 19.110.31B; Write an
interpretative response to an expository or a literary text (e.g., essay or review) that extends beyond a summary and literal analysis. ELAR 9.15C
9th Grade
Overview:
 Analyze a Shakespearean tragedy, characters, literary devices
 Conduct research and write a journalistic article
Literary Terms:
Monologues
Soliloquies
Dramatic Irony
Iambic Pentameter
Culminating Project: At the end of the 6th six weeks, students will write a journalistic article.
To promote technological literacy, students may also use multimedia elements like pictures,
video, or audio files as they present their articles.
Essential Questions:
What is a Shakespearean tragedy? How can a person be affected by having enemies and allies?
What are the benefits and consequences of loyalty?
How can research be used to develop the ideas in a text?
Suggested Lesson Ideas:
Lesson 1: Introducing Drama
• Engage in a discussion of drama. (See page 155 for explanation). Introducing drama: Ask
students: How is reading a dramatic play different from reading a short story? Possible
answers might be: A drama is a story told in dialogue form. It does not have a narrator that
describes what happens. A drama’s plot unfolds through the words and actions of the
characters. Chart students’ responses. [Figure 19.110.30A]
Lesson 2 : Reading “Sorry, Right Number:” Since Stephen King wrote the story for television,
the more they can make his stagecraft part of their reading, the more students will enjoy the
teleplay.
• To make class discussion more accountable, it would be beneficial for students to try some
informal classroom drama techniques such as these:
1. Choral Reading. Prior to reading, each character in the teleplay may be represented by a
chorus of a small group of students. Students may also present the scene chorally with every
member of the class involved.
2. Readers’ Theater: Assign sections to small groups of students; students determine roles
and rehearse their reading of a section of the teleplay. Each group takes turns enacting their
section for the class.
3. Story Theater: Students may be assigned to groups to rehearse scenes; a pair of students
may be assigned each part. One reads the part, while the other performs the physical actions.
• Encourage students to create and utilize a class participation criteria chart and rubric to
assess the quality of their contributions to class discussions and reading performances.
[ELAR 9.26]
Lesson 3: Reading to Get the Gist: Have students read to get the gist of Acts One and Two of the
play and record their ideas in their Reader’s/Writer’s Notebook, including summaries of
logical/important “excerpts” from the teleplay. [ELAR 9.5A] [Figure 19.110.30A]
Lesson 4: Reading for Significance; Students can select three significant moments: one from
the beginning, one from the middle, and one from the end of the story, and explain each
moment’s significance to the story.
• Engage students in sharing and comparing their significant moments. Students can work in
small groups to compare and compile their moments, and identify which literary elements or
devices relate to the moments they chose. [ELAR 9.9A]
Lesson 5: Reading to Interpret
• Students can write their response to the following question, and use it to participate in an
inquiry-based discussion: What caused Katie’s suffering? or What truth does she learn from her
suffering? [ELAR 9.9C] [ELAR 9.15C.i]
• Note: Allow students to develop greater fluency in their responses and build toward
developing longer analytical responses. Avoid restricting students to the 5-line response
format. After the discussion, students can revise and expand their written responses, adding
specific supporting evidence from the text. StepBack: What more could you say about this
idea to expand your response into multiple paragraphs? [ELAR 9.9D]
Lesson 6: Reading to Analyze Author’s Techniques: Irony and Symbol
Irony
• Ask students to choose ironic moments in the story and explain what makes each moment
ironic. Encourage students to support their responses with pertinent evidence from the text
and logical reasoning. [ELAR 9.3A] [ELAR 9.5B]
Possible Examples of Irony in “Sorry, Right Number”
 Katie tried to help everybody, but she could not help her
own husband.
 Katie screaming after the phone connection between her
present self and past self broke.
Lesson 7: Beginning the Culminating Project: Literary Analysis of Author’s Use of Irony
and Symbol to Convey Theme
• Review the Culminating Project Handout again with students. Present (or engage students in
compiling) a list of texts that they could choose to analyze in this composition. [ELAR 9.2A]
[ELAR 9.3A]
• Present one or more model essays in which a writer analyzes a theme in a work of literature or
analyzes how an author uses irony and/or symbol to convey a theme in a text. Students may
need to read the text that is being analyzed. Engage students in analyzing the model: What
components and structures do you notice? How and where was the thesis stated? What other
literary devices were identified and connected to the theme? How was evidence selected and
embedded? Help students to create a criteria chart to guide them; remind them to draw from
the shorter responses they have produced throughout the unit. Model how to write an
effective analytical essay. [ELAR 9.9D] [Figure 19.110.30A]
Lesson 8: Writer’s Workshop: Independent Writing and Conferencing
• Have students write their analytical essays. As students are organizing and developing their
ideas into drafts, students can engage in conferences with peers and with the teacher. [ELAR
9.15A.i-v] [ELAR 9.13.A] [ELAR 9.13C]
• When students work in pairs, one way to structure this work is as follows: [ELAR 9.26]
1. Student A reads his paper ALOUD to Student B. Student B uses Accountable Talk either
to paraphrase the main idea of Student A’s paper or to ask questions (“Did I hear you
say…?”)
2. Student B then reads her paper aloud to Student A. Student A then emulates the feedback
from Student B.
3. Student A then reads Student B’s paper aloud to her. If he has any questions about content
or conventions, the two writers confer.
4. Student B then reads Student A’s paper aloud to him, again conferring about content
and/or conventions.
Lesson 9: Connect and Engage; Prepare to Read
Connect and Engage: Engage students in a Quickwrite and discussion of two of the essential
questions related to themes in Romeo and Juliet: How can a person be affected by having enemies
and allies? What are the benefits and consequences of loyalty? Students can respond to the
Anticipation Guide and then discuss their responses in partners and then whole group.
