I have begun teaching a unit on Romeo and Juliet to my Standard 9 students. We spend a few days on pre-reading material: biographical info on Shakespeare, dissecting language, etc. We spent the 80-minute class period on Monday stomping the rhythm of iambic pentameter* before reading a Shakespearean sonnet. Although the lesson wasn't everything I had dreamed, my dysfunctional standard class actually seemed to understand meter and the sonnet.
On Friday we began class with a feud (using only Shakespearean insults, of course) before reading the Prologue. Not all students notice that it is a sonnet, so I usually lead them to it.
"So, the Prologue has fourteen lines, is written in iambic pentameter, and has a very particular rhyme scheme, so it is a..." With upturned palms, I signaled a collective response from the class; instead, my prompt was received by slouched shoulders, glazed-over expressions, and even a few speckles of drool on the corners of mouths.
"...sonnet," I finished.
*I can't take credit for the idea of stomping iambic pentameter. See the lesson at the Folger Shakespeare Library Website.
No comments:
Post a Comment