Romeo and Juliet: Character Analysis
of Romeo
This is meant for grades 9-10 and
takes 50 minutes
By: Max Thiede
Lesson Description: Using Romeo and Juliet, we will examine the personality of Romeo from
“Romeo and Juliet”. Students will present
a trait they see in Romeo and Juliet, including those that conflict. They will be required to back up their
arguments using textual evidence when talking about Juliet. They will also know how to look up this trait in a dictionary.
Text Description: Romeo
and Juliet is a tragedy about two young lovers named Romeo and Juliet. They
wish to marry, but their parents forbid it due to a fierce rivalry. Once Romeo
and Juliet both die for each other, their parents reconcile their differences. It
is written written by William Shakespeare.
Learning Objectives
|
CCSS Addressed
|
Children will be able to explain,
using sources from the text, what kind of character they think Juliet is, and
why they believe that he is how they describe.
|
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.1: Cite
strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text
says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
|
Children will be able to think about
all the ways Romeo and Juliet are described by classmates and come to a
decision that either justifies the adjective they use to describe Romeo or
Juliet, or is contrary to it.
|
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.D: Respond
thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and
disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and
understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning
presented.
|
Children will be able to look up words
in the dictionary, understand their meaning and learn how to pronounce them.
|
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.9-10.4.C: Consult
general and specialized reference materials (e.g., dictionaries, glossaries,
thesauruses), both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or
determine or clarify its precise meaning, its part of speech, or its
etymology.
|
Pre-Teaching Procedure: Group Discussion (10 minutes)
1. Begin the class by talking about how they felt about the story and how they think about the characters. Are they smart? Are they good? Are they bad?
2. Ask the class how they feel about Romeo.
a. Explore the ways the students describe him.
b. Make students wonder, if they haven’t already, if Romeo is a reasonable person.
i. This is done by offering examples of Romeo contrary to the ones they bring up. For example, if they are talking about how loyal Romeo is, bring up Rosaline.
3. CCSS Objectives that can be taught : CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.D
a. In the discussion students will be given several diverse perspectives on how Romeo is viewed. Some may agree and disagree on how Romeo is described and will have to “Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning presented.” Through the ten tips for facilitating large group discussions” the teacher is presenting ways that a student can engage in this topic while adhering to CCSS. (McCann 15)
4. Rationale: In “Talking in Class” by Thomas McCann, McCann reminds us that “Meir reminds us that active, frequent engagement in meaningful discussion not only promotes learning of the skills and substance of a particular subject but fosters an environment of tolerance critical thinking, and democratic spirit” (McCann 5). In my class I am trying to create a space where everyone feels accepted. I ask how they feel about the script to make sure that they are ready for a more intermediate discussion on how they feel about a particular character. I intend to follow the “ten tips for facilitating large group discussions” (McCann 15) to ensure that every student feels like they are contributing to the conversation. This discussion will also help students think about the next project they have later on in the class.
Teaching Activity: Walkthrough (9 minutes)
1. As a class, agree on one word that describes Romeo.
2. Have the class find one scene to that proves that this word describes Romeo, if they haven’t already figured one out.
3. As a class, then we will look that word up in the dictionary, with the teacher explaining how to look things up in a dictionary, step by step.
4. At the end, the teacher presents what the class did. This will include the following things:
a. Who the character is
b.The word
c. Its definition in the dictionary
d. Proving that this word is true by citing dialogue from the text.
EXAMPLE:
Character: Romeo
Word: Brave
Definition: Ready to face and endure danger or pain; showing courage
Cited Source: "Tybalt, here slain, whom Romeo's hand did slay;"
Connection: Romeo is willing to fight Tybalt, proving he is ready to face danger
3. CCSS Objectives met: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.1 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.9-10.4.C
a. Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
b. Students are required to “Consult general and specialized reference materials both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or determine or clarify its precise meaning.” They do this by using the dictionary they are given.
a. Who the character is
b.The word
c. Its definition in the dictionary
d. Proving that this word is true by citing dialogue from the text.
EXAMPLE:
Character: Romeo
Word: Brave
Definition: Ready to face and endure danger or pain; showing courage
Cited Source: "Tybalt, here slain, whom Romeo's hand did slay;"
Connection: Romeo is willing to fight Tybalt, proving he is ready to face danger
5. CCSS Objectives being taught: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.1, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.9-10.4.C
a. Students are being taught how to analyze a text by finding a quote that supports their argument.
b. Students are being taught to “Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning”. They can use me as an example to follow.
c. While it is only the print, students are being taught on how to “consult general and specialized material to find the pronunciation of the word… [and] clarify its precise meaning.” Finding words using digital material can be done in another lesson.