 Use an Anticipation Guide to generate discussion about the ideas that students will
encounter in the play.
 Use the resources from Prentice Hall to build background knowledge about Shakespeare
and the tragedy, Romeo and Juliet.
 Begin a list of terms that relate to drama (e.g., monologues, soliloquies, dramatic irony,
iambic pentameter, etc.). As students engage in the text, guide students to understand
the definitions and examples.
There are numerous ways to acquaint students with the opening scenes:
 Ask students: “Have you ever met a boy or girl who you thought was really neat, who you
admired from afar, but when you tried to speak to him or her, you were ignored? That’s how
our play begins, with Romeo rebuffed by Rosaline with whom he thinks he’s in love. You can
also ask students, “Suppose you knew that this boy or girl you liked was going to be at a party
you were not invited to, and a friend suggested you crash it. Would you?” Well, our hero
Romeo does.” You can continue relating each act in this manner prior to reading it. Students
may do QuickWrites to answer these sample questions. Have them work in pairs or trios and
share their responses with the class.
 Several movie versions of the play are available; the most popular and most accessible are S.
Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 and Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 adaptations of Romeo and Juliet, which are
both available on DVD. Since Zeffirelli and Luhrmann changed much of the script when they
wrote their screenplays, the differences between the text and the films offer numerous
opportunities for rich discussion when the play is read.
Lesson 10: Vocabulary Building:
 Continue to engage students in the use of tools and strategies that build vocabulary such as
graphic organizers, personal dictionaries, reference aids, word walls, structural analysis, and
context clues. Examples of words the students might note are: adversaries, esteem, languish,
transgression, valiant, chaste. Please see sample list of Act One Vocabulary. Continue
challenging students to determine denotative and connotative meanings of words.
 Consider having students note/identify words throughout the text that are used in unusual
and/or antiquated ways. These provide good examples of multiple meaning words and of the
fact that word usage changes over time, sometimes rendering words either antiquated or
obsolete.
Lessons 11-12: Reading to Get the Gist:
 Engage in a discussion of Shakespearean tragedy. (See page 1026 for explanation). Students
can use this information to make predictions.
 Have students read to get the gist of important scenes in Act One and record their ideas in
their Reader’s/Writer’s Notebook, including summaries of logical/important “excerpts” from
the play. In order to make progress with the play, provide brief oral or written summaries of
less significant scenes.
Model: Here are examples of “gists” or summaries from Act One
Act 1, Scene 3: Lady Capulet wants to have a serious conversation with Juliet, but the Nurse
interrupts with a long reminiscence about Juliet's weaning and what Juliet said about falling
on her back. Lady Capulet tells Juliet that Paris wants to marry her, and urges her to look him
over and see that he is the husband for her. Servants come to call everyone to the feast.
Act 1, Scene 4: Mercutio tries to persuade Romeo to dance at Capulet's feast, but Romeo insists
that he is too sadly love-lorn to do anything but hold a torch. Then Romeo says that it's not
wise to go to the feast at all, because of a dream he had. . . . Mercutio mocks Romeo's belief in
his dream by going on and on about "Queen Mab," but Romeo is sure that some terrible fate
awaits him. Nevertheless, he goes into the feast with his friends.
Reading Romeo and Juliet
 Since Shakespeare wrote for the stage, the more they can make his stagecraft part of
their reading, the more students will enjoy the play.
 To make class discussion more accountable, it would be beneficial for students to try
some informal classroom drama techniques such as these:
1. Choral Reading. Prior to reading, each character in a scene may be represented by a
chorus of students. Students may also present the scene chorally with every member of
the class involved.
2. Readers’ Theater: Assign sections to small groups of students; students determine
roles and rehearse their reading of that section. Each group takes turns enacting their
section for the class.
3. Story Theater: Students may be assigned to groups to rehearse scenes; a pair of
students may be assigned each part. One reads the part, while the other performs the
physical actions.
 Students may also read major scenes orally to the class. It would be helpful to ask
students who read aloud well to do the same. Interspersing the oral reading with
recordings of professional actors portraying the roles would help students who learn
best by listening.
 Encourage students to create and utilize a class participation criteria chart and rubric to
assess the quality of their contributions to class discussions and reading performances.
Lessons 13-14: Interpreting the Text/Dramatic Presentation:
 To make reading of the play accountable and interesting, consider asking students to develop
one or more scenes into a classroom drama. Students can read the parts as they act them or
they can memorize the lines. It would be beneficial to divide them into small groups with each
group practicing the same scene, two groups practicing each scene, or each group practicing a
different scene.
 To make expectations clear, have students discuss the following with their group members:
 Who will portray each character
 How the character will act in the scene
 How the character will deliver the lines
 Where the character will stand
 How the character will move
 Students may also want to discuss:
a) How the character interacts with the other characters
b) How one scene leads to the next
 Students can also analyze a character in the play. For example, a pair or trio of students may
analyze Romeo’s character traits such as his attitude about love, women and “composure.”
Possible responses to the first question might be: Romeo is sappy and melodramatic. He is
impulsive and self-absorbed. Have students support their analyses with critical textual
evidence and share their responses with the class.
 Students may present the scenes to the class, video tape them, view them, and critique them.
In their critique, it would be beneficial for students to discuss how faithful their staging of the
scene was to Shakespeare’s characterization, plot, theme, and staging.
To encourage students to make connections with the text and make expectations clearer,
consider having them select a major character and keep a journal of his/her development,
noting the following: a) scenes that illustrate character traits, b) how Shakespeare’s use of
language develops the character c) how the character interacts with other characters, and d)
how the character relates to the themes of the play. Students may use a character relationship
chart to plot and discuss each character’s development.
