| Aim:
This curriculum web is designed for 9th grade students to conduct online
research for background information necessary for their understanding
of the play, Romeo and Juliet, and to collaborate in discussing their
research and producing a high quality product which clearly demonstrates
their findings.
Rationale:
Most high school students in the United States are introduced
to Shakespeare and his famous tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, in the 9th grade.
Because students meet the famous bard for the first time during this school
year, it is extremely important that they get a solid basis of understanding
of the man, his times, the Elizabethan culture, and the theater of his day.
Throughout a unit of study covering Romeo and Juliet, students most likely
explore materials provided by the teacher and investigate as part of small
research projects or WebQuests the background information necessary to step
into Shakespeare’s world and become acclimated to all that shaped his famous
works and productions.
This curriculum web is designed to help students synthesize all of
the information they have gathered in a unit of study on Romeo and Juliet and
present it in a creative way that requires them to work collaboratively.
Most students have been to modern productions and have received a Playbill.
Those who have not can easily be informed about the uses of a Playbill by
simply providing them with an example of one picked up from any local theater
or brought in by other students. A Playbill gives an audience not only a
list of characters and the summary of scenes, but also provides background
information on the writer, gives information about the theater and its house
rules, and includes one or more articles on some aspect of modern culture.
Requiring students to produce a Playbill makes it easy for them to bring
together researched information into one final product.
This curriculum web will require students to use the Internet to
research aspects of Shakespeare’s life and times, the Globe Theater, and the
play, Romeo and Juliet. Today’s students must know how to navigate the World
Wide Web, search for needed information, and filter through unreliable
sources. By requiring them to research using the Internet, students will
gain and enhance these skills.
Students must learn how to work collaboratively in order to produce a
final graded product. They must see themselves as important in contributing
to a group effort and must be held accountable for their role in the final
outcome. This curriculum web requires collaboration. Whether students like
it or not, they will be asked to work with and get along with people of
various backgrounds and personality types throughout their lives.
Heterogeneous groupings working together to complete a project provide safe
opportunities for students to agree and disagree but still reach consensus.
Goals and Objectives:
1) To provide students with a guided research activity that will improve
their understanding of Shakespeare, his times, and his theater.
2) To increase web site fact-finding skills among 9th grade students for
future use in high school and college research.
3) To help students synthesize material into a final document.
4) To introduce Shakespeare’s famous tragedy, Romeo and Juliet, and provide
necessary background for a broader understanding of the play.
5) To provide a safe environment for collaboration and learning group
dynamics.
Prerequisites:
*The school must have a computer lab with connection to the internet or
students must have school issued laptop computers which can be connected
wirelessly to the world wide web.
*Students must have basic computer skills and a general understanding of the
internet and how to locate websites.
*Student folders within the school’s computer system for students to save
their written work and produce the final documents
*Students need to have a basic understanding of research techniques, MLA
specifications for parenthetical insertion and citing sources in a Works
Cited page.
Materials:
•School computers through a computer lab or classroom computers, one for
every student.
•Access to the internet and the correct web address for the curriculum web
http://www.teacherweb.com/VA/TabbHighSchool/RomeoandJulietPlaybill/uh6.stm
•Hard copy of the sample Playbill for students to see as a model of their
final product (available as a Word Document download)
•A grading rubric for each student’s assessment once the final project is
completed (found under Evaluation on the home page of the curriculum web)
•3X5 note cards that the students bring from home or that you provide
Instructional Plan:
•Reserve the school’s computer lab for three class periods.
•Ensure that the curriculum website is up and running smoothly.
•During the class before taking students to the computer lab, introduce
students to the assignment with a hardcopy of the playbill and show them
the curriculum website as a whole class (dropdown screen, LCD projector,
teacher computer). This will ensure their familiarity with the site and the
places they will need to go to get worksheets or needed information. Also
review the grading rubric!
•Assign students to heterogeneous groups of three.
•Ask students to bring in 3X5 notecards (or provide them yourself) for
writing down bibliographical information on their sites and for recording
researched information for use in their writing.
•Review the Acceptable Use Policy and go over expectations for using the
school computers.
•Ensure that each student has a working access code or password.
•Assign students to computers. Take them to the lab and monitor their
research. Answer questions and facilitate the lab time.
•Collect final playbills and give students grades based on the established
rubrics (see Evaluation).
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