List some of the different books you
remember reading in high school. Which of
these were your favorite and why? Which of
them didn’t you like so much and why? What
were some effective and ineffective
assignments or activities your teacher used to
teach those books. How would you teach
them differently?
How would you teach your novel?
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What grade level would your teach it and why
How long would you take to teach it and why
Design two class activities you would use
Design two sample assignments you would use
 analyze characters, plot, setting, etc.
 Include handouts
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What visuals would you present
Write an assessment
 Essay (prompt), project (design rubric), test (10 sample
questions)
 Include handouts
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What themes would you cover
What symbols would you cover
What are important passages you would
cover
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How is it an example of the Victorian age
What value does it have in the classroom;
why would you teach it
What did your group think of the novel
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Must be done on PowerPoint slides
20-30 minutes in length
Everyone in group must speak
Cohesive presentation; practiced & prepared
Must present general summary of novel first
Use the assignments from literature circles as
reference ideas
Seniors
10 class periods
Prince Hamlet mourns his father's death and his mother’s
hasty remarriage to his uncle, King Claudius. Hamlet swears
revenge after the ghost of his father tells him that Claudius
has poisoned him. Hamlet accidentally kills the Polonius, the
court chamberlain. Polonius's son, Laertes, returns to
Denmark to avenge his father's death. Polonius's daughter
Ophelia loves Hamlet but his behavior drives her to madness
and she dies by drowning. A duel takes place and ends with
the death of Gertrude, Laertes, Claudius, and Hamlet.
SETTING ASSIGNMENT
Please draw four scenes: Act 1 Scene
1, Act 1 Scene 2, Act 1 Scene 3, Act 1
Scenes 4&5
You need to illustrate the indecision of
the central character of the scene and
use one quote from each scene as a
footnote to describe what you drew, be
sure to give line number credit to the
quote.
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
ASSIGNMENT
You need to choose any line of
figurative language from the play and
illustrate that exact language in a 8 x
11 (printer page) drawing.
For Example: Hamlet says “I will attend
my mother and speak daggers to her”
Act 3 Scene 2. You would draw Hamlet
with daggers coming out of his mother
and going into the soul of his mother.
WHERE’S MY LINE?
DUMBSHOWS
Divide the class into groups and
give each group a different
soliloquy, cut into sections so that
each group member has one piece
of text, randomly distributed. The
students do not show their texts to
one another but must arrange
themselves into the “right” order
so that they make sense of the
speech, assisted only by the
speaking of the lines. The whole
speeches are read to the rest of the
class and compared with
Shakespeare’s text.
Divide the class into small groups and
have them develop and perform a
dumbshow set to music of their choice
based on one of the following situations
drawn from events in Hamlet: a king is
murdered by his own brother while he
sleeps; a father’s ghost appears to a son
and tells him shocking news; a young girl
is brutally rejected by the man she loves
and loses her mind; a funeral is
interrupted when two enemies quarrel at
the grave.
Compare film
adaptations
of Hamlet’s
character
Fill in the blanks of the following outline. 1 pt each
I. Act 1
A. Scene 1
1. The nightwatch see a ________ and ask ______to speak to it.
2. Horatio decides to tell _________ about the incident.
B. Scene 2
1. Claudius and Gertrude _______ one month after the King’s death
2. __________ is granted leave to Paris
3. __________ is not granted leave to Wittenberg
4. Fortinbras is marching on Denmark and _________ writes to
Fortinbras’ uncle to stop him.
5. Gertrude asks Hamlet to “________ “ his depression and cheer up
C. Scene 3
1. _______ warns Ophelia that Hamlet is not able to choose his wife.
2. _______ warns Ophelia that Hamlet just wants to take advantage
of her.
3. Polonius tells Ophelia that she must stop ____________ Hamlet
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Madness
 “I am but mad north-north-west.” Hamlet, II.2.347
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Revenge
 “If thou didst ever thy dear father love, Revenge his foul and
most unnatural murder.” The Ghost, I.5.23-5
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Mortality
 “There is a divinity that shapes our ends, Rough-hew them how
we will --” Hamlet, V.2.10-11
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Lies & Deceit
 “...suit the action to the word, the word to the action...” Hamlet,
III.2.16
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Corruption
 “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.” Marcellus, I.4.90
YORICK’S SKULL
"returneth into dust" (5.1.30)
THE GHOST
"spirit of health or goblin damned" (1.4.5)
GARDENS
“tis an unweeded garden” (1.2.6)
FLOWERS
“that's for remembrance” (4.5.175)
The famous passage by
Hamlet (3.1.64)
To be, or not to be—that is
the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the
mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of
outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a
sea of troubles
And, by opposing end
them. To die, to sleep—No
more—and by a sleep to
say we end…
The famous passage by
Claudius (3.3.40)
O, my offence is rank it smells
to heaven;
It hath the primal eldest curse
upon't,
A brother's murder. Pray can
not,
Though inclination be as sharp
as will:
My stronger guilt defeats my
strong intent…
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Elizabethan Era
 interest in humanist philosophy, radical changes
in ideas about religion
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Most performed and translated play in the
world. Inspired more parodies than any other
literary work.
Great play because of its eloquent speeches
and examination of the value of life
Claims: Do you deal directly with your question in a definitive way? 5pts
Do you make a presentation that is original and thought provoking? 5pts
Are your ideas correct? 5pts
Do your ideas work together to support one common theme? 10pts
Data:
Do you cite your text at least five times?
5pts
Have you researched information regarding your book? 5pts
Have you researched information regarding your author? 5pts
Can you effectively discuss your data and present clearly? 10pts
Warrant: Do you state why your book matters in a classroom? 10pts
Do you state why your book matters to British literature? 10pts
Balanced group presentation and involvement 10pts
Materials for presentation: handouts, pictures, visuals 10pts
Presentation preparedness and style 10pts
Total Points Possible: 100