Lesson 15: Reread to Find Significant Moments/Events/Quotations:
 Show and have students analyze an example of an explanation of a quotation from the play,
and then ask them to paraphrase quotations or scenes in contemporary English to enhance
comprehension. (See Sample Explanation of Quotations from the play). Have students create
and utilize a criteria chart and rubric to assess the quality of their explanations of quotations
from the play.
 StepBack: Have students reflect on significant moment tasks: Ask: How did you go about
choosing a significant moment/event/quotation? What did you do to explain the significance of
the moment/idea to the text? Encourage students to share their reflections and write them
on a chart. Students can work in pairs or trios in choosing a significant quotation from the
play, and then write and share their explanation of the importance of the quotation to the
play.
Lesson 16: Reread to Interpret:
 Ask students to reread the text to interpret. Here are some questions they might consider
through QuickWrites, discussion, and/or debate:
Drawing conclusion about a character’s trait
 What is Romeo’s tragic flaw?
 What is Juliet's tragic flaw?
 What does Juliet’s soliloquy in Scene iii reveal about her personality?
Drawing conclusions about a character’s motivation
 What motives does the friar have for marrying Romeo and Juliet?
Drawing conclusions about characters using a visual representation
 What does the picture on page 1050 tell the reader about the relationship and traits of
these two characters: Mrs. Capulet and Juliet?
 After constructing their text-based responses, students might peer edit their work and
provide feedback for revision prior to submitting the final draft of the response to the
teacher. (See Model: Suggested Text-Specific Interpretive Questions)
Lesson 17: Reread to Analyze Author’s Craft: Have students analyze dramatic conventions in
the play such as blank verse, soliloquy, monologue, dramatic irony, aside, etc. For example,
have students define, look for examples, and explain the effects of the following dramatic
conventions in the play such as blank verse (See page for explanation), pun ( See page 1054
for explanation), character foil (See page 1056 for explanation), soliloquy,(See page 1067 for
explanation), etc.
Rhyme Schemes: You can also have students turn to the first meeting between Romeo and
Juliet at the Capulet ball, in Act One, Scene 5 (lines 95-112). Have students count the lines and
examine the rhyme scheme; ask them if it looks familiar. Point out to students that these lines
make up a sonnet, followed by a sonnet quatrain. Review briefly the distinction between a
Shakespearean or English sonnet, which divides its 14 lines into three quatrains and a couplet,
with the rhyme scheme abab cdcd efef gg; and a Petrarchan sonnet, which divides its 14 lines
into an eight line octave and a six line sestet, with the rhyme scheme abbaabba cdecde (Note:
This varies: cdcdcd is also common). Discuss briefly with students the history of the sonnet form.
Differentiation:
During core program/core instructional time
 Students can preview the images provided in the text to develop their understanding of the
historical context of the play and make predictions.
 Locate companion texts and language assistance aids for students to use as they read
Shakespearean language.
 Students can utilize vocabulary words from any of the acts of Romeo and Juliet in writing
their journal entries.
 Create a taped version of any of the Scenes or Acts from Romeo and Juliet, or ask a proficient
reader to do this. Have students listen to the tape as they re-read sections with which they
have had difficulty. Encourage them to mark points in the text at which they can stop and ask
questions and/or re-tell major events. This could be done as a Reader’s Theater with sound
effects.
 As students read the play, have them answer the following questions: What part of the text do
you find difficult to understand? What makes it difficult? What did you do to untangle the
difficulty?
 You can also ask students to choose significant events, and create a timeline on which they
will be placing the events in the play in chronological order.
 Consider having students work in pairs or trios to create a storyboard of the events in
selected scenes and Acts of the play.
Extensions:
 Students can do some research on Shakespeare: the man and the playwright, and present
their findings to the class.
 Have students research modern stories of star-crossed lovers from movies, tv shows, plays,
or magazines. For example, they can compare and contrast Romeo and Juliet with the play,
Westside Story.
 Since the introduction you have given to the play makes the feud between the Montagues and
Capulets evident, an investigation of other famous feuds is likely to spark student interest in
the play. Search for feuds in other literary works. Ask students: What are the effects of the
feuds? Discuss with the class and develop an annotated bibliography.
 Have students do some research on Elizabethan theater and present their findings to the
class.
 Divide the class into study groups and have each develop a stage interpretation of a short
passage in Romeo and Juliet, based on the dramatic effects Shakespeare creates through
poetic style and verse form. Encourage students to imagine in detail how this sketch of action
might be performed, to play out various scenarios in their discussions. When they have
finished, have each group share its staging, and then debate as a class which ideas seem to
capture best that first meeting of the lovers on the Elizabethan stage.
 Writing and discussion activities can reinforce the students’ understanding of the play. Invite
students to participate in one or more of these activities:
 Keep a journal to record the chronological sequence of events. Each day, add to a class
timeline of events. Students may then ask questions and share their wonderings about any of
the literary elements of the text.
 Keep a diary of one of the major characters in the play, recording in diary form what s/he is
doing and how s/he is feeling. Ask different students to read their entries at the beginning of
each class.
 Students may analyze the text by answering the following questions: How does Shakespeare's
use of different lyric forms and conventions heighten the action in Romeo and Juliet? How do
these lyric forms and conventions differentiate and strengthen characterization in Romeo and
Juliet?
 Locate Arthur Brooke’s The Tragicall Historye of Romeus and Juliet. Invite students to
compare it to Shakespeare’s play. Have them answer the following questions: What changes
did Shakespeare make? Why?
Interventions:
Tier 2
 Have students use vocabulary flashcards for difficult words based on the simplified text.