6. Rationale:
a. As McCann says: “Another strategy for encouraging more authentic discussion of literature is to help students learn to run and participate in discussions on their own without the teacher leading.” (McCann 83) By teaching them how to do this before, they can focus more on participating in a deeper discussion.
1. Split the students into groups of 4-5. Each group must come up with a unique word that they think best describes Juliet. As a group, it is their job to prove that this word correctly describes Juliet.
1. The Presentation will include the following:
a. The word
b. Its definition in the dictionary
c. Proving that this word describes the character by citing two sources from the text.
a. Students are being taught how to analyze a text by finding a quote that supports their argument.
b. Students are being taught to “Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning”. They can use me as an example to follow.
c. While it is only the print, students are being taught on how to “consult general and specialized material to find the pronunciation of the word… [and] clarify its precise meaning.” Finding words using digital material can be done in another lesson.
6. Rationale:
a. As McCann says: “Another strategy for encouraging more authentic discussion of literature is to help students learn to run and participate in discussions on their own without the teacher leading.” (McCann 83) By teaching them how to do this before, they can focus more on participating in a deeper discussion.
Learning Activity 1: Small Group Discussion (17 minutes)
1. Split the students into groups of 4-5. Each group must come up with a unique word that they think best describes Juliet. As a group, it is their job to prove that this word correctly describes Juliet.
1. The Presentation will include the following:
a. The word
b. Its definition in the dictionary
c. Proving that this word describes the character by citing two sources from the text.
3. CCSS Objectives met: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.1 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.9-10.4.C
a. Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
b. Students are required to “Consult general and specialized reference materials both print and digital, to find the pronunciation of a word or determine or clarify its precise meaning.” They do this by using the dictionary they are given.
4. Rationale:
a. The presentation format is kept the same, because as McCann says: “Another strategy for encouraging more authentic discussion of literature is to help students learn to run and participate in discussions on their own without the teacher leading.” (McCann 83) By teaching them how to do this before, they can focus on how the issue at hand.I am focusing on Juliet, as it is possible that all information on Romeo has been exhausted by the class in the time we spoke, and students might just copy my work and do nothing else.
b. I am also following strategies from “Talking in Class” because “students learn best when they are involved and can contribute to the lesson”. (McCann 35) For those too nervous to speak in large groups, these small groups can help them learn the best possible way they can, with an alleviation of nervousness. I am using the “Planning and Managing Small Group Discussion”(McCann 35) to ensure that students feel ready to talk in these small groups.
a. This does not have to be done in a professional manner.
2. CCSS Objectives met: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.D:
a. During this writing response, students are expected to “Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning presented.”
3. Rationale:
a. According to Adlit.org, “Exit Slips help students reflect on what they have learned and express what or how they are thinking about the new information.” Because the students were just bombarded with a lot of new information in the presentations, I would like to take this as an opportunity for the children to think about how characters can be described. The second is because “while some students can readily express their ideas verbally, other students… may be reluctant to share their responses.” (Beach 188) Up until the exit slip, most of the dialogue has been with others. To ensure that these low level participants are given a place to do express their opinions without the anxiety that can come public expression, they are given these freewrites.
Central Focus: Being able to express how which characterize people is very important. Knowing how a character works allows for a deeper understanding of the character and analysis of themes. If a student begins to think about a character in a different light, an entire story is changed. Romeo and Juliet’s relationship could go from true love to truly idiots, and neither of these opinions are wrong. This leads me to the CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.D, as I believe that children will have a lot of different opinions on these characters ranging from annoying to romantic, and as long as can argue it well, it’s not wrong. I have chosen both Romeo and Juliet as my two main characters to be analyzed because they both have the most amounts of lines, and are present throughout the novel. This should give students more than enough examples to find in the text that support their ideas. Though, due to the open ended nature of my lesson, if the class finds a different character particularly divisive, we could to it on them instead, and not much would change.
Pedagogy: According to Talking in Class “Cognitive psychologists observe that meaningful interaction among students is not just a philosophically attractive aspect of school; it is essential to learning” (McCann 5). Not only this, but also “discussion helps us put thoughts together and sometimes discover what we know.” (McCann 8) Everyone has an opinion on anything, so I know that these students will have them on characters from Romeo and Juliet as well. I am just helping them realize their own skills and hone their ability to make arguments. This is why I made sure to have group discussion, then small groups, then singular. I give them the most guidance, to help them show their own prowess. That courage and scaffolding allows them to be a bit more talkative in their small groups, where they can go deeper and examine their feelings intimately. Lastly, they are given thoughts to themselves in order to reflect on their now known knowledge. This is done for two main reasons. The first reason is to make sure the student can “Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning presented.” As this is one of the main objectives of the course. The second is because “while some students can readily express their ideas verbally, other students… may be reluctant to share their responses.” (Beach 188) Up until the exit slip, most of the dialogue has been with others. To ensure that these low level participants are given a place to do express their opinions without the anxiety that can come public expression, they are given these freewrites.
