How you will be marked:
1. Take notes from lectures on
Shakespearean Theatre, Language; kingship, witchcraft and omens,
symbolism. Include your reflections as well as copied information (5
pts. per day, must be present).
2. Interview a character from the play
EXCLUDING Macbeth or Lady Macbeth. Write down five questions you would
ask and five answers this character would give based on his/her actions
in the play so far.
3. In a conference with the teacher,
pass an oral quiz based on one act of the play demonstrating your
knowledge of plot, character, setting and language. You may not
use this act for either quiz in step 8.
4. Create an emotion/motivation web for
ANY one character in the play with at least five branches. For each
branch give evidence and a personal response.
5. Create a cartoon storyboard for
one act of the play (not including Act I).
6. Create a one-page diary entry for one
character that you have not written about elsewhere in this level,
detailing his/her actions, emotions and desires at a specific point in
the play. Establish that point with vivid description.
7. Create a 1 ½ page modern translation
of important dialogue between Macbeth and Banquo, Macbeth and Lady
Macbeth, Macbeth and the Witches, or Malcolm and MacDuff. Include a
paragraph personal comment on how this dialogue has affected you.
8. With a partner: independently
prepare a quiz on one act, give this to your partner and mark it. Your
partner will also independently prepare a quiz for you to take. Quizzes
may be on same or different acts. Offer comments on interesting aspects
of the quizzes, and hand these in with the quizzes.
9. Create and perform a song that
symbolizes and suits a scene from the play. Emphasize appropriate mood.
10. Create a One minute radio ad for a
remake of Macbeth, emphasizing information that will sell, lead actors,
suspense, mood, issues....
11. Partners: Independently
create a flashcard game with ten new vocabulary words. On the back of
each card include a definition and the word in its context in a line
from the play. Identity the act, scene and line for each word. Your
partner will create a game with ten other words. Complete each other’s
games and suggest improvements. Record these suggestions and hand them
in with the games.
12. Write a one page summary of an act,
excluding Act 1.
13. Create a map of the action of the
play. Include illustrations and comments to identify at least seven
details from the play.
14. Create an artistic representation
(drawing, sculpture, collage) that includes at least three clearly
written relevant pieces of text (quotation or description), of any
character from the play. If you choose the witches you may include all
three.
15. This assignment has two parts:
1. Write a well developed
paragraph explaining what integrity means to you. Use examples from
your own life, our community, society at large and history to support
your answer.
2.
Using your answer to #1 as a reference, create a piece of found poetry
on the theme of integrity. Look through newspapers, websites,
shows and movies for words, phrases, and if you wish, pictures, that
develop your theme. You may arrange your found items with punctuation,
connecting words to form complete statement(s), or arrange them
thoughtfully with no extras on the page. Give careful
consideration to the order in which your reader will see/read your
items for maximum impact.
B Layer: Choose Two (10 Points each)
How you will be marked:
Here are your choices:
1. Write a letter to Macbeth
explaining why you either agree or disagree with specific actions he
has taken (respecting Duncan, Banquo, Macduff’s family, etc). Advise
Macbeth on what he should do next and why.
2. Have a five minute conference
with your teacher about why you think one of the characters (your
choice) in the play acts in a certain way. Include at least
three examples from the book in your explanation.
3. In one page, compare a
conflict you have had personally with one that appears in the play.
What is similar about the two conflicts? What is different? How does
your conflict help you to understand what is happening in the play?
4. Choose an event from the play
you find powerful. Write a personal reflection poem, using one of the
forms of poetry from our poetry unit, that expresses your feelings and
aims to produce those feelings in the reader, OR write a song that does
this and perform it for the class. You may not do both numbers
4 and 8. Look carefully at both.
6. Watch the Greta Scacchi
version of Macbeth. Find at least 3 divergences between film
and play text. Explain what these inconsistencies are, and why you
think the production team may have made these choices. Discuss what may
have been lost and gained in effectiveness through these choices, with
at least three references to the play text. Finally, discuss the
challenges and opportunities that would face you as a contemporary
director of a new version of Macbeth.
7. In a small group (3)
write a one page conversation amongst the witches as they discuss
what effect their prophecies may have on Macbeth’s actions and why.
Consider the following as you work together: Does he have any choice in
how he responds? How much are the witches manipulating him, and how
much are they testing him? How ironic is their understanding? How do
the witches understand the extent and limits of their own power?
Independently, work up a draft of important statements as one of the
witches using two references from the play, which will be handed in. In
your final trialogue, offer reasons for different courses of action on
the part of the witches. Use at least three references to the play in
your trialogue. Perform your “trialogue” for the class. You will self
assess the quality of your group work.
8. Imagine you are a medieval poet creating a Beowulf-style account of the final battle at Dunsinane. Using at least 8 details from the play, plus caesuras and kennings and anything else you learned about Anglo Saxon poetry during our poetry unit, create a vivid, atmospheric testament to the valour and bloodshed of all involved. Your poem should be about a page long and gripping. Please consider sharing it with the class or letting the teacher or another student perform it.