 Students may read the contemporary version of Romeo and Juliet. Romeo and Juliet from The
Shakespeare Made Easy Series is a good example of a contemporary version of the play
 Have students prepare production notes for their chosen scene, explaining how they would
direct the action, with special attention to how they would have their actors perform the
richly poetic language Shakespeare gives them.
 Consider allowing students to illustrate a section of the text to demonstrate their
understanding of it.
Tier 3
 To help with visualization, students can draw scenes from the play with focus on textual
evidence.
 Challenge students to deepen their understanding of some of the scenes and acts by
visualizing the settings, characters, and major events.
Suggested Assessment:
Reader’s/Writer’s Notebooks
Evidence of accountable talk
AR Testing
Character Portrayals
Teacher observations
STAR Diagnostic Report
Choral Reading
Reflection Page
Resources:
Prentice Hall Literature Grade 9
Teacher created material
Word Wall
Technology
Vocabulary Log
Graphic Organizer
Student AR Goal Sheets
Ancillary Material
Anticipation Guide
* America Now: Short Readings from Recent Periodicals by Robert Atwan
Video:
Websites: www.PHLitOnline.com,
http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/mirror/classics.mit.edu/Shakespeare/romeo_juliet/index.h
tml, http://www.powervideos.org/ShowVideo.aspx?ID=144127,
http://www.geocities.com/trichard_ca/
Literature Selections:
pp.798-932
6 Weeks Novel: Romeo and
F Juliet
Sorry, Right Number
Romeo and Juliet
English Language Arts & Reading
Six Six Weeks: Weeks 3-4
Theme: Enemies and Allies
Time Frame: 10 Days
Genre: Drama
Writing: Expository
Objective:
 Utilize strategies and tools to expand knowledge of English vocabulary.
 Predict, retell, ask questions, re-read, adjust reading rate, summarize, visualize,
determine the main idea, infer, recognize the influence of text structure on meaning,
and make connections to texts centered around the theme of “Fate versus Free
Will”.
 Support responses by referring to relevant aspects of text and utilize interpretive
response formats such as open-ended questions.
 Read to get the gist, identify and explain significant moments (big ideas/main
ideas).
 Recognize and analyze literary elements and forms (e.g., plot, conflict, mood,
character, foreshadowing, myth, style, and theme)
TEKS: Participate productively in teams, building on the ideas of others, contributing relevant information, developing a plan for consensus-building, and setting
ground rules for decision-making. ELAR 9.26; Relate the figurative language of a literary work to its historical and cultural setting. ELAR 9.2C; Analyze how authors
develop complex yet believable characters in works of fiction through a range of literary devices, including character foils. ELAR 9.5B; Summarize text and
distinguish between a summary that captures the main ideas and elements of a text and a critique that takes a position and expresses an opinion. ELAR 9.9A; Reflect
on understanding to monitor comprehension (e. g., asking questions, summarizing and synthesizing, making connections, creating sensory images). Figure
19.110.30A; Analyze the influence of mythic, classical and traditional literature on 20th and 21st century literature. ELAR 9.2B; Analyze the effects of diction and
imagery (e.g., controlling images, figurative language, understatement, overstatement, irony, paradox) in poetry. ELAR 9.3A; Explain the role of irony, sarcasm, and
paradox in literary works. ELAR 9.7A; Make subtle inferences and draw complex conclusions about the ideas in text and their organizational patterns. ELAR 9.9C;
Make complex inferences about text and use textual evidence to support understanding. Figure 19.110.31B; Write an interpretative response to an expository or a
literary text (e.g., essay or review) that extends beyond a summary and literary analysis. ELAR 9.16C
9th Grade
Overview:
 Analyze a Shakespearean tragedy, characters, literary devices
 Conduct research and write a journalistic article
Literary Terms:
Monologues
Soliloquies
Dramatic Irony
Iambic Pentameter
Allusion
Culminating Project: At the end of the 6th six weeks, students will write a journalistic article.
To promote technological literacy, students may also use multimedia elements like pictures,
video, or audio files as they present their articles.
Essential Questions:
What is a Shakespearean tragedy? How can a person be affected by having enemies and allies?
What are the benefits and consequences of loyalty?
How can research be used to develop the ideas in a text?
Suggested Lesson Ideas:
Lesson 18: Reading to Get the Gist: Have students read to get the gist of each scene in Act Two
and record their ideas in their Reader’s/Writer’s Notebook, including summaries of
logical/important “excerpts” from the play.
Act 2, Scene 2: In Capulet's garden Romeo sees Juliet come to her window. He is entranced by
her beauty and listens as she tells the night that she loves Romeo and wishes that he had another
name. Romeo surprises her by offering to take another name for her love. At first, Juliet worries
for Romeo's safety and then she worries that he may be a deceiver, but he wins her over with
passionate vows of love. They pledge their love to one another and then Juliet is called away by
the Nurse. . . . Answering the call of the Nurse, Juliet goes into the house, then comes right back
out and tells Romeo that the next day she will send a messenger to find out when and where she
is to meet and marry him. Juliet is again called back into the house, and Romeo starts to leave,
but Juliet again comes back out, to set a time that her messenger should go to Romeo. Romeo
tells her that the messenger should come at nine in the morning. They say a long goodbye, and
after Juliet is gone, Romeo says that he will go to the cell of Friar Laurence to get his help.
Lesson 19: Reread to Find Significant Moments/Events/Quotations: Ask students to choose
significant events, and create a timeline on which they will be placing the events in the play in
chronological order. Continue asking them to paraphrase quotations or scenes in contemporary
English to enhance comprehension. Here is an example of an explanation of a quotation from Act
Two of the play.
Quotation: O Romeo, Romeo, Wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name,
Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, And I’ll no longer be a Capulet.