a. The presentation format is kept the same, because as McCann says: “Another strategy for encouraging more authentic discussion of literature is to help students learn to run and participate in discussions on their own without the teacher leading.” (McCann 83) By teaching them how to do this before, they can focus on how the issue at hand.I am focusing on Juliet, as it is possible that all information on Romeo has been exhausted by the class in the time we spoke, and students might just copy my work and do nothing else.
b. I am also following strategies from “Talking in Class” because “students learn best when they are involved and can contribute to the lesson”. (McCann 35) For those too nervous to speak in large groups, these small groups can help them learn the best possible way they can, with an alleviation of nervousness. I am using the “Planning and Managing Small Group Discussion”(McCann 35) to ensure that students feel ready to talk in these small groups.
Learning Activity 2: Exit Slip (7 minutes)
1. Each student will reflect on what they think of Romeo or Juliet as a character and how it changed over today.a. This does not have to be done in a professional manner.
2. CCSS Objectives met: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.D:
a. During this writing response, students are expected to “Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning presented.”
3. Rationale:
a. According to Adlit.org, “Exit Slips help students reflect on what they have learned and express what or how they are thinking about the new information.” Because the students were just bombarded with a lot of new information in the presentations, I would like to take this as an opportunity for the children to think about how characters can be described. The second is because “while some students can readily express their ideas verbally, other students… may be reluctant to share their responses.” (Beach 188) Up until the exit slip, most of the dialogue has been with others. To ensure that these low level participants are given a place to do express their opinions without the anxiety that can come public expression, they are given these freewrites.
Overall Rationale:
Central Focus: Being able to express how which characterize people is very important. Knowing how a character works allows for a deeper understanding of the character and analysis of themes. If a student begins to think about a character in a different light, an entire story is changed. Romeo and Juliet’s relationship could go from true love to truly idiots, and neither of these opinions are wrong. This leads me to the CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.9-10.1.D, as I believe that children will have a lot of different opinions on these characters ranging from annoying to romantic, and as long as can argue it well, it’s not wrong. I have chosen both Romeo and Juliet as my two main characters to be analyzed because they both have the most amounts of lines, and are present throughout the novel. This should give students more than enough examples to find in the text that support their ideas. Though, due to the open ended nature of my lesson, if the class finds a different character particularly divisive, we could to it on them instead, and not much would change.
Pedagogy: According to Talking in Class “Cognitive psychologists observe that meaningful interaction among students is not just a philosophically attractive aspect of school; it is essential to learning” (McCann 5). Not only this, but also “discussion helps us put thoughts together and sometimes discover what we know.” (McCann 8) Everyone has an opinion on anything, so I know that these students will have them on characters from Romeo and Juliet as well. I am just helping them realize their own skills and hone their ability to make arguments. This is why I made sure to have group discussion, then small groups, then singular. I give them the most guidance, to help them show their own prowess. That courage and scaffolding allows them to be a bit more talkative in their small groups, where they can go deeper and examine their feelings intimately. Lastly, they are given thoughts to themselves in order to reflect on their now known knowledge. This is done for two main reasons. The first reason is to make sure the student can “Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, summarize points of agreement and disagreement, and, when warranted, qualify or justify their own views and understanding and make new connections in light of the evidence and reasoning presented.” As this is one of the main objectives of the course. The second is because “while some students can readily express their ideas verbally, other students… may be reluctant to share their responses.” (Beach 188) Up until the exit slip, most of the dialogue has been with others. To ensure that these low level participants are given a place to do express their opinions without the anxiety that can come public expression, they are given these freewrites.
Works Cited:
McCann,
Thomas M. Talking in Class: Using Discussion to Enhance Teaching and Learning.
Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English, 2006. Print.
Shakespeare,
William, and David Garrick. Romeo and Juliet. London: Cornmarket P., 1969.
Print.
Anonymous.
"All About Adolescent Literacy." Exit Slips. Adlit.org, unknown. Web.
17 Apr. 2016. <http://www.adlit.org/strategies/19805/>.
Shakespeare,
William. Romeo and Juliet. Ed. Dympna Callaghan. Boston: Bedford Books/St. Martin’s
Press, 2003.
Fisher, D.,
and Frey, N. (2004). Improving Adolescent Literacy: Strategies at Work. New
Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Beach,
Richard. Teaching Literature to Adolescents. Mahwah, NJ: L. Erlbaum Associates,
2006. Print.