9. In a small group (3-5) using
bristol board, powerpoint or another medium, create a Macbeth version
of Jeopardy, and supervise the class in the game. Each person is
responsible for creating an equal share of a total of 50 questions. You
will self-evaluate your group work.
10. Use your preferred intelligence path to create a response to the play. Choose One:
Pursuing the implications and consequences of characters’ actions and reactions through the plot, create a consequential (role-playing, NOT snakes-and-ladders) board game. Make the game in a format that can be copied easily (playing board no bigger than 11x 17, no three dimensional details) so the class can take time out to play it in several groups.
What is meant by nature/supernature in Macbeth? How should nature be treated, and what happens when nature is mistreated? Write a two page report, using evidence from the play and illustrations (downloaded or cut out are fine).
How is extended metaphor used in the play? For characterization? For humour? For logical effect? Explain in detail three extended metaphors from the play.
In a small group (3 – 5), create a
soundtrack for Macbeth. Each of you will choose an appropriate
song that you feel defines a different, important moment in the play.
Independently copy the lyrics for your song and explain, in one page,
and with at least three references to the scene and relevant
characters, how this song speaks for the dramatic moment you have
chosen. With your teacher, arrange a time for your group to present
your songs to the class, with a brief introduction for each. You will
self-evaluate the quality of your group work.
Block a scene from the play for maximum physical drama. You will lead a blocking rehearsal using members of the class, with input from the class (and the teacher’s support).
Analyze the conflict Macbeth undergoes within himself. Create a graphic chart to categorize and link the influences, drives and beliefs operating in his mind throughout the play. Finally, connect the personality portrait you have created to behaviours and attitudes you see in contemporary life, according their relevance.
Chart the principles, events and emotions contributing to the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth from the play’s start to Macbeth’s response on hearing of his wife’s death.
Create a set for the play in which
students may present their activities, within our classroom. Write a
page explaining in detail how your choices relate to themes and
requirements of the play.
A Layer: Choose Two (10 points each)
How you will be marked:
Here are your choices:
1. Imagine that you know someone
who is unscrupulous about getting what they want from others, and you
want to persuade this person that this is a poor attitude to have.
Write a three page conversation using examples from the play and the
real world in order to convince this person that their
assumptions/course of action are wrong. Carefully argue both sides of
the point, so that your argument will actually hold water against an
intelligent opponent.
2. Find a newspaper, magazine
article, news clip, etc., on a current or recent corruption-related
issue. Write a personal response to this issue from the perspective of
three different characters from Macbeth. Each response should
be one page long. Include for each a list of references from the play
(briefly described, not just act/scene/line) that make you think each
character would respond in this way.
3. Develop and perform a
monologue for one character from the play that includes information
from the play and extends it. What are the daily concerns and habits of
this character that would make him/her respond in the play as s/he
does? This monologue should be at least two minutes long and leave us
understanding the character better.
4. With a partner, meet with the
teacher and “trial” the play. One partner should try to persuade the
teacher that this is a play worth studying. The other should argue that
this is not a piece worth studying. Each person needs to discuss theme,
language, character development, interest level, and relevance of the
issues to today’s readers/theatregoers. Each person should also include
at least 5 direct references to the play. You will self-evaluate your
group skills.
5. Create a webquest featuring a
minimum of 10 websites which a student studying Macbeth might
visit in order to gain a better understanding of the context of the
play. For each website, write 5 sentences explaining the strengths and
weaknesses of the site, what aspects of the play it illuminates, and
how. Create an evaluation scale according to your sense of helpfulness
and interest, and use this to rank each website.
6. Answer the following
whole-play questions, in sentences and paragraphs, using quotations and
direct references to events in the play:
a) Describe the duties and privileges of those in power in the world of the play, and compare the strengths and weaknesses of Duncan, Macbeth, Malcolm and King Edward according to this expectation.
b) Trace femininity and masculinity as they are developed in the play. Then, consider this: Lady Macbeth is often portrayed as a temptress who wields sexual power to gain political power, and Macbeth’s vulnerability to her influence is often portrayed in sexual terms. Can you see evidence to support this interpretation? What other interpretations are possible?
c) Give an in-depth portrait explaining the motives, style and significance of a secondary character in the play (the porter, Macduff’s wife, the assassins)
d) Trace at least three of the ironies that run through the play.
e) Give an overview of the role of magic in the play. Consider what magic implies about the importance of various features of the story, and what would be lost without it.
f)
Research the writing and earliest productions of Macbeth. Consider your
knowledge of Old English culture and poetry. What differences were
there between the time period in which it was set, and that in which is
was performed?
7. Revise Macbeth for your
generation:
a) Conduct a survey of all classmates
concerning the value of the play Macbeth. To do this, create a list of
ten questions that tackle specific themes and their relevance to your
peers’ learning. Compile notes for each respondent in a clear,
respectful manner (see your teacher if you require photocopies of the
questionnaire you produce).
b) Prepare a clear report using clear
and Macbeth-friendly graphs to summarise your findings.
c) Reviewing major concerns of your
classmates and your own ideas about the play, consider production
choices that would make for a powerful new remake of the play
Macbeth. Prepare a clear and interesting proposal for your new
production.
d) Present your survey and your proposal
to the class, and field questions and comments.