Explanation:
Juliet speaks these lines in the balcony scene (Act 2: Scene 2: lines 33–36). Leaning out of her
upstairs window, unaware that Romeo is below in the orchard, she asks why Romeo must be
Romeo—why he must be a Montague, the son of her family’s greatest enemy (“wherefore” means
“why,” not “where”; Juliet is not, as is often assumed, asking where Romeo is). Still unaware of
Romeo’s presence, she asks him to deny his family for her love. She adds, however, that if he will not,
she will deny her family in order to be with him if he merely tells her that he loves her.
A major theme in Romeo and Juliet is the tension between social and family identity
(represented by one’s name), and one’s inner identity. Juliet believes that love stems from one’s
inner identity, and that the feud between the Montagues and the Capulets is a product of the
outer identity, based only on names. She thinks of Romeo in individual terms, and thus her love
for him overrides her family’s hatred for the Montague name. She says that if Romeo were not
called “Romeo” or “Montague,” he would still be the person she loves. “What’s in a name?” she
asks. “That which we call a rose / By any other name would smell as sweet” (Act Two, Scene 2,
lines 43–44).
Lesson 20: Reread to Interpret:
 Have students WriteAbout a thought-provoking text-specific interpretive question that can
be answered in different ways. Ask students to support their responses with critical textual
evidence and logical reasoning to justify their interpretations. Invite them to share their
interpretations and explanations. Choose sample responses and use them as models.
Continue utilizing criteria charts and rubrics to assess the quality of students’ text-specific
interpretive responses.

Which character demonstrated the greatest courage?

Why is Juliet attracted to Romeo?

How does wealth and status affect a character’s motivation?
Lesson 21 : Reread to Analyze Author’s’ Craft/Literary Devices:
 Invite students to identify and analyze the effect of a literary device/poetic element/example
of imagery used by the author in Act Two and explain its significance or effect. Here is an
example of a student-created chart/table that could be used to identify and analyze the
significance of various literary devices/poetic elements/imagery in Act Two of Romeo and
Juliet.
Literary Device/ Poetic Element/ Imagery
Metaphor
Example
What’s in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet. (Act Two,
Scene 2, lines 43 - 44)
Significance
In a metaphor, Juliet compares her and Romeo’s surnames to a flower. What she is saying is that
what counts in life is what a person is, not where a person comes or who a person is. In modern
terms, she is saying it does not matter whether a person is rich or poor, black or white, American or
Chinese. What matters is what he thinks and what he feels. A rose would still smell sweet if it were
called a turnip or a dandelion.
Literary Device/ Poetic Element/ Imagery
Simile
/
Metaphor
/Personification
Example
I The grey-eyed morn smiles on the frowning night, Chequ’ring the Eastern clouds with streaks
of light;
And flecked darkness like a drunkard reels From forth day’s path and Titan’s fiery wheels (Act
Two, Scene 3., lines 2-4)
Significance
In a simile, Romeo compares Juliet to the earring of an Ethiopian. In a metaphor, he compares the
darkness of night to a cheek. The jewel couldn’t be seen against the darkness of the Ethiope’s ears.
It suggests that the jewel is precious (like Juliet), but it cannot truly be appreciated in the context in
which it is seen. The inference is that Juliet is too beautiful to be appreciated by Romeo or others.
(Note: The word cheek is also an example of personification. The word dear is an example of a
pun, and it means precious or expensive.)

StepBack: Have students share their responses to this question: In what ways do the use of
various literary devices influences and enhance a reader’s understanding of the elements of a
text like Romeo and Juliet?
Differentiation:
During core program/core instructional time
 Continue to scaffold the work of struggling readers through repeated readings and modeling
what successful readers do:
 Activating background knowledge, making predictions, and setting a purpose for reading
 Determining the meanings of unfamiliar words and building academic vocabulary
 Re-telling and asking questions to monitor comprehension
 Determining main ideas and their supporting details, and summarizing texts of varying
lengths
Making connections to text and visualizing
Analyzing text structure
Making inferences such as drawing conclusions and making generalizations about
characters, theme, plot, and visual representations
 During small group instruction, consider reviewing commonly-used examples of literary
devices until students can identify and explain each.
 In pairs or trios, students can make a computer slide show citing relevant literary terms and
devices and examples from the play.
 Students may rewrite monologues, dialogues, or scenes. They can use a Drama Map to
identify the key elements from the portion of the text they have chosen.



Extensions:
 Poetry and Song Connection: Invite all students to read Getrtrude Stein’s poem “A Rose is a
Rose,” or listen to Johnny Cash’s song, “A Boy Named Sue.” Have them compare the poem or
song to Juliet’s speech in Act Two, Scene 2, (lines 43-44).
 Have students examine Romeo and Juliet for literary or mythological allusions. Go to the
library and see what you can find out about one or more of these allusions. Present the
results of your study to the class.
 Students can compare and contrast Romeo and Juliet to other stories of doomed love such as
Cupid and Psych, Helen and Paris, Odysseus and Circe, etc.
 Students can write a soliloquy about their feelings about someone they care about such as a
sibling, a boy or a girl, parents, etc.
Interventions:
Tier 2
 Play a professional recording of the play as students read along.
 Continue having students read the summary of each act. (See Romeo and Juliet Scene
Summary Index)
 Consider allowing students to illustrate a section of the text to demonstrate their
understanding of it.
Tier 3
 To help with visualization, students can draw scenes from the play with focus on textual
evidence.
 Students can watch a movie adaptation of the play at home to help them visualize the events
and characters of the play.
Suggested Assessment:
Reader’s/Writer’s Notebooks
Evidence of accountable talk
AR Testing
Character Portrayals
Reflection Page
Teacher observations
STAR Diagnostic Report
Choral Reading
Rubric
Resources:
Prentice Hall Literature Grade 9
Teacher created material
Word Wall
Technology
Vocabulary Log
Graphic Organizer
Student AR Goal Sheets
Ancillary Material
Anticipation Guide
* America Now: Short Readings from Recent Periodicals by Robert Atwan
Video:
Websites: www.PHLitOnline.com,
http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/mirror/classics.mit.edu/Shakespeare/romeo_juliet/index.h
tml, http://www.powervideos.org/ShowVideo.aspx?ID=144127,
http://www.geocities.com/trichard_ca/
Literature Selections:
pp.798-932
6 Weeks Novel: Romeo and
F Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
English Language Arts & Reading
Six Six Weeks: Weeks 5-6
Theme: Enemies and Allies
Time Frame: 10 Days
Genre: Drama
Writing: Expository
Objective:








Represent information in a variety of ways.
Analyze literary devices and their effect on the meaning of the text.
Analyze and imitate author’s craft/style.
Determine bias and evaluate credibility of text.
Write for a variety of purposes and audiences (to explain, to entertain, to
defend stance, to inform and to persuade).
Use prewriting strategies to generate ideas, develop a composition’s focus,
organizational structure, and ideas.
Employ drafting, revising, re-drafting, and analysis of compositions according
to rubrics focused on the traits of effective writing.
Edit writing for correct use of conventions, including capitalization,
punctuation, agreement (subject-verb, pronoun-antecedent), and usage.
TEKS: Analyze non-linear plot development (e.g., flashbacks, foreshadowing, sub-plots, parallel plot structures) and compare it to linear plot development. ELAR
9.5A; Analyze the way in which a work of fiction is shaped by the narrator’s point of view. ELAR 9.5C; Summarize text and distinguish between a summary that
captures the main ideas and elements of a text and a critique that takes a position and expresses an opinion. ELAR 9.9A; Make complex inferences about text and use
textual evidence to support understanding. Figure 19.110.31B; Write an interpretative response to an expository or a literary text (e.g., essay or review) that extends
beyond a summary and literal analysis. ELAR 9.15C; Revise drafts to improve style, word choice, figurative language, sentence variety, and subtlety of meaning after
rethinking how well questions of purpose, audience, and genre have been addressed. ELAR 9.13C; Write an analytical essay of sufficient length that includes: (i)
effective introductory and conclud-ing paragraphs and a variety of sentence structures; (iii) a control-ling idea or thesis; (iv) an organizing structure appropriate to
purpose, audience, and context; relevant information and valid inferences (v) ELAR 9.15A; Students write persuasive texts to influence the attitudes or actions of a
specific audience on specific issues. Students are expected to write an argumentative essay (e.g., evaluative essays, proposals) to the appropriate audience that
includes: a clear thesis or position based on logical reasons supported by precise and relevant evidence.;(ELAR 9.16A) consideration of the whole range of
information and views on the topic and accurate and honest representation of these views; (ELAR 9.16B) a range of appropriate appeals (e.g., descriptions,
anecdotes, case studies, analogies, illustrations). ELAR 9.16F; ELAR 9.8A; ELAR 9.10A; ELAR 9.22A; ELAR 9.21C; ELAR 9.13D; ELAR 9.18A; ELAR 9.18B; ELAR 9.17C;
ELAR 9.15D; ELAR 9.26.
9th Grade
Overview:
 Analyze a Shakespearean tragedy, characters, literary devices
 Conduct research and write a journalistic article
Literary Terms:
Monologues
Soliloquies
Dramatic Irony
Iambic Pentameter
Allusion
Culminating Project: At the end of the 6th six weeks, students will write a journalistic
article. To promote technological literacy, students may also use multimedia elements like
pictures, video, or audio files as they present their articles.
Essential Questions:
What is a Shakespearean tragedy? How can a person be affected by having enemies and
allies?
What are the benefits and consequences of loyalty?
How can research be used to develop the ideas in a text?
Suggested Lesson Ideas:
Lessons 22 -23: Reading to Get the Gist: Continue having students read to get the gist of
each scene in Acts Three, Four and Five and record their ideas in their Reader’s/Writer’s
Notebook, including summaries of logical/important “excerpts” from the play.
 Act Three, Scene 3: Learning from the Friar that he is to be banished, Romeo declares that
the Friar is torturing him to death, then throws himself on the floor, moaning and
weeping. . . . The Nurse brings news that Juliet is in just as bad shape as Romeo. Romeo,
wild with guilt at the pain he has caused Juliet, tries to stab himself. Friar Laurence
lectures Romeo and tells him what to do -- go to Juliet, then to Mantua until the Prince
can be persuaded to pardon him. The Nurse gives Romeo the ring that Juliet asked her to
take to him. These things put Romeo into a better frame of mind and he leaves Friar
Laurence's cell to go to Juliet.
 Act Four, Scene 2: Capulet is making arrangements for the wedding feast when Juliet
appears, begs her father's pardon, and tells him that she will marry Paris. This makes
Capulet so happy that he moves the wedding up to the very next day, Wednesday.
 Act Five, Scene 2: Friar John explains to Friar Laurence why he was unable to deliver
Friar Laurence's letter to Romeo. Friar Laurence sends Friar John to get a crowbar and
makes plans to be there when Juliet awakes, write again to Romeo in Mantua, and hide
Juliet in his cell until Romeo arrives.
Lesson 24: Reread to Find Significant Moments/Events/Quotations:
 Continue asking students to choose significant events, and create a timeline on which
they will be placing the events in the play in chronological order. Also continue asking
them to paraphrase quotations or scenes in contemporary English to enhance
comprehension. (See examples in the linked resource Quotations Explained.)
 Analyze Point of View: Discuss the effect that dramatic irony has on the audience and
connect the term dramatic irony to point of view. Students can consider how a narrator
could create a similar effect in a short story (e.g., The Gift of The Magi).
Lesson 25: Reread to Interpret:
 Theme: Continue to invite students to answer questions that relate to one of the play’s
theme, “Enemies and Allies,” such as: What role does loyalty play in the following events:
Romeo crashes the party; Romeo and Juliet meet and fall in love; Romeo and Juliet get
married; Friar Lawrence steps in. Ask students to support their responses with critical
textual evidence.
Students can work in pair/trios and share their responses with the class.
 Students may write their own text-specific interpretive questions and then respond to
them with insight and critical textual evidence.
Lesson 26: Research a Topic; Establish a Purpose for the Journalistic Article
 Review the Culminating Project handout with students and discuss potential research
topics for their article that relate to the events and ideas in the play.
Potential Research Topics
 Marriage customs or laws
 Teens’ and parents’ relationships
 Teenage dating and relationships
 Infamous families (family feuds)
 Teen suicide
 Famous enemies; famous allies
 The importance of The Globe Theater
 Other versions/adaptations of Romeo and Juliet
 Discuss potential formats that their article could take (e.g., news report, editorial, news
feature, or letter to the editor, critical review) and brainstorm ways that students could
shape their topic into a particular form of journalism:
 News Feature: Write a news feature about a couple who were forbidden by law or
customs to marry; Imagine that the Globe Theater has just had its opening night.
Write an informative news feature about its debut.
 News Report: Write an informative news report about a famous historical duel such
as the Graves and Cilley duel in 1838, which resulted in congress making the act of
dueling in Washington DC illegal.
 Letter to the Editor: Write a letter to the editor explaining your view on what
parents should do to have better relationships with their teens. Include data and
information from research, including experts on the topic.
 Critical Review: Write a review of an adapted version of Romeo and Juliet.
 Engage students in a discussion about how that choice of format will affect how they
present their perspective, or how they maintain an objective stance.
 As students read expository texts to gather information, engage in a discussion about
determining the importance of ideas in expository texts.
 What information did you include in your notes? What did you exclude?
 How does your purpose for writing compare to the purpose of each source you are
using? How does that affect the information you collect?
 Students will need to narrow the focus of their research and develop a topic that is
narrow enough to be addressed in a one-two page article. As students make this decision,
they will also think about which form of journalistic article they will write.
Lesson 27: Language Study: Punctuation: Mentor Sentences:
 Review commas and invite students to discuss uses of commas, and use the discussion as
a springboard to how Shakespeare used commas and other punctuation marks in Romeo
and Juliet.
 Students may explain how Shakespeare used punctuation marks. WriteLike: They may
also imitate the way he used commas, semicolons, and apostrophes correctly.
Sample sentence from the
play with commas,
semicolons and quotation
marks:
It was the lark, the herald of
the morn.
Explanation/
Purpose
Student-made
examples:
The comma is used to set off an
appositive.
I heard the bell, the signal
that class is over.
Call me but love, and I’ll be
new baptized; Henceforth I
will never be Romeo.
 The comma is used to combine
two sentences
 The semicolon is used to
separate a compound sentence
from another independent
clause.
I wrote an essay and my
classmates analyzed it.
I do beseech you, sir, have
patience.
The comma is used to set off a
noun of direct address.
Maria, come here please.
Here’s a goodly gear!
An apostrophe is used to form a
contraction.
What’s your favorite
game?
 As students continue their research, review how they should record and credit their
sources. Use models of authentic journalistic texts to help students identify how
journalists identify their sources within the articles they write by using structures such
as appositives.
Lesson 28 – 29: Journalistic Article Writing:
 Analyze Models of Journalistic Articles: Have students read sample newspaper or
magazine articles (i.e., news reports, news features, editorials, and letters to the editor) and
inform them that they will imitate the way these documents are written. Have students
create criteria charts and rubrics for an effective news report, editorial, news feature, or
letter to the editor. Continue utilizing criteria charts and rubrics to assess the quality of
students’ newspaper articles.
 Modeling: You can model the process of using notes from research to develop a
journalistic article according to one of the suggested formats.
 Drafting: Encourage students to use technology to draft their articles so they can imitate
features of print journalism such as headlines, columns, tables, images, and insert boxes.
 Conferring: Students can confer with each other to verify that they have not plagiarized
their sources, but have adequately and accurately paraphrased information.
 Revising: Students can track revisions on a word document by using the Review
features. Students can also use post-it notes to identify one area of their article where
they made an important change and comment on how that change improved their article.
Lesson 30: Publishing and Reporting Newspaper Articles:
 Students can work individually or with partners to present their researched article. Some
possible choices could include:
 Newspaper Project: Students can compile their articles to put together a newspaper
with news reports on the front page, editorials and news features in the middle
pages, and the letters to the editor at the back.
 Televised News Feature: Students may present in the fashion of a televised news
program. Students can present live or by video recording.
 StepBack: Invite students to reflect on how the tasks for the fifth six weeks improved
their reading comprehension, writing, critical thinking, and communicating skills. Invite
them to share their reflections and write examples in a chart.
 Retrospection:
 Revisit the Overarching and Essential Questions: Invite students to do QuickWrites
and respond to the following overarching questions in pairs or trios. Ask students the
following questions that relate to the overarching questions: Is a person’s future
determined by fate or free will? How do actions and decisions determine a person’s
destiny? What is a Shakespearean tragedy? What is a tragic hero? What makes Romeo
and Juliet tragic heroes?
 As students share aloud their responses, write their reflections on a chart.
Differentiation:
During core program/core instructional time
 Oral Thematic Presentation/Projects: Students may create projects (in pairs or in
groups) to show the class their own personal interpretation of Romeo and Juliet in terms
of one theme.
 As students engage with the Shakespearean version, provide a version of the play written
in modern English or in students’ native language.
 As students write their essays, use mentor sentences from the play and continue
guiding them to focus on sentence variety. Invite students to change words, rearrange
sentences, and combine sentences for effective paragraphs.
 To motivate students, utilize technology tools such as blogs: Students may rewrite
Romeo’s or Juliet’s soliloquies as a series of blog entries. They may also write the nurse’s
comments and feelings as a series of blog entries.
 If conducting research becomes an obstacle, guide students to select a topic that analyzes
some aspect of the play:
 Editorial: Have students write an editorial feature article explaining whether the
Prince’s response to Tybalt’s death was appropriate, or . analyzing the role played by
Friar Lawrence in this tragedy (i.e.,. Has he overstepped his bounds as a member/leader of
the church? How did he manipulate “life” and “death”? Why did he suggest that Romeo flee
Verona rather than submit himself to the Prince Escalus? Why did he marry Romeo and
Juliet without their parents’ consent? Why did he keep silent in Juliet’s tomb?)
 In pairs or trios, have students take turns in presenting their projects and assessing how
well they have written and presented their projects utilizing a criteria chart and rubric.
Extensions:
 Students can respond in writing to quotes from the play. (Do you agree or disagree?
Defend, refute or qualify…).
 Students may also view the film of the ballet Romeo and Juliet. Have them discuss how the
dance communicates the play’s ideas.
 To encourage students to make connections to the text, they may work in pairs or trios to
review the suggested themes and choose the one that interests them the most. Then, as
they read the play, they may take careful notes in order to collect textual evidence to
support their treatment of that theme. Then, to increase rigor, suggest that they think of
all of the ways that they may express that theme. Ask them “What kind of project do you
wish to create?” Remind them not to limit themselves to the teacher’s suggestions. Here
are some possible student projects:
1. Original writing such as poems and rap songs
2. Power Point presentations
3. Video presentations
4. Podcasts of character interviews
5. Drawings, paintings, collages, or models
6. Other types of live performances
7. Debate
 To make expectations clear, discuss with students that their project will be effective if it 1. reflects many details from the play
2. communicates what they used to think and what they now think about their chosen
thematic issue.
 Continue having students analyze dramatic conventions used by Shakespeare. For
example, they may respond to questions about these dramatic conventions:
Dramatic Irony:
 Act Three, Scene 2, line 40: How is Juliet’s belief that her new husband is dead an
example of irony?
 Act Three, Scene 2, lines 1-7: Act Four, Scene 2, lines 31 – 32: What is ironic about
Capulet’s praise of Friar Laurence?
Pun:
 Act Four, Scene 5, lines 96-99: What “case” is the nurse referring to?
Soliloquy:
 Act Five, Scene 3, lines 23-29: What do you learn about the friar’s new plan in this
soliloquy?
 Students may write alternative endings for the play. For a sample lesson on writing
alternative endings for Romeo and Juliet, see http://www.eduref.org/cgibin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/Lessons/Language_Arts/Literature/LIT0209.html
 Students review different types of sentences and continue looking for compound and
complex sentences in the play and analyze how the author has punctuated and organized
them.
 Students may form a Learning Partner Journal or a Learning Partner Blog. Students can
utilize this journal or Blog to read reactions, raise questions, dialogue about concepts,
and give each other advice on ways to improve writing. This exercise is a way to establish
a working/learning relationship between two classmates.
 Students can engage in a panel discussion to flesh out responsibility/liability of the
following characters for the needless deaths of Romeo and Juliet: Friar Lawrence, Tybalt,
Mercutio, Tybalt, the nurse, Mr. and Mrs. Capulet, and Mr. and Mrs. Montague.
 Other possible culminating projects might be: dramatic interpretation, rap, poems,
graphic novels, taped interviews, persuasive letters to any of the characters in the play, etc.
Interventions:
Tier 2
 Work with struggling readers and have them take turns reading the text aloud. Ask them
to stop and re-tell events or ask questions when they are not comprehending.
 Encourage colleagues in other content area classes to require written responses to openended questions in the same format as that used in ELA.
 Students may explain the purpose in using commas, semicolons, and apostrophes in their
sentences. Students could look at annotated examples of sentences in a packet on reserve
in the library.
 Students may rewrite monologues, dialogues, or scenes with a persuasive message. They
can use a Persuasion Map as a prewriting tool to sketch out their messages.
 Encourage colleagues in other content area classes to have students write similar
projects such as travel brochures, photographic essays, or graphic novels.
Tier 3
 Have students review other comma, semicolon, and apostrophe rules.
 Provide a graphic representation of compound and complex sentence structures on
charts or strips so that students can view these patterns as they write.
Suggested Assessment:
Reader’s/Writer’s Notebooks
Evidence of accountable talk
AR Testing
Character Portrayals
Reflection Page
Teacher observations
STAR Diagnostic Report
Choral Reading
Rubric
Resources:
Prentice Hall Literature Grade 9
Teacher created material
Word Wall
Technology
Vocabulary Log
Graphic Organizer
Student AR Goal Sheets
Ancillary Material
Anticipation Guide
* America Now: Short Readings from Recent Periodicals by Robert Atwan
Video:
Websites: www.PHLitOnline.com,
http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/mirror/classics.mit.edu/Shakespeare/romeo_juliet/ind
ex.html, http://www.powervideos.org/ShowVideo.aspx?ID=144127,
http://www.geocities.com/trichard_ca/
Literature Selections:
pp. 798-932
6 Weeks Novel: Romeo and Juliet
F
Romeo and Juliet